How Functional Testing Completely Changed My Healing Journey

Your Free Sneak Peek Inside The Healing Lab 👀

Traditional labs might say that “everything is fine”. Functional lab testing can tell a different story. Currently, my traditional labs look pretty good, but I am still experiencing symptoms from EDS, MCAS, POTS, Lyme and then getting Covid last year. The information I have gathered from doing functional testing has moved the needle forward exponentially on my health journey and is what helped me get back to 75-80% health pre-COVID. These tests have provided me with so much useful information about how my body is functioning and what I could do to improve my symptoms and I am confident their insights will help me get back to 100%, despite the chronic illnesses I have been diagnosed with. As some of you may know, I struggled with severe GI issues for 7 years before being diagnosed with EDS, POTS, MCAS, Lyme Disease and CIRS. Unfortunately, I did not receive a lot of treatment recommendations from my original doctors and went on to discover the world of integrative medicine and functional testing. This helped me to finally be able to receive more answers and start to get my body into a better and stronger place.

I have teamed up with Genova Connect this week to share more about functional testing, why it is important and why it can be helpful on your health journey. I have been doing functional testing with Genova since around 2020 and it has been so insightful. I have received several messages over the years that it is super tough to find a provider to order these tests. That’s why I love Genova Connect- you can order the testing yourself and it gets shipped straight to your home. The process couldn’t be easier. They have extremely thorough guides that explain the testing and you can also meet with a physician who understands the testing for an additional fee.

Since I have such complex medical issues, I have done pretty much every test at this point from GI Effects Metabolomix+, to hormone and methylation testing. I recently did a Metabolomix+, which is a comprehensive nutritional profile measuring over 125 markers that tell you about your body's function. It is a super easy urine test that you can do right at home! If you are ordering a test, be sure to use my code LESSWITHLAUR for 10% off.

I love that the results provide an overview of the need for antioxidant support, need for mitochondrial support, need for reduced toxic exposure and need for methylation support. A traffic light system of red, green and yellow is used to denote this. Here’s a screenshot from my personal testing and as you can see, I am experiencing a lot of oxidative stress and need to work on supporting my body more in that area. When I went over my testing with Genova’s provider, he also told me this potentially could mean that I am being exposed to mold (again), so I am also investigating that further.

The Metabolomix testing also provides a comprehensive overview of your nutrient needs and makes recommendations. For example, you can see that I have a need for Vitamin A, Vitamin E, ALA, CoQ10, Glutathione, antioxidants, B2, Magnesium and Zinc. This can help me supplement accordingly or ensure that I am incorporating more food sources that include these nutrients. Even though I eat fairly “healthy” and nutrient-dense foods, there are a lot of different factors at play here and I suspect I am not fully absorbing the nutrients in my food due to lingering gut dysbiosis from getting Covid last year. I love that functional testing shows exactly what I am missing.

The test also includes a breakdown of each nutrient, where you can get it and how it plays a role in the body.

You can also see below that I have malabsorption and dysbiosis markers:

My amino acid status was good, which means I am eating enough protein. The 0s show a low need for amino acids.

I am concerned about the oxidative damage, and I also have some markers that suggest my mitochondrial health is strained. This can show up as fatigue, brain fog and slower recovery- all symptoms that I have been experiencing.

I am going to be prioritizing reducing oxidative damage through ensuring I am getting enough antioxidants and replenishing the nutrients I am deficient in. I am also going to work to prioritize rest.

If you’ve been told your labs are normal but you still don’t feel like yourself, oxidative stress, mitochondrial health, toxic exposure, gut dysbiosis, nutrient deficiencies and methylation could be part of the puzzle. Functional testing gave me answers that standard labs didn’t and it continues to assist me in creating a roadmap to get back to 100% health. I don’t know where I would be without it!

Feel free to leave a comment and let me know your experience with functional testing. If this was helpful for you, I can also break down other tests I have done like the GI Effects or SIBO breath test.

For Swaps Sunday this week, I will be sharing my favorite Thanksgiving swaps, so make sure to keep an eye out for that email! 🦃🥧🍂🍁