Do I Work With Your Diagnosis? A Functional Medicine Perspective

Anastasia Dosov
Aug 5
3 min read

Dear friends,

First, I want to say thank you—to everyone who signed up for my newsletter and waited patiently for this next post. Your interest in your own health and your trust in my work means so much. Today, I want to talk about something I’m often asked:

“Have you worked with this condition before?”

And my answer is: Yes—very likely. But here’s what really matters… I approach things differently.

I Don’t Focus on Diagnoses—I Focus on People

In my practice, I work through the lens of functional medicine. This means I don’t treat your diagnosis directly—I work to uncover and support the underlying imbalances in your body that are driving your symptoms.

Whether you're dealing with:

Chronic fatigue
Hormonal shifts (including perimenopause, thyroid imbalances, or PMS)
Gut issues like bloating, reflux, or IBS
Post-viral fatigue or long-COVID symptoms
Autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto’s, rheumatoid arthritis, or eczema

My focus is not just on the name of your condition—but on you: your history, your resilience, your story.

What I Look For Instead

The same diagnosis can look completely different in two people. That’s why functional medicine focuses on patterns, not just labels.

Some of the common imbalances I see (and help address) include:

Immune dysregulation – often post-infection or due to stealth triggers like mold or viruses
Hormonal and adrenal imbalances – including low cortisol, estrogen dominance, or poor progesterone clearance
Mitochondrial dysfunction – low cellular energy, often hidden behind “just being tired”
Digestive and microbiome disruption – bacterial overgrowth, low diversity, candida, parasites, leaky gut
Detoxification bottlenecks – sluggish liver pathways, impaired bile flow, or nutrient deficiencies
Stress-related nervous system overload – when fight-or-flight is always “on,” healing becomes difficult

A Real Example: Kidney Markers, UTIs, and the Gut-Kidney Axis

One of my recent clients came to me with elevated cystatin C and a very low eGFR—lab markers that pointed to potential kidney injury. She also reported recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs), which had become a frustrating and chronic issue.

Instead of stopping at the diagnosis, we asked: What might be driving this from underneath?

We ran a GI Spotlight test through Diagnostic Solutions, which provides a deep analysis of the microbiome—looking at bacterial balance, candida, digestion, leaky gut, and gut inflammation.

Here’s what we found:

Her Citrobacter levels were at 1.58e9—that’s over 1,500 times higher than the optimal threshold (which is e6, or 1 million).Citrobacter is a gram-negative bacterium known to produce LPS (lipopolysaccharides)—toxic byproducts that inflame and stress the body.

LPS is more than just an “irritant.” At these levels, it can:

Trigger neuroinflammation, leading to anxiety, depression, and poor sleep
Contribute to immune dysfunction, making infections more likely
Cause kidney irritation and increase the risk of acute kidney injury
Lead to renal and perinephric abscesses (according to Dr. Oscar Coetzee)
Set the stage for long-term urinary tract infections

This bacterial overgrowth likely didn't happen overnight—it may have developed gradually over decades, possibly from past antibiotic use, chronic stress, or environmental exposures that disrupted her microbial terrain.

This Is the Functional Medicine Approach

We don’t just ask what condition do you have?We ask:

What systems are out of balance?
Why are symptoms showing up now?
What is your body trying to tell us?

And then we work on real solutions—based on you, not just a diagnosis.

This is why my protocols are always individualized. I don’t hand out cookie-cutter meal plans or generic supplement lists. Instead, I listen deeply, run targeted functional labs when needed, and build a strategy to help your body restore balance—step by step.

If You’re Wondering If I Can Help…

The answer is most likely yes—but not in the way conventional medicine might.

If you're ready for a practitioner who:

Looks at the whole picture
Treats you like a person, not a problem
Works to uncover root causes
And builds a plan with you, not for you…

Then I’d love to connect.

I’m based in the Novi/Northville, MI area, and I also see clients virtually across the U.S.📩 You can book a free 15-minute call through the link on my website to see if it’s a good fit.

Thank you again for being part of this community. I’m so glad you’re here.

Warmly,

Anastasia Dosov, MS, MA

Root cause | Whole body | Strategic Nourishment