Healing Doesn't Work That Way (and here's why)

Most of the people who find their way to me aren’t beginners. They’re educated, motivated, and tired, tired of doing ‘all the right things’ without getting the results they were promised.

One of the most common frustrations my clients share is that they’ve already sought help, followed someone else’s protocol for their issue, and still feel stuck, because their care was never designed for them. 

I get it. We live in a world that promises quick fixes, tidy protocols, and three easy steps to solve very complex problems. And while I wish I could say, “Just do X, Y, and Z and everything will fall into place,” real healing simply does not work that way.

Here’s why:

Every single person who walks through my door comes with a different health history. Different life experiences. Different (missing) organs. Different scars, some physical, some not.

And those details matter.

We’ve been conditioned to believe that when something goes wrong, the answer is either a prescription… or worse, a scalpel. But so often, a little education and the right lifestyle changes could have prevented the problem altogether.

The challenge is that by the time many people reach me, they’re no longer starting from the same place.

I once had a client with a liver issue ask, “Can’t you just tell everyone the same thing to do?”

The honest answer? No.

A large portion of my clients no longer have a gallbladder. Others are missing a uterus, ovaries, tonsils, appendix, part of their colon, a thyroid, a prostate, or any combination of the above, you get the idea. Some have a long history of medication use that must be processed by the liver. Others don’t. Some have excellent digestion. Others haven’t had a normal bowel movement in years.

Someone with a fully functioning gallbladder, no medication history, and healthy digestion will require a very different approach to healing their liver than someone whose system has been altered, removed, or overburdened along the way.

Yes, the fundamentals still matter.We all benefit from real food, fewer chemicals, better sleep rhythms, and movement.

But for many people, that’s where the “one-size-fits-all” advice stops being helpful.

Even gut health, something people love to oversimplify, is deeply personal. A person born via C-section will have a very different microbial starting point than someone born vaginally. Breastfed versus bottle-fed also matters. Antibiotic history matters. Certain medications can deplete specific minerals, which changes how the body responds to stress, detoxification, and healing.

This is why I don’t lay out rigid protocols and call it a day.

Some people should not be eating fiber, at least temporarily. I know that sounds shocking. But healing sometimes requires addressing deeper dysfunction first, so the body can eventually tolerate the things it’s supposed to handle.

That’s also why my new client questionnaire gets personal very fast. Details matter. Yes, even the unglamorous ones. Especially the unglamorous ones.

If you’re reading this and looking for answers, for yourself or for someone you love, my goal is to give you a solid foundation. Understanding how food, lifestyle, and pharmaceuticals affect the body changes how you see your symptoms. It gives you context. It gives you power.

And for many people, that knowledge alone is enough to start moving in the right direction.

But sometimes, just sometimes, healing is not a journey meant to be done alone.

There is real value in having someone in your corner, someone who understands the body, sees patterns others miss, and helps you connect the dots between your history and your symptoms. Someone who will both support you and hold you accountable, because healing often requires consistency through inconvenience, discomfort, and change.

Ask anyone who has walked that road, and they’ll tell you: with the right mindset, what once felt tedious becomes a way of life. And eventually, joy.

So wherever you are starting from, let this be your permission slip to stop chasing generic answers, and start honoring the fact that your body, your story, and your healing deserve a personalized approach.

More soon,

Dr. Shuck