Your Doctor Should Be Trying to Get You Off Medications, Not Put You on Them

When you step into a doctor’s office, you expect them to help you heal, right? You anticipate a conversation about improving your health, finding the root cause of your symptoms, and making lifestyle changes that will prevent future issues. But instead, what happens? You walk out with a prescription in hand, another medication added to your daily routine.

Why? Because modern medicine has become a system focused on managing symptoms rather than addressing the causes. And let’s be honest: there’s a lot more money in keeping you dependent on pills than in helping you get off them. But shouldn’t the goal of a good doctor be to reduce your need for medications, not increase them? Let’s explore why this isn’t happening—and why you should be questioning it.

The Medical Industry Is a Profit Machine

Let’s get one thing straight: the pharmaceutical industry is not in the business of making you healthier. It’s in the business of making money. In 2023 alone, the global pharmaceutical industry was worth over $1.5 trillion. That’s trillion with a “T.”

Big Pharma relies on doctors prescribing medications. The more prescriptions written, the more money is made. And guess who incentivizes doctors to keep pushing those drugs? That’s right—the pharmaceutical companies themselves.

✔ Doctors receive incentives: Many physicians receive compensation, speaking fees, and perks from pharmaceutical companies for prescribing their medications.
✔ Medical schools are funded by Big Pharma: Many universities receive funding from drug manufacturers, meaning that new doctors are trained to prescribe, not prevent.
✔ Insurance favors medication over lifestyle interventions: Insurance companies are far more likely to cover a cholesterol-lowering drug than a nutritionist or a gym membership.

This creates a system where your doctor isn’t working to heal you—they’re working to manage your condition with medication. And that’s not healthcare; that’s business.

The “Forever Patient” Model

Think about this: when was the last time your doctor prescribed a medication and told you, “This is temporary—we’ll work to get you off it”?

It almost never happens. Instead, you’re put on one medication, and then another to deal with the side effects of the first one. Before you know it, you’re taking five, ten, even fifteen pills a day.

Here’s how the “forever patient” model works:

✔ You go to the doctor for high blood pressure. You’re given a prescription for a blood pressure pill.
✔ The medication causes side effects like dizziness or fatigue. Instead of adjusting your lifestyle, your doctor prescribes another pill to manage the side effects.
✔ Your blood pressure stays controlled, but you develop high cholesterol. Another pill is added to your daily regimen.
✔ You start experiencing blood sugar issues. Now you’re prediabetic, and your doctor prescribes a medication for that.
✔ You’re officially a lifelong pharmaceutical customer.

And let’s not forget: many medications don’t actually cure anything. They just mask symptoms while allowing the root problem to continue.

The Real Solution? Fix the Root Cause

The dirty little secret of modern medicine is that most chronic diseases are preventable—and reversible with lifestyle changes. But instead of empowering patients with knowledge, doctors simply write prescriptions. Here’s what your doctor should be doing instead:

1. Focusing on Nutrition

Most chronic illnesses—heart disease, diabetes, obesity—are directly linked to diet. Yet how many doctors give you real dietary advice? Instead, they’ll prescribe a statin for your cholesterol rather than telling you to cut out processed foods and sugar.

Doctors should be prescribing whole foods, anti-inflammatory diets, and proper nutrition coaching before ever reaching for a pill.

2. Encouraging Exercise

Physical activity is one of the most effective “medications” on the planet. It can:

✔ Lower blood pressure
✔ Improve insulin sensitivity
✔ Reduce inflammation
✔ Boost mental health
✔ Strengthen your immune system

But instead of prescribing movement, doctors prescribe beta blockers and antidepressants.

3. Addressing Stress and Sleep

Chronic stress and poor sleep are major contributors to disease, yet they are rarely discussed in medical offices. Instead of helping patients develop stress management techniques or fixing sleep hygiene, doctors throw benzodiazepines or sleeping pills at the problem.

4. Weaning Patients Off Medications

A good doctor should have a strategy to reduce your medications, not just increase them. But how many doctors actually talk about de-prescribing? The truth is, most don’t because it’s not profitable.

Why Aren’t More Doctors Speaking Out?

If this is all so obvious, why aren’t more doctors challenging the system?

✔ They’re Trained to Prescribe, Not Prevent
Medical school spends shockingly little time on nutrition, lifestyle medicine, and alternative healing. Instead, doctors are trained to diagnose and prescribe a drug for every problem.

✔ Fear of Losing Their Medical License
Doctors who stray from the pharmaceutical model—those who focus on nutrition, natural healing, or de-prescribing—often face backlash. Some have even had their medical licenses threatened for promoting non-pharmaceutical approaches.

✔ It’s Easier and Faster to Prescribe
Doctors are overwhelmed with short appointment times and overloaded patient lists. Writing a prescription takes two minutes. Educating a patient on lifestyle changes takes time—and time is money in the healthcare industry.

What You Can Do to Break Free

If you don’t want to be trapped in the “forever patient” cycle, you have to take your health into your own hands. Here’s how:

✔ Question every prescription. Ask your doctor, “Is there a natural way to fix this?”
✔ Seek functional medicine practitioners. These doctors focus on the root cause, not just symptoms.
✔ Prioritize nutrition. Cut out ultra-processed foods, refined sugars, and inflammatory oils.
✔ Exercise like your life depends on it—because it does.
✔ Manage stress and sleep. Poor sleep alone can increase your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and mental health disorders.
✔ Educate yourself. Read books on holistic health, watch documentaries, and follow experts who challenge the mainstream medical model.

The Bottom Line: Be Your Own Health Advocate

Your doctor should be working to get you off medications, not keep you on them forever. The medical system is designed to keep you dependent, not healthy. If you want real health, you have to take control, ask hard questions, and make lifestyle changes that prevent disease—not just manage symptoms.

So next time your doctor reaches for the prescription pad, ask yourself: Is this really the best solution—or just the most profitable one?