A functional medicine doctor focuses on treating the whole person, rather than just your symptoms. Health and illness are seen as a continuum resulting from the dynamic interactions of your various body systems and their environment. It is in sharp contrast to the way medicine is practiced today in the United States. Although our health system has generated great medical advancements in diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of infectious disease and trauma, it is not as advanced in preventing and managing chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disorders, and depression. With today’s pressures to reduce cost and improve the quality of health care, functional medicine is quickly gaining momentum as the most effective approach to address chronic disease.
A Big Picture Approach to Chronic Disease
The most important principle of functional medicine is that your doctor will work with you to restore your specific health needs. Your functional medicine doctor will help balance your body’s physiological processes with your lifestyle and environmental exposure. Your treatment plan may involve proven medical therapies, as well as different dietary and lifestyle change interventions. These may include improving sleep quality, changing eating habits, increasing physical activity, learning stress management techniques, and quitting smoking.
What You Can Expect
As a patient, you work in partnership with your doctor to achieve well-being and to reach your health goals. Trust is a key element of this relationship. Here’s what your Los Angeles functional medicine doctor will do.
- Obtain your complete physical/emotional/lifestyle behavior history during your first appointment
- Identify and address the challenges of your modifiable lifestyle factors and environmental exposures
- Address your clinical imbalances by diagnosing the underlying causes of disease through testing and other medical best practices
- Develop a custom treatment plan that may include recommendations for both conventional and natural treatments
- Give you the necessary information and tools to make healthy lifestyle choices and comply with recommended treatments
Most importantly, your functional medicine doctor will spend time getting to know you. This includes getting your family health history as well as discussing what lifestyle and emotional challenges you may have that impact your physical health. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Cynthia Thaik, MD, call 818-842-1410. For more information about the big picture approach to chronic disease, check out Dr. Cynthia’s book, “Your Vibrant Heart.”
At the Holistic Healing Heart Center, Dr. Cynthia and her team provide one-stop shopping for all your health care needs. They provide primary care services and progressive heart disease treatment as well as integrative lifestyle programs to help you stay healthy and age gracefully. Often described as one of the best Los Angeles heart specialists, Dr. Cynthia, along with her team of holistic primary care physicians, will listen to you, ask questions about your lifestyle, environmental exposures, and genetic influences that may impact your health, and then provide thoughtful treatment recommendations, as described below.
- Preventive treatments including traditional and alternative (acupuncture, homeopathy) remedies for medical conditions and heart disease.
- Wellness training including nutrition, weight loss, lifestyle management, and mindfulness.
As an experienced and trusted holistic primary care physician and functional cardiologist, Dr. Cynthia has been providing whole person health care to the residents of Burbank, greater Los Angeles, and Southern California communities and Valencia for more than 20 years. Call today to learn how the Holistic Healing Heart Center can help you prevent disease, stay healthy, and age gracefully.
