Integrated medicine recognizes traditional or conventional medicine as the cornerstone of treatment but combines modern diagnostic tests and conventional treatments with a careful selection of complementary therapies to balance mind and body, and achieve the psychophysical well-being of the person as a whole. It is an approach that respects the relationship between body, mind and spirit in conditions of health and disease, developing the body's tendency to self-correct, to return to balance and to generate self-healing processes. Integrated medicine is above all a systemic medicine, which considers the human being as a whole, and therefore seeks to treat them as a whole.
In fact, our body as an organism continuously integrates thousands and thousands of signals. Every aspect of our life is the masterful result of the coordination and harmony between different systems that communicate and work in synergy. We are complex systems, and as such we are sensitive to even small variations. Our body reacts to them in unison, like a large orchestra whose instruments play simultaneously. Integrated medicine takes this coordination into account and tries to cure the person as a whole, acting both on a physical, psychological and cognitive level. In fact, body and brain constitute an indivisible unicum, which works best when the different activities are harmonious and precise.
* It is a healing-oriented medicine. This is a fundamental aspect. In fact, often, a doctor’s focus is on the disease. The mental focus, which then also changes the person's intention and perception, must shift to the fact of regaining health. This induces different thoughts, behaviors and goals. It is clear that not all diseases are curable (beware of those who tell you otherwise), just as it is clear that no results can be promised because medicine is unpredictable (beware of anyone who tells you otherwise). However, taking care of oneself, in the sense of taking care of oneself, is fundamental, and opens up new possibilities that cannot emerge if one considers only the disease.
Lifestyle matters too.
A person's lifestyle is very important. Understanding this allows you to correct - usually gradually - habits that are perhaps unconscious but harmful. Lifestyle changes the environment and the conditions in which our system is immersed. What do I mean by environment? I mean the air we breathe, the water we drink and eat, the food, sleep, the healthiness of the environments in which we live and work. Working on these aspects requires time to devote to the person and a certain flexibility, but it proves decisive in the long term. An organism that is immersed in a favorable environment will perform all its functions (including therapeutic ones!) Much better. In practice, this is like thinking of growing a seedling on sand or in well-fertilized soil. Where will it grow best? The answer is obvious. The same applies to us too, indeed, even more!
The core of Functional Medicine is basically to work on primary prevention of diseases. It seeks to understand the underlying causes of diseases, especially those that are chronic, in ways both specific to each individual patient’s biology and the environment in which they live. Functional medicine sees the body as a whole and recognizes the root, i.e. the cause of the disease. This means that body and mind are considered as a holistic system and not just individual symptoms are treated. In addition to many other factors, diet, behavior, psychological experiences and medication intake play a role here. The medical record not only refers to the current situation but goes back to the birth of the patient. Functional medicine is still based on diseases, whereas integrative medicine is an approach to wellness, as opposed to sickness.