Megan and fellow coach Danna revisit an early episode to unpack functional medicine—what it is, how it differs from conventional care, and how a functional approach can sharpen a health coach’s practice. Expect practical examples (BP meds, antibiotics + probiotics), how to vet providers, and what extra training changed in Danna’s client work.

Back in 2018, Megan introduced functional medicine as an option when conventional care feels stuck on symptom relief. In 2025, she and Danna (a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach) compare notes: What does “root cause” really mean? How do labs, lifestyle, and nutrition fit together? And how can coaches collaborate with (or simply vet) doctors who think more holistically—without abandoning standard medicine when it’s needed?

00:00 Introduction and Podcast Background

01:04 Understanding Functional Medicine

02:25 Functional Medicine in Practice

13:17 How Functional Medicine Informs Your Coaching Practice

• Root cause ≠ anti-medicine. Functional medicine uses meds when necessary, then investigates lifestyle, nutrition, hormones, gut health, and environment to address why symptoms persist.
• Broader data, better decisions. Full labs (and sometimes stool/urine testing) + food/lifestyle mapping can reveal patterns a 7-minute visit can’t.
• Clinician fit matters. You want curiosity, clear explanations, and collaboration. Titles help, but how they listen is the tell.
• Coaching upgrades. FM knowledge helps coaches guide clients to targeted doctor questions, low-cost experiments (e.g., trial eliminations), and realistic next steps—especially when budgets/insurance are tight.

• Share your questions or stories: leave us a voicemail
• Explore more episodes of Becoming a Health Coach on the SwissCast Network.
• Connect with Danna for functional-medicine-informed coaching.

Megan and fellow health coach Danna revisit an early episode on patient advocacy, reflecting on what still holds up in 2025. They cover why women are disproportionately dismissed, how to prepare for medical appointments, when to switch doctors, and how to use online research without catastrophizing.

Back in 2018, Megan shared Jennifer Esposito’s years-long road to a celiac diagnosis—an all-too-common story for women whose symptoms get minimized or misread. In this updated conversation, Megan and Danna dig into what it means to be your own advocate today: trusting your intuition, bringing organized notes, asking better questions, and remembering that clinicians are experts in medicine—but you’re the expert on your body. They also lay out a practical way to use communities, forums, and AI search without falling into worst-case rabbit holes.

My name's Megan McCrory and I am an aspiring health coach and this is my story. I'm starting a podcast series for the whole year to follow me along my journey of becoming a health coach. I just want to tell you a little bit about how I got to this point and a little bit about Health Coaching.