Functional medicine seeks to address the root cause of disease. This is done by addressing an individual as genetically and biochemically unique. It asks, “Why do you have this problem in the first place” instead of “what medication will treat the symptom”? At Mountain View Functional Medicine, we assess the why. We believe the why can be the result of any combination of different stresses. One approach is looking at your total stress load (TSL). What is TSL and what contributes to TSL? Emotional stress (losses, PTSD, vocational, interpersonal, anxiety, depression), Cognitive Stress (irrational demands & expectations, awfulizing & catastrophizing, victim thinking, blame games, lack of gratitude, unforgiveness), Sensory Stress (pain syndromes, joint/backpain, phantom pain, sensory processing defect), Metabolic Stress (decreased exercise, pH problems, blood sugar dysregulation, methylation & nutritional abnormalities, osteopenia), Toxic Stress (heavy metals [e.g. mercury, lead, cadmium, arsenic], food additives, trans fats), Immune stress (allergies [food & contact]), inflammatory & autoimmune disorder, asthma, eczema), Endocrine & Neurotransmitter Stress (hormones, PMS, menopause, andropause, osteoporosis, hypo-hyper thyroid, ↑↓cortisol, estrogen, ↓progesterone, ↓DHEA, ↓serotonin, dopamine, ↑noradrenalin, insulin), Structural Stress (TMJ, cancer, postural abnormalities), Energetic Stress (electromagnetic pollution, cell phones, microwaves), Oxidative Stress (phase I &II detox abnormalities, low antioxidant status, sleep apnea, CAD, vein or arterial blockage), Infectious Stress (Lyme, candida, parasites, viral, bacterial), Purposelessness Stress (inability to live in the now, feeling that life is meaningless, lack of spirituality or “higher purpose”) Diving into all aspects to get to the “root cause” takes time and requires patience for both the patient and practitioner. The imbalances in the body that are causing the symptoms are often completely different in each individual patient even though the symptoms themselves can be the same. Individualized medicine or functional medicine evaluates all components in a patient’s life. Comprehensive plans are developed after assessing areas such as nutritional deficiencies, excessive stressors, lack of sleep, hormonal imbalance, toxins and medications. To assess the root cause a through history is taken, specialty labs as well as standard labs are ordered, and often lifestyle, diet, supplements and at times medications are recommended.