Root Cause or Consequence
There is a tremendous amount of buzz around the idea of ‘root cause medicine,’ so I thought we should talk about it.
In my experience, I find that many people like this idea in theory. ‘I want to get to the root of my dis-ease, not just put a band aid on it!’ they say. I posit, however, there is a massive disconnect with what that really means.
Here’s the thing…the more we open our minds in healing, the more we realize we know nothing. Root cause medicine appears to have come out of the functional medicine paradigm, where we began to look at those seeking wellbeing through a wider lens. There was more advanced testing and more in-depth information gathering. Functional medicine brought stress, trauma and emotion into the mainstream medical paradigm, and that was good. But (did you feel a ‘but’ coming), it quickly became the new conventional medicine, with its therapeutic approach aimed at simply replacing the pharmaceutical medications with natural remedies without really understanding the source of the dis-ease presenting (I have much to say about fast food functional medicine, but I think I’ll save that for another article). Sure, we began making the connections between gut and brain, metabolism and neurology, periphery and inner terrain, etc. But we really still don’t have a reason for why blood pressure is high, insulin is resistant, and hormones plumet faster and earlier, outside of ‘you’re old’, ‘you’re fat’, ‘you’re inflamed’ and ‘you’re stressed.’
I’m not saying that lifestyle factors like stress, activity, sleep and on and on don’t impact health. Of course they do! And thank God we are finally having that conversation, but is that the root?? When you start with the framework that our body’s are not broken machines that fall apart as time goes on, and that there is an innate intelligence that is driving the ship, then you can’t believe that the root of illness is aging, inflammation or stress. They are certainly contributors to the worsening illness we all find ourselves in, but not the root of the root of the root. Instead, we should be asking why are we aging so rapidly, why are we so inflamed and why do we have so much internal stress? We should be viewing diabetes, hypertension, immune dysfunction, and emotional-mental distress as a consequence of something else; the downstream, end result of something more.
When we start asking why our guts do not function well, why we’ve got such a surge of central and childhood obesity, and why we can’t seem to function without bioidentical hormones, we get one step closer to understanding ‘root cause medicine.’ The answer, in my mind and experience, is simple- we are all toxic! Not just physically toxic- we all can agree that our food supply, water and air are screwed at best. Beyond that, we must acknowledge that we are mentally toxic, emotionally toxic and likely most importantly, spiritually toxic. This is what is in the way of true, deep, innate and permanent healing, my friends. If you need to take a suitcase full of supplements, talk about your problems endlessly, biohack, inject serums and slather potions while howling at the moon, you have not addressed the root of your dis-ease and discomfort.
It is when we remove all of the poisons that are in the way of the whole, divine essence that is YOU and I, can we realize lasting wellness. Bringing the conversation back to the beginning, many love the sound of addressing the root cause in theory. When the time comes to put this in practice, really look in the mirror at all of the toxic foods, water, air, thoughts, ideas, programs, illusions, and stories that got them to this moment, many opt for the suitcase of supplements instead. Why? Because it’s easier, quicker and less uncomfortable. No judgement, you do you, my friend. It just feels important to make the distinction between root versus consequence, so that we can have an honest conversation about what it means to be truly ‘healthy.’ For more on this conversation, join THW’s free membership here. Until next time!
