caribbeanfunctionalneurolog-blog

[caribbeanfunctionalneurolog-blog]

What is Functional Neurology?

Typically, a Functional Neurologist serves in the same consulting manner as a medical neurologist. The difference is that the therapies or applications of a functional neurologist do not include drugs or surgery. Traditional medical neurology tends to look at disease of the nervous system as black-and-white, with one side being optimal function and the other being neurological disease (tumors, lesions, strokes etc). Stated more simply, either you’re ‘fine’, or you’re experiencing major neurological dysfunction (chronic migraines, dizziness, strokes, concussion, etc). Functional Neurology looks at dysfunction of the nervous system as subtle changes in the nervous system before they become distinct pathologies, and corrects them before they are life-threatening! If you’ve already had a life-threatening condition that has been treated by a medical neurologist (i.e. a concussion or traumatic brain injury), but there is still dysfunction, a functional neurologist would diagnose and correct that dysfunction. Functional neurology can give you more than just a diagnosis, it can give you answers for symptoms that you’re having and, in most cases, offer treatment. So whether you are recovering from an injury, dealing with a chronic disease, or just want to perform better athletically, fine tuning your brain is essential for optimal health.

Four factors that are suuuuper important on regards to Functional Neurology care: 1.  Determining where the failure in the nervous system and/or body lies. 2.  What would be the right stimulation to activate that area? 3.  What is the health and condition of the failing area, so as to determine how much stimulation would be too much. 4.  Adapting this vital information in order to apply that precise amount of stimulation to the patient in our office. It is important to note that the stimulations used, must be specific to the particular patient who is being treated. There is bio-individuality to the nervous system, just as individual as a fingerprint, and such that even those with similar symptoms may require different stimulations at different frequencies and intensities in order to achieve the best success. This cannot be done in a generalized or cookbook type program. For example, you cannot treat every patient with a balance disorder or ADHD with the same treatment protocols. Generalized treatments run the risk of exciting an area of the nervous system that is already overexcited, or stimulating an area that should be inhibited. Results are maximized due to the fact that the program of stimulations is tailored to the individual patient’s problem and capacity, and not a one-size-fits-all program where results may be limited or the program may actually be inappropriate.  In other words:  Different people, different brains, and therefore, different treatments. Activation of the nervous system via specific exercises or stimulations to targeted areas of the brain, pathways or circuits can create powerful results in the patient, but should be carefully monitored, so that the metabolic capacity of the patients nervous system is not exceeded, and damage does not occur instead of the intended rehabilitation.