How do integrative and functional medicine differ from conventional medicine in treating mental health conditions?

Conventional medicine and psychiatry use a system that essentially looks at the symptoms you’re experiencing, and then based on those symptoms, prescribe a medication intending to make the symptoms better. So if you are having symptoms of depression that meet the criteria on the checklist, you are diagnosed with depression and given an antidepressant. Sometimes this approach can be helpful and bring relief.

But what about the times when it doesn’t work? Or the times when it works for a number of months then stops working? Often people end up taking multiple medications meant to reduce symptoms while still having symptoms. And the doses keep getting higher.

The problem with this approach is that it is like going to the doctor for stomach pain, being diagnosed with “pain” and prescribed ibuprofen without any imaging or testing. Maybe the painkiller helps, but what was causing the stomach pain in the first place?

Mental health symptoms are like pain. They tell you that something is wrong that needs to be addressed, but it’s up to us to figure out the causes of it. This can be challenging because mental health symptoms can have both biological (body) causes and psychological (mind) causes. Also there can be multiple causes that all need attention.

Integrative and functional medicine operate by starting with the question: what are the root causes underlying mental health symptoms? Then systematically addressing them. Many biological causes are often overlooked. Here are some examples:

• Quality of diet

• Nutrient deficiencies

• Disruption of good bacteria in the gut

• Gut conditions such as IBS, IBD, or Celiac disease

• Food allergies and sensitivities

• Movement/physical activity

• Sleep disturbance

• Inflammation

• Thyroid disorders

• Issues with blood sugar regulation

• Hormone imbalances

• HPA axis dysfunction (sometimes called adrenal burnout)

• Chronic infections

• Environmental toxins

• Genetic vulnerabilities

• Traumatic brain injury

• Side effects of medications

There is plenty to be said about each of these, and even more to be said about psychological causes and treatments. Different people will have different factors to address, which is why the integrative/functional approach is very personalized.

When we address the different causes of mental illness, we are able to get better results. Medications may not be needed, and if they are needed, they often work better.