You Are the Master of Your Own Health

Traditional Medicine has made so many advances over what was known even 100 years ago. Life-saving surgical techniques, and treatments in some areas that we take for granted today were not even dreamed of in past years. Yet in many situations, traditional medicine either offers no solution, or offers solutions that are fraught with undesirable long-term side effects and bring only partial relief, and moreover do not actually correct the underlying problem or “root cause.” Without question, relief is enormously important and a great gift when one is disabled by severe and acute symptoms be they physical or emotional, and often this is where medicine shines. But, when longer term solutions are called for, this is the time when your own proactive participation in your healthcare makes a critical difference for success in optimal resolution of health issues.

When you go to the doctor, a well-trained and caring doctor, he or she surely gives you their best advice, based upon their learning and experience. There is, however, a world beyond traditional medicine of which your traditional doctor may not be aware, or at least fully aware. Physicians learn a limited amount in training, medical school or post-graduate studies which is not related to hospital-based procedures and the proper use of the tools created by the pharmaceutical industry. Ongoing teaching is offered and conducted by drug representatives form medical office-to-office, and most continuing medical education conferences highlighting new pharmaceutical developments. This is important and useful information, to be sure.

But beyond this world lies the world of many choices, other options, a world that often offers ways to reduce the use of drugs still achieving success, ways to correct problems that cannot be solved through medicine, that perhaps cannot even be diagnosed through traditional medicine, a world that focuses not on disease treatment but on optimizing health and preventing illness. THIS is the world of functional medicine and its other partners in the broad category of holistic/alternative medicine. Rarely will the options from this “world” be presented in the office of traditional practitioners, and they may not even be sanctioned, as this is not part of the traditional training, and may seem foreign or “anti-medicine”. But this is far from the truth. Functional medicine is simply a way to look at medical concerns that embraces no one solution or model, and looks for the least invasive, most natural approach that works. The operational philosophy of functional medicine is “Can we figure out what is functionally ‘broken’ and fix it? Do we need to remove ‘something bad’ that is causing issues (e.g., a virus, toxins, certain foods, bad gut bacteria, dangerous metals such as lead and mercury, overweight)? Do we have to add something that’s missing (e.g. certain nutrients, lacking hormones, exercise, sleep) to bring the dysfunctional body/person back into physical and /or mental balance?” The principles are easy to understand, and the solutions, though time consuming, are usually simple, natural, and long-lasting.

This is where YOU and your MASTERY come in. When faced with a medical challenge, and you get your doctor’s directives, these are their learned opinions, based on what they have been taught. But to achieve best, enduring results, especially for chronic problems, it is often well to consider other options. Read. Explore. In many cases, non-pharmaceutical answers are out there, answers that can resolve “unsolvable” issues and set you up for a more vibrant, overall healthier, even a longer life. Functional medicine is especially helpful in certain areas: Gut health, fatigue, blood sugar problems, hormonal imbalances, psychological problems, auto-immune disease, and immune system compromise. It looks into a whole other range of health variables not explored traditionally – adrenal function, food sensitivities, heavy metal and environmental toxicity, nutrient status – clear-cut health influences often ignored in the traditional medical setting. But without your SEEKING this medicine, and its partners – homeopathy, naturopathy, acupuncture, massage therapy, energy therapies, and many others – this other point of view, this other REALM of medicine, this other VAST array of choices that exist and are very real will not materialize for you. This is the classic case of “Seek and you will find.” It’s YOUR health. You and YOU ALONE are ultimately in charge of finding and making the best choices. I encourage you to seek. The more you know…..

Robin Ellen Leder, M.D., has been practicing functional/holistic medicine since first training by the side of Dr. Robert Atkins (“The Atkins Diet”) after graduating from Brown University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She has taken countless post-graduate courses in all areas of this field, and has a certificate from a psychoanalytic institute. At her Hackensack office, she has treated thousands of patients successfully, using the innovative tests and approaches that are integral parts of functional medicine (dietary change, supplement protocols, IV therapies, detox treatments, behavioral programs, counseling), addressing such issues as fatigue, the gut microbiome, thyroid/adrenal insufficiency, hormone imbalance, auto-immune disorders, psychological/behavioral issues, and autism spectrum disorders

Tags: functional medicine, holistic medicine, Robin Ellen Leder, traditional medicine