Heather Maddox, MD

Heather’s Journey

What I love most about being a physician is connecting with patients. I have learned that patients will tell you what is wrong if you take the time to listen.

I have worked in a conventional medicine setting since 2003 and have found our current western medical system often rewards quantity over quality. Unfortunately, this makes it difficult for a provider to listen to a patient’s story, form a therapeutic relationship, and properly understand why someone is battling disease. 

After struggling for years with these shortcomings, I was determined to find an approach that allowed me to be a more effective physician. I also wanted more tools than just prescription medication to help heal people with increasingly complex medical problems. 

In 2017 I was introduced to functional medicine, a system-oriented approach to understanding and treating chronic disease that better fits my practice ideals. Rather than matching symptoms to the diagnosis to medications, I was looking to understand and treat the root cause of why a person was chronically ill. When I found functional medicine, I knew instantly that this was the direction I wanted to go with my medical career.

I also had a personal stake in learning more about functional medicine. My own health was declining, I was suffering gastrointestinal distress as well as adrenal fatigue. I didn’t feel like myself. I took on a functional medicine approach to understand why I felt out of balance. I looked back on my life, identifying possible triggers that led to some of my symptoms. I filled out detailed functional medicine questionnaires about my current lifestyle including dietary habits, sleep patterns, and stress management tactics. Through this process, I gained clarity on what lifestyle adjustments were necessary for me to heal. I committed to the needed improvements and within a few months I was feeling like myself again.