PATHWAY 1: Symptom Assessment
It is important for your personal physician to “rule out” any structural injury, infection, or organ disease as the cause of your symptom. Once this has been confirmed, you can begin to “rule in” the possibility that your symptom may be neuroplastic in nature and may respond to this treatment approach by completing one of the many self-assessments and reviewing the F.I.T. criteria.
STEP 1 of 2
Establish Medical Safety: "Rule Out" Structural Cause With Physician
As a first step, it is important for your personal physician to “rule out” any structural injury, infection, or organ disease as the cause of your symptom.
Once this has been confirmed, proceed to STEP 2 (Establish Clarity Of Your Symptom: "Rule In" Neuroplastic Symptom) below.
SUPPORTIVE RESOURCES:
- List of Common Neuroplastic Symptoms (see below in next section)
- Letter to your Doctor - Explaining Neuroplastic Symptoms and Treatment (provided by ATNS- Association for the Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms)
STEP 2 of 2
Establish Clarity Of Your Symptom: "Rule In" Neuroplastic Symptom
Once Step 1 has been confirmed, you can begin to “rule in” the possibility that your symptom may be neuroplastic in nature. If so, there is a good possibility you may respond to this treatment approach.
SUPPORTIVE RESOURCES:
- Podcast explanation:
- "The Science Behind The Symptoms" - Ep 2 (Dr. Becca Kennedy and Dr. Howard Schubiner, ATNS)
- Self-Assessment:
- 12-Question Quiz (ATNS - Association for Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms - US)
- Self-assessment Quiz (Living Proof - UK)
- Self-assessment Test (Stichting Emovere - NL)
- F.I.T Criteria Evaluation:
- F.I.T. criteria (Dr. Howard Schubiner)
- F.I.T citeria explained by Dr. Howard Schubiner ("Science Behind The Symptoms" Ep. 2, 23:45)
- Common Neuroplastic Symptoms List:
- www.symptomatic.me (ATNS - Association for Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms - US)
- Stichting Emovere Foundation (NL)
- HealABLE Pathways - Common Symptoms List
If you've ruled in neuroplastic symptoms, that's good news.
This means your nervous system has been stuck in a prolonged state of dysregulation, running danger signals through neural circuits in the unconscious brain. It's a learned pattern, and learned patterns can be unlearned, thanks to the brain's neuroplasticity.
Sound complicated? Think about how quickly you forgot the details of calculus, biology, the periodic table, or a foreign language once you stopped studying. Unlearning symptom patterns works in a similar way.
→ Continue to Pathway 2: The Brain's Role in Symptoms
