Why Go Functional?
Gina Rogean, MSN, APRN
It was about 5 years. I wasn’t tired. I was exhausted. All the time. And I was doing all the right things. I found myself in a place where I needed help to fix this exhaustive state I was in. So, I made an appointment with my PCP.
Upon arrival, all the traditional questions were asked… “Are you sleeping enough? Are you stressed?” Then all the traditional comments were made… “Well, you’re a mom and you work. It’s normal to feel tired. You’re probably just depressed.” Then the traditional fix was given… “Here is your antidepressant prescription. It should help you feel better.”
Wait. What?! As I took the piece of paper and walked out, I thought to myself, “I’m not depressed. There has to be a better way!”
I went home and did some research. Then I asked around about Functional Medicine doctors in the area. When a friend recommended Dr. Massa, I quickly made an appointment.
Upon arrival, all the right questions were asked… “What do you eat in a day? How much water are you drinking? Do you take any supplements?” Then all the right comments were made… “I think you are doing great with your nutrition, hydration and sleep, let’s check your labs and see what we find.” Then the right direction was given… “Here is an order for your lab work. We will get to the bottom of this.”
She spent almost an hour with me. This is not traditional. Traditional is broken. Functional is what it says it is. It helps you function better and thrive. The practitioner gets to the root cause of the symptoms and doesn’t put a bandaid on them.
My labs showed that I was vitamin D deficient and my DHEA was in the tank. This is the process that enables people to thrive. This is the process that creates a patient-practitioner partnership. This is the answer to why go functional.