Chasing Symptoms Is A Losing Strategy. Let Me Tell You Why.
The model of health care we all know is a symptom management-focused model. Its goal is to diagnose based on a set of symptoms and treat these symptoms with medications/therapies. It does not view symptoms as useful pieces of information being communicated by the body or look to find out why they are showing up (this is a generalization, some healthcare providers do and Functional Medicine trained practitioners do ).
Unfortunately, by working in this model of only managing symptoms, we miss the opportunity to address what caused the symptoms to appear. Our bodies are perfectly designed and they don't waste energy doing things that are not necessary. If the symptom is there, it is there for a reason. Every symptom is a clue that something is out of balance inside. They are a little nudge from our body for us to pause and pay attention to what it's trying to say.
Symptoms are the body’s response to imbalance. This imbalance can be in nutrition (minerals, vitamins, blood sugar, etc), sleep, movement, relationships, purpose, stress, joyful activity, etc. The body is amazing, always trying to keep us in equilibrium. The symptoms are a response to an imbalance(s). If you ignore the root cause behind the symptom, your body's only solution is to double down on that symptom, making it louder and more uncomfortable. If the imbalance continues to fester, your body will continue to adjust, leading to more symptoms, often louder and more uncomfortable.
As a society, we rely on medications to manage symptoms. Unfortunately, these medications have side effects which can lead to more imbalance. This can be through mineral and vitamin depletion and extra burden on detoxification systems, which can throw the body further out of balance and present as more symptoms and the need for more medications. Medications have their place. Sometimes long-term use is needed. Often it is not. Figuring out why they were needed in the first place is how to achieve healing.
Looking for imbalance in the body is the first step toward bringing the body back into balance. However, it is not enough to just find deficiencies or imbalances. We need to take it one step further and ask what is causing this imbalance to show up in the first place. An example is low iron. We need to ask is it low because of diet? is stomach acidic insufficient to promote absorption? are there missing co-factors? Are there too many foods being eaten that block iron absorption?
Symptoms are important communication from our body. They should be welcomed and embraced because they let us know our body is working and doing what it can to bring us back into balance. Next time you have symptoms show up I want you to pause, thank your body, and get curious as to what it’s trying to say.
If you would like support on your healing journey as you learn to connect to your body and its messages, book a free clarity call. I would love to chat with you about how you will benefit from my support.