Stacy felt like crying. There might finally be an answer for why she had felt terrible for so many years. She had every scope and scan from top to bottom, had seen every specialist. She was told it was irritable bowel syndrome, depression, anxiety, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome. Or worse: “You’re just getting older.” She was prescribed pill after pill. Nothing seemed to work.
But now she was sitting at Pine Creek Family Medicine, looking at a colorful collection of stripes and words. Lots of things were out of normal range. Dr. Herrington was explaining about the “gut microbiome,” made up of good and bad bacteria, and how imbalance was related to inflammation which could cause all kinds of other problems. She was outlining a plan of supplements and dietary changes. Oh, could this be a solution?
Stacy was so glad she had become a patient at Pine Creek Family Medicine’s DPC (Direct Primary Care) practice. She paid a monthly membership fee, and in exchange she had unlimited office visits and communication. She knew Dr. Herrington was actively learning information on the underlying causes of medical problems, something called functional medicine. Sure, she still was a regular doctor of family practice medicine, but she was willing to expand her horizons to understand the human body and help her patients. This was so refreshing!