One of my clients asked her cardiologist how long she would have to stay on heart medication, to which he responded: "When your husband throws the last bit of dirt on your grave, you will be medication free."
Shocking? No. Patients actually believe this. Doctors usually only lose patients through death and cured patients bring in no revenue. So keeping the patient sick ensures a lifelong doctor-patient relationship.
The response by the doctor speaks to the present medical model that teaches the patient that he/she will be sick for a lifetime, and their disease only managed, not cured.
This is a false assumption. In fact, most diseases are reversible, most people can be medication free, and most can limit doctor's visits to diagnostics and a wellness check.In all fairness to doctors, most have no idea how to approach health in a better way. They are successful in treating acute, life threatening conditions but have little success in curing chronic systemic diseases. For these conditions they were trained to believe that you are sick until you die and a physician must be there for the lifetime of the patient.
Also, patients who only want a quick fix in the form of medication make it difficult for a doctor to suggest a more natural healthy alternative. As result. a great deal of pressure is placed on physicians to take full responsibility for the health of the patient.
Thankfully, functional medicine, medicine for the 21st century, is making inroads in this traditional thinking, but only by a few physicians and health coaches like myself and others.
When the patient takes responsibility for his health, makes changes that allow the body to function in a way for which it was designed, doctor and patient win.
In the end, the body rules, and if offended, can show extreme displeasure in the form of life altering disease and chronic illness.So nourish your body, care for it, get good sleep, treat it like the crown jewel it is and your disease or condition can usually be cured or put into remission,............ not managed.
Comments