Achina Stein, DO, FMCP-M, owner of Functional Mind, in Providence, Rhode Island, combines traditional psychiatric care with functional medicine to treat mental health conditions by investigating potential underlying biological, nutritional and lifestyle imbalances to identify the root cause. After spending 20 years practicing conventional psychiatry, a personal experience caused a profound shift in Stein’s medical career. Her 14-year-old son had an acute depressive episode. It came on quickly, literally overnight.

Stein took her son to see another psychiatrist that prescribed four different medications to try to treat the symptoms. When Stein discovered her child was experiencing double vision and was no longer able to read, she suspected something more was going on—a neurological issue. As a well-trained, detail-oriented psychiatrist, she asked her son’s doctors about this, but was unable to get the answers she sought.

Coincidently, an ad seeking an integrative psychiatrist in Connecticut led Stein to meet with Ed Levitan, M.D. She asked to shadow him one day each week to learn his approach to health. What she learned blew her mind. She took her son to see Levitan for help in identifying the underlying cause of the mental disorder, digestive issues and double vision. Functional testing revealed a combination of celiac disease, multiple nutrition deficiencies and inflammation of the cranial nerves, resulting from inflammation in the gut.

A change in diet and lifestyle resolved the depression and anxiety. Fixing the gut fixed the brain. Stein’s son was off of all his meds in two years. Furthermore, the eczema and constipation he had experienced for his whole life to that point were resolved.

“I couldn’t unsee what I saw and practice the same way,” says Stein. “I was like a sponge. I had to learn more, so I pursued studies and certification at the Institute for Functional Medicine, and I expanded my tool kit.”

Stein uses the Multiple Symptom Toxicity Questionnaire (MSQ) to screen symptoms, which is only part of an extensive intake. She spends time with each patient gathering a lot of history and conducts a comprehensive physical examination, identifying issues that many primary care physicians sometimes miss. Beyond the two and one-half hours she takes to meet and get to know a new patient, she spends more time studying data, organizing information onto a timeline and developing a five-to-nine-page individualized treatment plan.

One patient’s MSQ reported high scores in sleeplessness, fatigue and constipation. Physically, the patient appeared normal, except for a prominent goiter. Blood testing revealed normal thyroid levels, but indicated malabsorption of vital nutrients, including protein. Stool testing revealed a combination of candida and H. Pylori bacteria underlying the dysbiosis. Urine testing for mold toxicity uncovered an extremely high level of mycophenolic acid. Stein developed an individualized protocol with dietary, supplemental, lifestyle and mitigative recommendations, which the patient followed and was able to dramatically improve her MSQ scores.

Stein defines her ideal client as “someone who has been seeing doctor after doctor with a desire to understand why they are experiencing mental and physical symptoms and wanting to get well. All they are given is a prescription, no answers and a sense that this is the way it’s going to be. They view this prescription as a band-aid, and they are not getting their questions answered about why they are feeling the way they are feeling. The workup and labs are normal; they walk away feeling that the medical provider is indirectly or even directly stating, ‘It’s all in your head’ and now offering an antidepressant. They’ve generally lived a healthy life, but now things seem to be falling apart, and they just want to know what to do to make it right. I’m the doctor who can help them.”

When identifying the causes of inflammation that underlay illness, Stein refers to the acronym SHIFT—stress, hormones, infection, foods and toxins. She seeks to remove the bad players and get the body’s biorhythms back in order, and she encourages patients to recharge their “batteries” through nervous system regulation, which will support body repair.

Prospective patients can begin by setting up a free, 25-minute Discovery Call and filling out the MSQ before the conversation. Once a patient decides to move forward, the initial fee for a full examination, assessment, functional test recommendations and treatment plan also includes access to Functional Mind’s nutritionist and four sessions with its health coach. The patient is supported by a team of certified practitioners.

Anyone curious to learn more about Stein and her approach to functional medicine should read her book What If It’s Not Depression?: Your Guide to Finding Answers and Solutions. Mark Hyman, M.D., one of the most trusted names in functional medicine states, “Dr. Stein invites readers to be ‘Sherlock Holmes’ searching for clues to their physical and mental health challenges. As a classically trained psychiatrist, she was experienced in using the psychodynamic and biopsychosocial approach as tools for parsing out layers of multiple root causes emotionally, but as a functional medicine practitioner, she used those same skills to parse the layers out physically.”

Dr. Achina Stein, DO, DFAPA, ABIHM, FACN, FMCP-M, is an osteopathic physician, board-certified psychiatrist and functional medicine practitioner at Functional Mind, LLC, located at 105 Wickenden St., Ste. 6, in Providence, RI. For more information or to make an appointment, call 401-270-4541, email [email protected] or visit fxnmind.com.