Modern medicine: A system that treats the effects, not the causes

Modern Medicine: A System That Treats Effects, Not Causes

Modern medicine, for all its technological advances and scientific successes, suffers from a fundamental problem: it is not designed to seek out, understand, and treat the causes of disease. Instead, it focuses on controlling symptoms and providing temporary solutions that do not lead to real cures. When faced with diseases it does not understand—such as many autoimmune diseases, chronic pain, or so-called idiopathic conditions—modern medicine simply shrugs its shoulders and admits defeat, while dismissing or ignoring alternatives that might provide answers. This is no coincidence; it is a systemic problem that stems from the way modern medicine is conceived, funded, and practiced.

Autoimmune Diseases: A Symbol of Modern Medicine’s Powerlessness

Autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, and many others, are some of the most obvious examples of modern medicine’s lack of understanding of what it is doing. Although it is known that these diseases are the result of a malfunctioning immune system, medicine has failed to answer the key question: Why does the immune system attack its own body?

Instead of looking for the underlying cause, medicine offers symptomatic solutions:

Corticosteroids to suppress inflammation.
Immunosuppressants to reduce immune system activity.
Painkillers to control symptoms.

These drugs do not cure the disease—they merely mask it. At the same time, immunosuppressants increase the risk of infections and other serious complications, leaving patients in a state of perpetual vulnerability. This approach is not only ineffective, but also incredibly inhumane.

Why does modern medicine ignore trauma as a cause?

One of the most obvious factors in the development of many diseases – psychological trauma – is systematically ignored. Research shows that trauma leaves deep scars on the body, including:

Chronic activation of the stress response, which disrupts the functioning of the immune system.
Increased levels of inflammation, which is recognized as the underlying mechanism for many chronic and autoimmune diseases.
Hormonal imbalances that further promote the development of the disease.

Despite this, modern medicine almost never asks the question: Is this disease the result of a deep emotional wound? The reason for this ignorance lies in the structure of the medical system. Trauma cannot be diagnosed with a blood test or an X-ray, nor can it be treated with a pill. Treating trauma requires time, expertise, and a holistic approach – things that modern medicine rarely provides.

Diseases of “Unknown Cause”: A Euphemism for Medical Ignorance

When modern medicine cannot explain the cause of a disease, it uses the term “unknown cause” or “idiopathic disease.” This is a professional way of admitting a complete lack of understanding. But it is not just an admission of ignorance; it is also a way of avoiding the responsibility of seeking deeper answers.

For diseases such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, or many autoimmune disorders, patients are often left to their own devices. Doctors prescribe medications to relieve symptoms but rarely investigate the psychological, emotional, or environmental factors that may be key in the development of these conditions.

The Pharmaceutical Industry: Profit Over Health

One of the main reasons why modern medicine does not seek the deeper causes of disease lies in the way it is funded and structured. The pharmaceutical industry, which controls much of medical research and education, has a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. Their profits come from chronic diseases, not from healthy people.

For example:

Medications for symptoms: Instead of investigating why someone has high blood pressure, they prescribe medications that lower it – and which the patient must take for the rest of their life.
Autoimmune diseases: Immunosuppressants are advertised as a “solution”, even though they do not treat the cause of the disease, but create new problems.

Trauma, which is often the root of the problem, is not commercially viable. Healing trauma requires in-depth work through psychotherapy, movement therapies, integrative methods or mutual support – none of which can be packaged in a bottle and sold.

Rigidity and limitations of the medical model

The modern medical model is based on a paradigm that sees the body as a machine, and diseases as malfunctions that need to be “fixed”. This reductionist approach ignores the complexity of the human organism and its connection to the mind and spirit. This leads to absurd situations:

Symptoms are treated in isolation: Back pain? Physiotherapy. Depression? Antidepressants. No one asks why a person is in pain or why they feel depressed.
Ignoring environmental and emotional factors: Even when it is clear that stress, trauma or life circumstances have contributed to the illness, these factors are marginalized.

This approach creates the illusion of “control”, while in reality it only deepens the problem.

What does practice show?

Practice shows that alternative approaches – such as psychotherapy, somatic therapies, nutritional interventions and emotional healing work – often produce results where modern medicine fails. Examples are numerous:

People who have been freed from chronic pain through trauma work.
Patients who were told they would “never get better” and who have found their way through holistic approaches.
Cases where healing came through a deeper understanding of themselves and their emotional wounds.

Why aren’t these successes recognized? Because they are undermining the foundations of a rigid medical system.

Psychotherapy: A Medicine the System Doesn’t Support

Psychotherapy is not offered as part of the standard healthcare system in Croatia and many other countries. Although it has been proven to be effective in treating depression, anxiety, PTSD, and many other conditions, it is not available to everyone. Why? Because psychotherapy requires time, an individual approach, and a long-term investment – which does not fit into the fast-paced and profitable model of modern medicine.

Time for Change

Modern medicine must acknowledge its limitations and open the door to the integration of holistic and alternative approaches. Instead of just dealing with symptom control, it must begin to investigate and treat the causes. This includes:

Recognizing trauma as a key factor in health.
Incorporating psychotherapy, somatic methods, and other approaches into the public health system.
Separating medical research and education from the pharmaceutical industry.

Health is not just the absence of disease—it is a state of physical, mental, and emotional balance. Until modern medicine understands this, we will continue to treat symptoms and the causes will remain unaddressed. We are seeking a system that serves people, not industry interests—because health is a right, not a privilege.,