Go through the questions the first time without clicking to see my comments. Scoring instructions are below. After you have your score, go back a second time, and click on each question to understand how each issue relates to the path of functional medicine.
Do you want to find out the “how” and “why” behind your illness, not just the name and the pill to treat it? (Yes/No)
Functional medicine looks at the root causes of illness and restores health by addressing the underlying factors for each individual. In contrast, the goal of conventional medicine is to arrive at a diagnosis and treat symptoms and conditions with medications (or surgery).
Are you willing to be a partner in your health journey? (Yes/No)
The partnership between practitioner and patient is crucial to the success of functional medicine. We work together to find the underlying factors in symptoms and disease and also to come up with ways to address these root causes using methods that will work in your life. Functional medicine is not something done for you or to you. It is a process done with you.
Are you willing to change elements of your lifestyle (diet, exercise, stress, sleep) in order to improve your health? (Yes/No)
Some of the most effective interventions in functional medicine involve lifestyle changes such as eliminating problematic foods from the diet, adding therapeutic foods or nutritional supplements, starting movement/exercise programs, improving quality and length of sleep, and finding ways that work for you to help manage and minimize the adverse health effects of stress. If all you want is a pill for every ill, then functional medicine is not the approach for you.
Are you having symptoms not explained by mainstream medical diagnostic methods, and do you need help finding answers? (Yes/No)
Conventional medicine mainly focuses on finding a diagnosis to fit a collection of symptoms and treating it with pills, then sometimes treating the side effects from the pills with more pills. If your symptoms do not fit into a neat diagnosis, then often you are told “there is nothing wrong with you” or “it’s all in your head,” when you know by how you feel that there is indeed something wrong. In functional medicine we use extensive history taking, advanced lab testing, and an expansive toolkit to find answers to why you feel the way you do and help you on your path to attaining optimal health.
Are you interested in an individualized approach to your health rather than a “one size fits all” approach? (Yes/No)
Conventional medicine relies on treating everyone with the same condition in approximately the same way, according to rigid guidelines that may not be appropriate for everyone or tested in someone like you. Functional medicine looks at your personal underlying risk factors (genetic and environmental), current lifestyle factors, and advanced lab testing results and puts together a personalized plan just for you.
Do you want to proactively prevent certain conditions (such as autoimmune disease or cognitive decline) for which you may be genetically at risk? (Yes/No)
Scoring Instructions:
If you answered “Yes” to all of the questions, then functional medicine may be the right path for you!
If you answered “No” to any question, that may be an obstacle on your path if you choose to pursue functional medicine.
Click on each question to understand how each issue relates to the path of functional medicine.