Functional Medicine for People
Who Still Do Not Feel Well
WE SEE YOU, WE KNOW WHAT IT IS LIKE.
Root-cause functional medicine for chronic fatigue, gut issues, hormone imbalance, thyroid concerns, autoimmune patterns, inflammation, and the symptoms your labs keep calling normal. You may have changed your diet, taken the supplements, seen the doctors, had the labs drawn, and tried to do everything right, while your body still feels tired, inflamed, foggy, unpredictable, or hard to understand. At Upstate Holistic Wellness, Jake Duncan, PA-C offers functional medicine for people who need more than a quick appointment, a generic protocol, or another answer that only treats one symptom at a time. His work looks at the whole picture, including gut health, hormones, thyroid function, metabolic health, inflammation, nutrient status, immune patterns, stress, sleep, lifestyle, and the patterns your body has been carrying over time. Based in Upstate South Carolina and serving clients locally and virtually where appropriate, Jake helps you connect the dots, understand what may be driving your symptoms, and choose a clear next step toward deeper, more lasting wellness.
You know something is off, even if no one has fully explained why.
Many people come to functional medicine after years of being told that everything looks fine, even though they still do not feel fine. They have learned to manage symptoms, search for answers, and carry the mental load of becoming their own case manager. They may have a folder of labs, a cabinet full of supplements, a long list of foods they no longer eat, and still no clear sense of why their body feels the way it does. This care is for the person who wants to stop guessing. It is for the person who wants someone to slow down, look carefully, and ask better questions about what is happening underneath the fatigue, inflammation, gut issues, hormone changes, thyroid symptoms, autoimmune patterns, weight changes, brain fog, mood shifts, and stress that keep affecting daily life. You do not need another rushed appointment. You need someone who can sit with the whole picture.
Does any of this sound familiar?
Functional medicine may be a good fit if you are dealing with symptoms that feel connected, complex, or unresolved, especially when conventional care has only offered partial answers. Your symptoms are not random inconveniences. They are information. Functional medicine helps us listen to that information more carefully so we can understand what your body may need in order to heal.
Chronic Fatigue and Low Energy
You are tired no matter how much you sleep, crash during the day, or feel like your body no longer recovers the way it used to.
Hormone Imbalance
Cycles, mood, weight, sleep, energy, PMS, postpartum recovery, or perimenopause symptoms feel unpredictable, and you are ready to understand why.
Autoimmune and Immune
Patterns Hashimoto’s, autoimmune symptoms, recurring inflammation, flares, immune stress, or a body that seems reactive and easily thrown off balance.
Brain Fog and Mood Changes
You feel like a slower version of yourself, have trouble focusing, feel flat or irritable, or notice that anxiety and mood changes seem connected to your body.
Gut and Digestive Issues
Bloating, constipation, diarrhea, reflux, IBS symptoms, food sensitivities, or a gut that still feels unsettled after everything you have removed or added.
Thyroid Concerns
Fatigue, cold sensitivity, weight changes, hair loss, brain fog, mood shifts, or sluggish metabolism, even when basic labs have been called normal.
Inflammation and Chronic Pain
Stiffness, soreness, joint pain, swelling, headaches, body aches, or symptoms that flare with stress, food, hormones, poor sleep, or overexertion.
Metabolic and Weight Concerns
Your weight, blood sugar, cravings, cholesterol, insulin, or metabolism no longer make sense, even when you are trying to eat well and care for yourself.
Medicine that asks better questions.
Most people do not need someone to tell them to try harder. They need someone to help them understand why their body is struggling in the first place. Root-cause functional medicine looks beyond a diagnosis or a single lab marker and asks what systems may be contributing to the symptoms. What is happening in the gut? What is your thyroid doing? How are your hormones communicating? Is inflammation keeping your body in a stress state? Are nutrient deficiencies, blood sugar patterns, immune reactivity, sleep disruption, or chronic stress making it harder for your body to recover? At Upstate Holistic Wellness, functional medicine is not about chasing trends or building a life around protocols. It is about careful assessment, targeted testing when needed, thoughtful interpretation, and a plan that makes sense for your actual body.
How functional medicine care works here:
Jake’s functional medicine care is built around relationship, continuity, and clarity. Instead of dropping into one isolated visit and leaving with a long list of suggestions, you are supported through a model that gives your body time to respond and gives Jake time to understand what is changing. Most people begin with a free call so Jake can hear what is going on, what you have already tried, and what level of support would fit best. From there, he may recommend Phase 1 Intensive Functional Medicine Membership, Phase 2 Vital Mastery Community, or a smaller starting place such as labs through Fullscript if ongoing membership is not the right next step yet. The goal is not to keep you in intensive care forever. The goal is to help you understand your body, stabilize what needs support, and move into a lighter level of care as you become more steady.
Two levels of care, with labs as a smaller starting place if you are not ready:
UP CLOSSE AND PERSONAL
Functional medicine works best when there is enough time to understand the whole picture and enough support to adjust the plan as your body responds. Jake’s primary care model includes two levels of membership: Phase 1 Intensive for people who need more one-on-one support, and Phase 2 Vital Mastery Community for those who want ongoing guidance, education, and connection. If membership is not the right starting place yet, you can begin with labs through Fullscript and use that information to decide what kind of support you need next.
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Individual: $350/month
Family: $600/month for two family members living in the same household12-month commitment
Best for people with multiple, complex, or long-standing health concerns who need more individualized functional medicine support while we work to understand what is driving their symptoms.
The Functional Medicine Intensive is the deepest level of support Jake offers. It is designed for the person whose health feels layered, confusing, or difficult to untangle alone.
If you are dealing with chronic fatigue, gut issues, hormone imbalance, thyroid concerns, autoimmune patterns, inflammation, brain fog, metabolic changes, or symptoms that have not improved with basic support, this membership gives you consistent access to individualized care, lab insight, protocols, education, and ongoing support throughout the year.
Includes:
• Six full one-on-one functional medicine consultations over a 12-month period, available remotely or in person pending availability.
• Weekly Process Group focused on implementing protocols, understanding the body, working through barriers to healing, supporting mental and emotional health, and creating sustainable changes in everyday life.
• Full access to the SLW Vital Mastery Community, including the complete protocol database, written protocols, videos, and educational courses.
• Unlimited e-protocols for the member and anyone living in their household, submitted through the Vital Mastery Community.
• Weekly group coaching sessions with educational teaching and live Q&A.
• Discounted professional-grade supplements.
• Discounted labs ordered by Jake, with interpretation and detailed discussion during individual consultations.
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Community
Option 1: $100/month
Best for people who are already fairly in tune with their healthcare needs but want to stay connected to a functional medicine provider, ongoing education, and a supportive community.
Vital Mastery is designed to give members consistent access to guidance throughout the month, rather than leaving them on their own between appointments. Each month includes education, live support, nervous system care, practical protocols, and opportunities to ask questions as members continue caring for their health.
Includes:
• Full access to the SLW Vital Mastery Community, including the complete protocol database, written protocols, videos, and educational courses.
• Monthly Educational Live with Jake centered around the health topic of the month, with practical teaching, functional medicine education, and time for questions.
• Monthly Nervous System Clinic with Lillie, a live call focused on nervous system regulation, body awareness, stress patterns, and the emotional side of healing.
• Friday Open Office Hours with Jake, offered at scheduled times through Zoom, where members can drop in with questions, get clarification, and receive general guidance around their health plan.
• Weekly group coaching sessions with educational teaching and live Q&A.
• Ability to send personal messages through the community.
• Unlimited e-protocols.
• Discounted professional-grade supplements.
• Help ordering and understanding labs when needed.
• Access to a la carte one-on-one functional medicine consultations for $250 per consultation.
Family members may also purchase a la carte consultations for $250.
Option 2: Vital Mastery + Process Group$175/month
6-month commitmentBest for people who want everything included in the Vital Mastery Community, along with more consistent support applying what they are learning to their actual health, body, habits, and daily life.
This level adds a smaller, more intentional process group where members can receive support around protocols, body symptoms, nervous system patterns, stress, emotional health, and the practical work of making sustainable changes.
Includes everything in the Vital Mastery Community, plus:
• Process Group every other week, facilitated as a space for deeper support, reflection, implementation, and accountability.
• Help working through barriers that may be making it difficult to follow protocols consistently.
• Support understanding patterns in the body, stress response, nervous system, habits, and emotional health.
• Space to talk through what is working, what feels difficult, and where additional support may be needed.
• Guidance around integrating nutrition, supplements, lifestyle changes, nervous system care, and emotional health into everyday life.
• Connection with a smaller group of members who are actively working toward similar health goals.
• Access to a la carte one-on-one functional medicine consultations with Jake for $250 per consultation when individualized support is needed.
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If you are not ready for membership, you can begin with labs through Fullscript. This gives you a broader look at key patterns related to thyroid health, inflammation, nutrient status, hormones, metabolic health, immune stress, and other markers that may help explain why you still do not feel well. This option is for people who want more information before committing to ongoing functional medicine care. It is not the same as having Jake manage your full plan over time, but it can give you a clearer baseline and help you decide whether Phase 1 or Phase 2 is the right next step.
Community
BETTER TOGETHER WITH
Vital Mastery gives members a place to learn, ask questions, and stay connected while caring for their health. Each month includes practical functional medicine education with Jake, nervous system support with Lillie, and opportunities to receive guidance between individual appointments.
Members also have access to a private community, educational courses, written protocols, videos, e-protocols, and discounted professional-grade supplements.
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Each month, Jake teaches on a functional medicine topic and offers practical guidance members can apply to their health. Topics may include gut health, hormones, thyroid function, inflammation, metabolism, sleep, stress, nutrition, and other whole-body concerns.
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Lillie leads a monthly live call focused on nervous system regulation, body awareness, stress patterns, and emotional well-being. Members receive simple practices and support for understanding how their physical and emotional health are connected.
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Jake offers scheduled Friday Zoom hours where members can drop in with questions, receive clarification, and talk through general concerns related to protocols, labs, supplements, symptoms, and next steps.
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Members receive access to a private online community and a growing library of written protocols, videos, educational courses, and health resources. They can also request e-protocols, send messages through the community, and stay connected between live calls.
Frequently Asked Questions
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An e-protocol is a personalized written plan from Jake, delivered electronically after you submit a focused question, symptom concern, or request for support through the membership. It may include supplement guidance, lifestyle recommendations, nutrition support, lab considerations, or next steps based on your situation. E-protocols are one way members receive practical support between consults, but they do not replace urgent care, primary care, or a full medical evaluation when one is needed. Membership pricing and inclusions are current as of 2026.
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Most conventional medical care is designed to diagnose disease, manage symptoms, prescribe medication, and address urgent or acute concerns. That kind of care matters, and we do not replace it. Functional medicine asks a different set of questions by looking at patterns across your symptoms, labs, health history, lifestyle, nutrition, stress, sleep, and body systems so we can better understand what may be contributing to the dysfunction.
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We are a private-pay practice. This allows Jake to spend more time with you, offer a more individualized model of care, and avoid care decisions being shaped by insurance limitations. We are glad to talk through costs before you commit to anything.
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Upstate Holistic Wellness is based in Upstate South Carolina, and Jake serves clients locally and virtually where appropriate. Availability may depend on your location, the type of care needed, and current scope-of-practice requirements. The free call is the best place to clarify whether this is a fit.
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Most people with complex or ongoing symptoms begin in Phase 1 because they need one-on-one support, lab interpretation, and a plan that can adjust over time. Some people begin in Phase 2 if they are already stable, mainly need education and community, or want lighter ongoing support. If neither phase is the right starting place, Jake may suggest labs through Fullscript first.
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Not always. Labs can be very helpful when symptoms are complex, unclear, or longstanding, but Jake only recommends testing when it will meaningfully guide care. If you already have recent labs, bring them. If new testing would be useful, Jake will explain why and what we hope to learn.
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Yes. Many people benefit from supporting both the body and the nervous system, especially when chronic symptoms, trauma, anxiety, stress, or relational patterns are connected. Jake and Lillie work under the same practice name, and when appropriate, care can be coordinated while still respecting your privacy and consent.
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No. Functional medicine membership is not a substitute for primary care, emergency care, or specialized medical care when needed. You should maintain a primary care provider and seek urgent or emergency support for acute symptoms.
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The free call is a short conversation where you tell us what is going on, what you have already tried, and what kind of support you are looking for. Jake will listen, ask a few questions, and tell you honestly whether Phase 1, Phase 2, labs, or another kind of care would be the best next step.
let’s talk
Book a call.
You do not have to keep guessing alone. You have done the research, tried the protocols, carried the questions, the labs, the symptoms, and the frustration for long enough. Bring the whole picture, the fatigue, the gut issues, the hormone shifts, the thyroid concerns, the autoimmune patterns, the inflammation, the brain fog, the weight changes, the stress, the sleep, the supplements, and the history underneath it all. Jake will help you look carefully, understand what may be connected, and choose the next step with clarity.