So I'm Not a Basket Case

Appointment with the Holistic Practitioner went very well!

- She's testing an 88 food sensitivity panel to see what my body is reacting too- YAY!

- She is testing my thyroid for suspected hypothyroidism

- She is doing a complete metabolic panel to test my nutrients & hormones and all that cool stuff.

- She is testing (the right way) for Celiac disease because she highly suspects that to be the culprit of the majority of my problems....

..which means I would return to a Gluten-Free diet, pretty soon. Which is hard, but worth it- If it makes me feel better....And this time around it will be easier to do because in just the two years that I have done it last, the Gluten-free nation is rapidly gaining popularity. This means more products, more attention, more restaurants hopping on the bandwagon, Yay!

I respect this practitioner so much because of how she looks at the patient.  She sees the whole picture, which is what every doctor should be trained to do, and what a good nurse does anyway, regardless of education. So, putting those two points together, a Holistic Nurse Practitioner makes absolute perfect sense and should take over as the Surgeon General or President of the United States, or something like that....

Doctors these days are losing primary care. Doctors don't want to go into primary care anymore, because its losing money. They aren't being trained anymore to "know everything" because once out of school, they go for the big bucks and they specialize. They specialize in one body system and they are "experts" in this system (most of the time). Well that's GREAT, except for when my Gastroenterologist is only looking at my GI system and not concerned about how whats going on in my gut can be affecting my anemia, headaches, heart, and so forth. It all Connects and this nurse practitioner is the first medical professional that I have seen that realizes this and is testing everything. I am so happy to finally be on the same page as a medical professional.

Its a shame that insurance companies aren't working with holistic practitioners (at least in this area) because if you think about everything I just said, they are stupid not too. Holistic Practitioners (whether they be a doctor or nurse) see the whole picture and are therefore more likely to make the patient well again. Also, holistic practitioners promote overall wellness and are more able to maintain it, which insurance companies should be interested in. Its got to be cheaper to keep a patient healthy with a little work than to treat big problems with a lot of work, right? 

I agree that sometimes, specialists are needed. Sometimes a primary doctor or a holistic practitioner gets in over their head and don't feel comfortable treating the case because they don't have enough knowledge about it. They get referred to a specialist for their safety. And those are the patients that should be seen by a specialist. But why should someone with chronic GI (and other) issues be seen by a GI doc when a holistic practitioner can see the whole picture and treat with natural supplements and diet? (Rather than a prescription for the rest of your life?) I hate prescription drugs. My GI doc wants to put me on one for the rest of my life....and well, I am doing everything in my power to avoid that.

So, I'll keep you updated! I won't know more until a couple of weeks, so look forward to it. :-) Thanks for Reading!



I feel like health is on the way =]


~A Writer in a Nurse's Body