Working With My Functional Medicine Doctor- Week 1!
So what is it like working with a Functional Medicine Doctor? In addition to my first week break down, I’ll lay out what working together looks like so far to me. Prior to starting the first week we had an initial consultation. Part of this consultation, included letting my new doctor review my most recent blood work, if I chose and discussing what’s been going on with my body and what my goals were to be. Because I had just had my annual appointment with full work up, I gladly sent him a copy of the disappointing results. In addition to the blood work, I sent a detailed summary of my medical history that I had written out. I started with my first surgery at age 4, removal of tonsils at age 8 and everything medical up to now. I also included key stressors in my life, allergies, and any issues I was seeing with my skin. The Initial Consultation Once I sent those files and the doctor, he took some time to review them. Next, we did a zoom call and spoke a bit more and I clarified any questions he had. Next, he got to work on my prescription. The doctor even followed up with a couple of emails for additional questions before he completed my protocol/prescription. I was very impressed by that! It made me feel as if he was really digging and putting something together that was very specific to my needs. I felt the doctor was very personable and thorough. My Goals Following our discussions we set my goals to: The Prescription The prescription I received was began with my stopping all the supplements that I initially put myself on. I also dropped my Sertraline from 50mg to 25mg. Additionally, within my prescription I received a list of new supplements provided by my doctor to help bring my body back into balance and to supplement the things I’m currently missing and Sertraline that was being lowered. We will work on weening me completely off Sertraline in 3-4 weeks. Even though the supplements did cost a bit, but I felt that would be partially offset by stopping ordering my current ones. The supplement prescription also stated it’s not a permanent, so the extra outgoing money is worth it to me. Within the prescription the doctor explained what he was seeing with my bloodwork, medical history and other issues that I had laid out to him. My doctor clearly explained what he wanted me to do and why in a very detailed plan. When I have my next consultation meeting, at the beginning of August, we look at the progress made toward my goals and adjust as needed. Nutrition Supplement Protocol We will be working on fixing my stressed Adrenal glands, which are the cause of my Thyroid disfunction. In addition, we will be working on evening out my Estrogen/Progesterone mix. Due to these issues we decided to use a Nutrition Supplement Protocol to start. We are keeping it simple, for the first four weeks. I will be doing a 17/7 intermittent fast, eating all my calories within 7 hours, trying to keep it to 2 meals. While my doctor doesn’t really like counting calories and Macros he did provide a calorie, protein, and carb suggestion for me to use as a baseline. Of course I was also provided with a list of foods to keep my diet to in these first four weeks. Thankfully the list is very large and I enjoy most of the foods listed, so there’s no worry of boredom. The diet is pretty much a Paleo/Keto style, which should result in helping to speed up my initial progress. Also, for the first two weeks I will be keeping dairy out of my diet. However, I can add in some high quality dairy during the 3rd week while monitoring how my body reacts to it. Exercise Protocol My exercise protocol is very simple and to the point. Week One Results Week one of working with my Functional Medicine Doctor had me eating ALOT of meat and eggs in an attempt to make my protein intake. At the beginning of the week, I had a hard time eating all of the meat, fruit and vegetables without getting full and still feeling full when it was time for my second meal. Even so, being full longer is not necessarily a bad thing. Focusing on high protein, low carbs and moderate fat leads to being full for longer periods reducing snacking between meals. Never the less, even with all this eating I was not hitting the minimum calories listed. I also missed my dairy, it helps me to get closer to my protein requirement, which I knew I wasn’t hitting anyway. (Not enough protein is a common female issue). In spite of those difficulties I did have the below sucesses: Key Takeaways What did I learn in my first week working with a Functional Medicine Doctor? Image by Freepik Stay tuned for week two summary and results early next week! (I’m currently mid way through week two right now) In the mean time, if you missed my article on why I chose to work with a Functional Medicine Doctor, check it out here.
Why I Chose a Functional Medicine Doctor
You may wonder, why I chose a Functional Medicine Doctor, instead of just going to my GP. I have written this post to explain just that. I have had {what I now know were} hormonal issues since about the 8th grade, in fact, probably before if I really think about it. In grade/high school it presented as undiagnosed depression, painful (sometimes debilitating) periods, pains in my sides and painful cystic acne. In college I put on the typical “Freshman fifteen”, stress increased and the issues from grade/high school persisted. After college, add in chronic sinus infections and fertility issues with blood work indicating PCOS. Around 2008, When my oldest was about 3 and my youngest was about 1.5 I was diagnosed with severe depression. Around 2019 my periods were getting more and more out of hand, (sorry to any men reading, next part is likely TMI) I would finish one cycle and be lucky if I had a week before another very painful, heavy cycle started. Each time I had these issues I would talk to my medical doctors. Each time I was put on some form of medication for the major issues or given suggestions on how to try to mitigate for the minor issues. In the case of the issues with my period my regular doctor ran some standard tests. These basic tests came back within “normal” range. Rather than looking deeper I would be told, “It’s just the way things are going to be”. The GP chalked it up to being to perimenopause. So, I took things into my own hands and went to see an OB specialist. Gave him my history and we decided a hysterectomy was right for me. So in August of 2020 I had a hysterectomy and had eliminated that issue. The problem? I’ve learned over the years that all my issues in the past are symptoms of a larger issue, hormones. By having a hysterectomy I got rid of one of the problems. However, that issue was actually just an indicator of a larger problem. My issue could have been fixed if we had focused on regulating my hormones. All the times I got a medicine, it was just a way to get rid of the “symptoms”. Yeah it fixed my initial issues (symptoms), but I have never addressed the underlying hormonal imbalance. Over the last several years, I’ve been trying to lose weight and get in the optimal weight zone for someone my age and height. Spending money on this fitness program, working with trainers (online), Exercising on my own, trying various ways of eating, etc. Every time, I lost a bit of weight, but never could get below one particular number and the minute I tried to eat differently, all the weight came back on plus some. Why? Because I still have unbalanced hormones. (And I have no idea what I’m doing) So why Functional Medicine? Why now? Why this particular Doctor? Lets answer these one by one. Why Functional Medicine? First, what is Functional medicine? Well, it’s a holistic, science-based approach to healthcare that focuses on restoring internal balance in order to achieve optimal health. I’m tired of covering up all my symptoms, being unable to lose weight, and going through bouts of depression. I want a complete reset on my hormones. I want to work with someone who has the experience to hear my issues and know what’s TRUELY the cause. Why now? Frankly, I’m tired of trying to piece together fixes on my own. Tired of spending oodles of money and getting minimal from it while the people I keep giving my money to don’t really care about my successes or failures. I’m just a order that goes out. I’m tired of guessing what works. I want to know for once and for all, what my body needs for success. I personally have a hard time asking for help, because I’m the one everyone always depends on when they need help. I’ve finally realized that it may be difficult, but it’s OK for me to ask for help. Why this particular Functional Medicine Doctor? I stumbled upon some information for a Doctor of Functional Medicine a month or so ago and I met with him using one of his free discovery calls. I really liked speaking with him and he advised that he thought he could help me. There was no pushing (like I’ve had with other programs I’ve felt pushed into). We left the meeting with him telling me he’d love to work with me if I choose and if/when I feel ready I could schedule one of his consultation options. When I left the meeting I searched around the internet for other Doctors of Functional Medicine. Both online or near me. However, I was fairly unimpressed with what I saw. One of the biggest issues for me is that I need to work with someone affordable pricing. But I need to know they have the experience too since insurance doesn’t cover this type of doctor and the cost will be out of pocket. I rarely saw any pricing for the consultations or what the pricing included. Or the ability to pay in installments. Most sites I visited did not list a price, but stated that the depends on the person’s individual needs. For me, that was worrisome due to my budget. Historically, when I haven’t seen a sort of up front estimate the people I worked with ended up being pushy and use guilt tactics to prod me to reluctantly agree to work with them. Literally using phrases and terms to make it seem that if you don’t do everything they say, you are saying you aren’t important and you aren’t worth it. The doctor I chose had his plan pricing, right on his webpage, and the option to pay in full or in installments. There was also a cavoite that a certain blood test and any supplements were not part of the consultation plan pricing. I was fine with that cavoite, since the test and supplements were optional and only suggested if the conversations we had indicated they would be helpful or needed. Another reason I chose my particular doctor was that he has 26 years of working in Functional Medicine. Many other’s I saw were much younger, with less experience. Since I have had bad experiences with people claiming to want to help, I was worried about getting wrapped up with someone who went into the business for the wrong reason. I didn’t want to deal with someone who just went into it because they knew it was growing in popularity and it would be a money maker for them. That may be completely wrong. However, I’ve been burned before like that. People who supposedly were going to work closely with me and then I get diddly squat for the amount of money I forked over. Final Words In the end I felt very comfortable with the doctor I chose as I felt comfortable with him when we spoke. I didn’t get the feeling he just was in the industry to sell more supplements and he’s got a lot of experience in this field. Now you know why I chose a Functional Medicine Doctor and why I chose this specific one. Going forward I’ll be posting about progressing through the consultation program I purchased and what happens beyond. I feel good and I know this is going to be worth it. Stay tuned!

About

After struggling with hormonal imbalances and difficulty losing weight for much of my life, spending oodles of money on supplements and fitness programs and being unhappy with the results; Talking to my doctors only to be put on a prescription or be told nothing’s wrong and it’s just the way it is. I’ve decided enough is enough and I made the decision to work with a Functional Medicine doctor to fix these imbalances once and for all and work toward a healthier lifestyle after 40. This is my place to document how things are going and what changes/benefits I’m seeing.