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Ask HN: Why is modern medicine so bad at holistic diagnosis?

1 points by Karupan ↗ HN
I’ve been having some health issues for which I’ve had quite a few diagnostic tests over the past month. Since the concerns are in different parts of the body, each test addresses a particular region/organ and that makes sense to me. The good news is nothing’s been found so far. The bad news is nothing’s been found so far.

Out of desperation, I went to an acupuncture specialist and his diagnosis is that it is probably a nervous disorder which regulates multiple functions of the body. Suddenly, it kinda made sense to me. I’ve been dealing with severe nervousness and anxiety for a few years now and have detailed this to multiple doctors. However, no one has made the connection so far. Now I’m not going to stop regular GP visits or medicines, but I’m quite surprised that not one doctor or specialist had thought about the holistic aspect of my health. It’s always localised and when they can’t find anything, they just call it anxiety.

Why, inspite of so many medical advances, are we not able to see the bigger picture in a lot of cases?!

3 comments

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sigmaprimus
I don't have the answer but I am curious about what You have done to resolve your issue. Did the acupuncture specialist cure you? Did you go back to your doctor and get medication? Are you still suffering?

This is particularly of interest to me as I suffer from PTSD and bad nerves also, I have never heard of acupuncture being a treatment for this and am a bit skeptical of cure all, snake oil like treatments.

Karupan
I've just had one session, so it's too early to tell. I was in the same boat as you - I don't quite believe in alternative therapies, but when you're driven to desperation, you don't mind giving anything a shot.

One reason I actually tried it is because it's helped my mom a lot with her frozen shoulder. She couldn't lift her hands over her head for months, and after 8-10 acupuncture sessions, she is 80% better. I don't know if it helps with permanent recovery, but anything resembling normalcy is better than the alternative.

sigmaprimus
I hope it works out for You. I currently live outside of a very small city but am going to look into it. Like you said when you are suffering it is easier to look past the skepticism. TY for responding honestly.