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Let us start off by saying that The Naked Truth Project is not trying to treat, diagnose, or in any other way take the place of medical treatment. Not on this website and not anywhere else. If you are concerned about symptoms that you are experiencing or are concerned about particular exposures that you’ve had, please go see a doctor. Don’t try to figure out what’s going on with you based on what you’ve read here or on any other website online. Human health and illness is way too complex for that.
But since we won’t diagnose or treat you, the least we can do is give you some suggestions for finding a doctor who will. |
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Look for a doctor who will listen to you. Period. Environmental illnesses usually result from years of different exposures and often take a lot of time to trace back and figure out. You need to see a doctor who will take the time to listen to your whole story. We’re not just talking about finding someone who will spend more than five minutes with you. It doesn’t matter how much time they spend with you if they’re not really hearing you. That’s the important part.
Remember – no one knows your body as well as you do. If you truly feel that there is something going on with you that isn’t showing up on routine tests, then don’t stop until you find a doctor who will get to the bottom of it with you. Do not let anyone make you feel that your symptoms are all in your head – what you are experiencing is real. Although it can be exhausting and costly to go from one doctor to another, it is often more costly to be misdiagnosed and it is worth searching until you find the right person.
It is also important to see a doctor who will get to the root of the problem and fix it – not just treat the symptoms. If you don’t address and treat the cause of the problem, symptoms will continue to recur.
Obviously, the most ideal situation is to find a doctor who practices environmental medicine – or at least believes that there is a connection between environmental toxins and human health. If you can’t find a doctor who has experience with environmental health, find one who is able to say to you “I’m not sure what’s going on here, but let’s figure it out…and if I can’t, then we’ll find someone for you who can!”
Here’s the best case (but not-so-common) scenario: your Primary Care Provider (PCP) understands environmental medicine, can correctly diagnose and treat you, AND it’s all covered by insurance. All you need to shell out is the co-pay.
And the second best (and slightly more common) scenario: your PCP doesn’t necessarily know what’s causing your symptoms, but refers you to an environmental doctor who may be covered by your insurance…if you submit for reimbursement yourself. This involves an up-front cost for you to cover the appointment and some time dealing with the insurance company, but it’s all worth it because you will get your money back and start to feel better at the same time.
And finally, the third (and most common) scenario: the doctor you need to see is not covered by your insurance at all and needs to be paid for entirely out-of-pocket. The reason that these doctors are not usually covered is because in order to understand your full history they spend more than 20 minutes with you (the appointments are often up to two hours long!), and insurance companies won’t cover appointments that long. Treatments and most tests aren’t covered either because they are often more comprehensive than traditional ones. While this option may seem prohibitive because of the financial burden, the medical care will often be much more thorough. You will need to decide for yourself whether or not to go this route based on the complexity and severity of your symptoms and how long you’ve been experiencing them. |
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1.) Start by talking to your current doctor. If he or she is open to hearing your story, you may be able to stop there.
2.) If you don’t feel listened to or feel as though your condition is not improving with your current treatment, then you may want to find a doctor who practices holistic medicine – in other words, a doctor who looks at the whole being to get to the root of the illness. Medical fields that are designed to look at the whole person include:
Functional Medicine
Naturopathy
Osteopathy
Chiropractics
Homeopathy
Environmental Medicine
A holistic medical practitioner can be an MD, ND, DO or DC and the difference among them lies in the focus of their training. You might want to research what the different medical fields entail before deciding what kind of doctor to see. Please note that the ability to prescribe medication varies depending on the medical modality of the practitioner.
3.) Here are some websites that will give you more information about these fields and/or will help you find a doctor in your area:
Institute for Functional Medicine
The mission of the Institute is to improve patient outcomes through prevention, early assessment, and comprehensive management of complex, chronic disease. Their website includes a "practitioner search" to find doctors who practice Functional Medicine in your area.
800.228.0622
www.functionalmedicine.org
The American Academy of Environmental Medicine
The American Academy of Environmental Medicine was founded in 1965, and is an international association of physicians and other professionals interested in the clinical aspects of man and his environment. The site includes a search engine for finding environmental doctors in your area.
316.684.5500
www.aaem.com
The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
Founded in 1985, the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) is the national professional society representing licensed or licensable naturopathic physicians who are graduates of four-year, residential graduates programs. Site includes a search engine for finding naturopathic physicians in your area.
866.538.2267
www.naturopathic.org
True North
A nonprofit integrative health care center that combines tradtional medicine with complementary therapies, offers classes, and has a highly-researched supplement store. All of the doctors at True North (and some are MDs) practice Functional Medicine.
207.781.4488
www.truenorthhealthcenter.org
Maine Integrative Wellness
Maine Integrative Wellness is a whole health center for the whole family. By using a combination of advanced natural and conventional medicine, they specialize in treating a wide variety of illnesses as well as preventing disease. All of this happens in a peaceful, nurturing, environmentally friendly space located near downtown Portland. They also have a far-infrared sauna there -- great for detoxifying!
207.828.4299
www.mainewellness.com
Ultraprevention
The title of the book and website written by Mark Hyman, MD & Mark Liponis, MD -- the two Medical Directors of Canyon Ranch who are both holistic physicians. Both resources present health information presented in a very understandable way.
www.ultraprevention.com |
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People who want to heal from a toxic exposure or just do general detoxification have expressed that these complementary therapies have helped:
Nutritional Therapy (through food and supplements)
Therapeutic Massage
Sauna Detox Therapy
Acupuncture
Chelation Therapy
Healing Touch & Energy Medicine
Reiki
Psychotherapy
People also express that the most effective approach is one that is integrative and incorporates a variety of treatments. It is up to individuals to determine the treatment protocol that is best for them, with the help of their doctor. What works for one person doesn’t necessarily work for everyone. |
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