Conventional medicine excels at many things, but when it comes to complex female health problems, many women find themselves running from specialist to specialist with no answers. Functional medicine takes a different approach to women’s healthcare by providing individualized care to each patient. If you’re considering functional medicine, it’s essential to understand what it is and what to expect.
What is Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine takes a holistic approach to health and wellness. Rather than treating the symptoms of disease, functional medicine attempts to find the root cause of the problem and develop a treatment plan to address that cause, whether it’s a lifestyle, nutrition, environment, microbiome, genetics or a combination of factors.
The disease doesn’t typically appear overnight – it develops slowly over time. Unhealthy lifestyles, diets, habits and environments can slowly chip away at your health and give way to chronic or degenerative disease.
Functional medicine attempts to care for the whole person by focusing on restoring balance and adopting healthy habits. This goal is achieved by:
Identifying the root cause of the problem or the source(s) of the imbalance. Health questionnaires, physical exams, lab tests and a detailed medical history can provide helpful insight.
Eliminating the cause of the imbalance. This may entail making diet changes (e.g., making healthier food choices or eliminating food allergens), treating infections or finding ways to reduce stress.
Forming new healthy habits. For some patients, this means changing their diets entirely, adopting new exercise routines, or making lifestyle changes to reduce stress.
Functional medicine also includes preventative care, and for women, it includes gynecology as well. At My Midwife for Life, we treat the whole person. Female patients at our Indianapolis, IN office, can choose from various services that fall under functional medicine, including well woman exams and gynecological services.
What to Expect from a Well Woman Exam in Indianapolis, IN
Prevention is the best medicine. An annual well-woman exam plays a vital role in preventative care. It takes a closer look at your current state of health, how you’re feeling and your lifestyle.
Our well woman exam includes a pap smear (if needed), yearly labs and a mammogram, among other things. In addition, we’ll discuss birth control and family planning, and we'll also monitor your nutrition and go over your health plans for the coming year.
The goal of a well woman exam is to make sure that you’re on the right track, and if you’re not, take steps to identify and correct any imbalances that may be throwing you off course. If you’re searching for a well woman exam near me, schedule an appointment with us today!
For women, functional gynecology plays an important role in functional medicine. It can help identify and even treat health conditions that affect many women, including PCOS, endometriosis, miscarriages and infertility.
Functional gynecology addresses these issues from a more holistic perspective. Virtually every aspect of your life affects your hormones and your reproductive health, including:
Diet
Exercise
Stress
Relationships and support systems
Medications
Your skincare routine
Your environment
To correct these gynecological issues, functional medicine incorporates lifestyle and diet changes to help restore balance. Consider scheduling an annual gynecological exam in Indianapolis, IN if you’re suffering from a gynecological issue or suspect you may have one. An exam can help identify potential issues and empower you to take steps to correct them now – before they progress.