A new paradigm of healthcare, functional medicine takes a comprehensive, whole health approach to prevention, health, and well-being by treating root causes of disease and restoring healthy, optimised function through a personalized patient experience, all while utilising the best of conventional medicine.

Functional medicine embodies a comprehensive, holistic approach to healthcare that considers the individual as a unique entity. Rather than merely addressing symptoms, it seeks to delve into the root causes of health issues. This involves a thorough understanding of the person’s biological, physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being, all while aligning with their specific goals and aspirations.

Why functional medicine? Because this approach to healthcare recognises the intricacies of your finely tuned biological system. Your body functions as a meticulously designed machine, where each component works synergistically to foster health and well-being. When certain parts of this intricate machine fall out of balance or cease to function optimally, it often results in ill health. Frequently, such issues can be attributed to lifestyle factors, such as inadequate nutrition, insufficient exercise, poor sleep, lack of rest, an imbalance in work life, and a deficiency in purpose. The array of lifestyle insufficiencies underscores the connection between these factors and the onset of illness and disease.

How is functional medicine practiced? It entails a comprehensive and detailed health history that covers your entire lifespan. This thorough examination encompasses every facet of your well-being, encompassing elements such as sleep, nutrition, exercise, work, purpose, supplements, medications, surgeries, stress, and rest and relaxation, among others.

Following this, we proceed to conduct targeted functional medicine pathology tests. These tests furnish comprehensive insights to help understand your current health condition. For instance, when addressing symptoms like acid reflux, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and indigestion, we routinely administer stool tests. This aids in pinpointing potential underlying issues such as bacterial overgrowth, fungal imbalances, and other parasitic conditions contributing to your current symptoms.

Afterward, we formulate a personalised health program that targets the underlying cause of your health issues by optimizing various aspects of your lifestyle. This includes tailored plans for nutrition and supplements, strategies for improving sleep quality, customised exercise and mobility programs, as well as techniques for rest, relaxation and stress reduction. These modifications are crafted to enhance your overall well-being and contribute significantly to your recovery.

Finally, we assist you in navigating the recovery journey through the implementation of guided health coaching. Tailored to provide the necessary support and motivation at every stage of the recovery process, health coaching becomes especially crucial when incorporating dietary and food-related changes. Recognizing the healing power of food, we emphasize its significance in our approach by providing you with expert advice for food choices, brands to buy, food portions, recipes and cooking ideas etc. To ensure the effectiveness of the health program, we employ follow-up emails and calls, actively seeking feedback to identify what is working well and where adjustments may be needed.

Commonly treated conditions can include acid reflux, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, indigestion, food intolerances, irritable bowel syndrome, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, candida overgrowth, crohns disease, ulcerative colitis, osteo-arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, psoriasis, eczema, insomnia, anxiety, depression, type 2 diabetes, obesity and weight loss.

Functional medicine consultations can be accessed in person and online. In person consultations are available in our purposed designed clinic in Hoppers Crossing. We service the community of West Melbourne, predominantly the Hoppers Crossing, Werribee, Werribee South, Williams Landing, Point Cook, Seabrook, Tarneit, Truganina, Wyndham Vale, Manor Lakes, Mambourin Laverton, Altona Meadows and Altona areas.

We look forward to helping you create a healthier and happier life into the future!

Dr. Steven Resic 
Osteopath & Functional Medicine Practitioner