Preeti Raj

I am a physician with 25 years of experience working in the NHS as a GP/Primary care Physician well as in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. In all these years of working as a doctor, I always wanted to know why people get symptoms or diseases. I always tried to figure out what was going wrong in the patient’s body. Around 10 years ago out of the blue, fit and healthy member of my family with no previous illness and completely normal parameters suffered with a heart attack. This really sparked in me a strong desire to figure out why these health problems occur and how can I do something more to help my patients. That is when I started training in Root Cause/Functional and lifestyle medicine. This gave me a better insight into the underlying abnormal physiology and biochemistry. I learned to figure out why and when the body systems may start to malfunction and what could be done to correct it. I got even more encouraged when I could reduce or take my patients off prescription medications and improve their health with lifestyle changes. In 2020, like many thousands, my family also suffered with COVID followed by long COVID. This difficult experience made me look further into healing and improving health without any long-term medications or even supplements. Having grown up in India I was familiar with the ancient Indian science of Ayurveda. With the help of Ayurvedic medicine we managed to successfully treat long Covid and slowly regain normal health. I realised and learned that the body has the capacity to heal itself and we can reclaim our energies, health, and wellbeing. I therefore decided to get training in Ayurvedic principles and therapy so I could use these to help people regain their health and wellbeing. I feel my biggest strength is that as an experienced allopathic medical doctor, I can assess my patients thoroughly with conventional medical approach, diagnose or rule out any serious health issues along with understanding of their standard treatment. I can then dive deeper into the root cause of their problems with functional medicine approach, assess their constitution with Ayurvedic principles and guide them correctly with a personalised treatment plan which would include addressing body rhythms, lifestyle, nutrition, supplements, and natural herbs. At the same time, I can keep a close eye on their medical issues, recommend investigations and review their medications while working with their own doctor and the NHS. To be able to heal a person’s body, mind, and emotions, restoring their health and rekindling energy and joy in their life is the most fulfilling service I hope to be able to provide to my fellow human beings. “