ARE YOU TRULY AT THE MERCY OF YOUR GENES?

By Dr Mandy Buker

As a human being you are designed to be healthy, happy and strong. Is it your genes or your current lifestyle that has led you to become disengaged from your potential for health?

If I were to ask you what your body’s current energy level is on a scale of 1-10, would you be able to tell me?

Most people would need to give that some thought.

If I were to ask you if you know your phone’s current battery level to the nearest 10%, would you be able to tell me?

Many people would be able to answer this easily, we know our phones so well.

Our captivation with modern comforts and convenience, has led us to lose touch with our bodies. This process of detachment has not only led to a massive increase in chronic disease but it has also left many of us with a feeling of hopelessness. A feeling that our bodies are somehow ‘broken’, that it is all down to our genes and there is nothing that can be done about it.

This is not true.

Your body has an innate wisdom and your genetic code is not stagnant, rather it is constantly responding to your daily choices (light, food, drink, thought patterns, sleep, toxic exposures and social interactions). Much of what you may be struggling with, is a detachment between the choices you make, and the life experience that you want to have.

Imagine that you have a thriving house plant hanging in your kitchen. You know what the plant requires to be healthy, right? Sunshine, clean water, nutrient rich (toxin-free) soil. At the most basic level, when a plant has this environment, it tends to thrive, grow and show the traits of a healthy plant.

You cannot negotiate with this plant for what it needs to thrive. You cannot compensate by giving the plant more water instead of sunshine. It’s the same with human beings. There are several non-negotiable elements we need to feel and perform our best and live a long, healthy life.

Similarly any skilled gardener knows that you can’t truly eliminate a weed by spraying herbicide on the leaves. Yes, the leaves may shrivel and die for some time, but unless you pull it by the root, the weed grows back, often stronger than before.

Human bodies have many parallels to plants. When attempting to kill it with chemicals, a plant will begin to develop resistance, inevitably requiring stronger and more toxic chemicals to achieve results. Our bodies respond in a similar way when we suppress symptoms with prescription medications.

Are you struggling with a health issue? Have you been to multiple practitioners but left with more questions than answers? Have you been told repeatedly that all your blood work is normal so you must be fine?

To truly re-establish your health we must determine the root cause of your symptoms. Perhaps you would like to get to the bottom of what’s really going on with your health, or maybe you have just received a diagnosis and want to pursue nonprescription medication methods to improve your health, a Functional Medicine approach may be just what you need.

The Functional Medicine lens is very powerful. Using this lens helps us take a step back to view the bigger picture. It helps you to get to know yourself as a unique individual and not just focus on your disease.

It is about understanding that the body’s organs and systems are all intricately linked to one another, so focussing on one system or organ is never going to be the answer. Rather, we need to consider how various events, throughout your life, have contributed to you presenting with your current symptoms. This allows us to slowly and methodically begin to peel the layers of the onion back to get to the root cause and address the various contributing factors along the way.

Your body uses energy to create symptoms to communicate with you in the hope that you will do something different. It’s asking for help. How do you respond? Do you ignore it and just keep going? Do you pop a pill to numb it, or do you listen? Symptoms are a gift. They are not annoyances to be numbed or silenced…

Why not let Functional Medicine help you fit the puzzle pieces of your health jigsaw together, strategize on how to support you to get to the root causes in your unique case and restore resilient health?

Head to www.grassrootsdoctor.com and click the ‘Let’s Get Started’ button.