Pain, Metabolism, and Your Body as a Garden

 

Your Body Is Not a Machine—It's a Garden

In modern medicine, it’s common to conceptualize the human body as a machine—an intricate system of gears, levers, and wiring, all subject to mechanical failure. Under this lens, disease is treated like a broken part that needs fixing, replacing, or cutting out. While this model has its uses—particularly in trauma care or surgical intervention—it has also limited our understanding of chronic illness, pain, and systemic dysfunction.

But what if we started thinking of the body not as a machine, but as a garden?

Unlike a machine, a garden is a living ecosystem, intimately tied to its environment. Its health depends on sunlight, nutrients, soil quality, water, and the removal of weeds or pests. You don’t “fix” a failing plant by excising the leaf or replacing its root. You adjust the environment—enrich the soil, regulate the watering, expose it to sunlight, and allow nature to do the rest.

This shift in thinking—from mechanical to ecological—unlocks a new paradigm of health, especially when it comes to persistent, hard-to-treat issues like chronic pain and inflammation. Instead of viewing symptoms as invaders or malfunctions, we can see them as signals—clues that the internal environment of the body is out of balance, and that healing depends on restoring its natural rhythms.

Structure Dictates Function

There’s a powerful quote by nobel prize winning scientist Albert Szent-Gyorgi that sums this up beautifully:

“A system can only do what its structure allows it to do. A record player will never write a letter, a typewriter will never make music, and a cow will never be able to lay an egg. But once the system is there it will be able to do what its structure allows it to do... Structure generates function, function generates structure.”

In the body, this means that if the physiological structure—right down to the cellular level—is compromised, its function will follow suit. This is especially relevant in the context of pain syndromes that defy structural imaging. Think fibromyalgia, CRPS, and many types of chronic or neurogenic pain. Traditional diagnostics often can’t “see” the problem because it’s not in the bones or joints—it’s in the cellular metabolism.

Pain and Metabolism: A New Frontier

Emerging research is shedding light on the metabolic underpinnings of chronic pain. One key insight: many of these syndromes are linked to altered metabolism, particularly the failure to fully oxidize glucose through oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). When cells can’t effectively utilize oxygen to produce energy via the electron transport chain (ETC), dysfunction accumulates.

When OXPHOS is impaired, cells fall back on less efficient methods of energy production, generating byproducts like reactive oxygen species (ROS). These ROS not only fail to produce sufficient energy but actually damage cellular components, including the ETC itself. It becomes a vicious cycle: reduced energy production leads to more ROS, which in turn further blocks energy production.

Studies have shown this connection between OXPHOS dysfunction and conditions like:

• Neuropathic pain

• Diabetic peripheral neuropathy

• Gout

• Endometriosis-induced pain

• Intervertebral disc degeneration

ROS, when produced in excess, signal that the cell can no longer metabolize energy effectively. They block the transfer of electrons to oxygen, wasting potential energy and contributing to systemic symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, inflammation, and, yes—pain.

Why This Matters for Chronic Pain Patients

This shift in thinking is particularly useful for conditions often labeled as “central sensitivity syndromes”—where pain is not directly linked to any visible tissue damage but rather a dysfunction in how the nervous system processes pain signals. While pathoanatomical models focus on structural damage, the metabolic model focuses on energy balance, cellular health, and oxygen utilization.

Conditions that may benefit from improving metabolic health include:

• Kinetic chain disorders (imbalances in movement and stabilization)

• Tendinopathies

• Instability injuries (shoulder labral tears, scapular dysfunction, etc.)

• Spinal compression injuries

• Disc injuries

• Chronic neck tension and upper trap tightness

• Referred pain patterns (e.g., right scapula and pelvic pain)

• Persistent or unexplained pain

The unifying theme? These are all energy-intensive systems. And when energy metabolism is impaired, they suffer first.

How to Improve Oxidative Metabolism

The good news is that we can dramatically improve OXPHOS—and therefore improve pain outcomes—by supporting the body’s natural ability to generate energy efficiently. Here’s how:

1. Eliminate Metabolic Blocks

Remove sources of oxidative stress and metabolic interference, such as:

• Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)

• Heavy metals

• Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from gut dysbiosis

• Environmental estrogens (plastics, industrial toxins)

• Smoking and nitric oxide exposure

2. Promote Glucose Oxidation

Rather than relying on fat metabolism or anaerobic glycolysis, encourage the body to burn glucose cleanly via oxidative pathways. This can be supported through:

• Adequate carbohydrate intake (especially simple sugars when appropriate)

• Red light therapy to support mitochondrial function

• Saturated fats for stable energy production

• Supporting healthy thyroid function

• Increasing CO₂ production (a natural byproduct of OXPHOS that helps oppose lactic acid buildup)

3. Support Mineral Balance

The proper functioning of cellular enzymes—including those in the ETC—depends on minerals. Key players include:

• Sodium

• Potassium

• Calcium

• Magnesium

4. Enhance Youth Hormone Production

Hormones like thyroid, progesterone, and testosterone help support mitochondrial function and metabolism. Optimizing the body’s steroid hormone environment involves:

• Supporting liver health

• Ensuring adequate cholesterol intake

• Reducing metabolic stressors

5. Reduce Chronic Stress

Chronic elevation of cortisol, serotonin, and adrenaline can sabotage metabolism. Reducing these—while also lowering parathyroid hormone, prolactin, and estrogen dominance—can shift the body back into an energy-producing, healing state.

6. Heal Digestion

A sluggish or inflamed gut becomes a major source of LPS and immune activation. Improving digestive health helps reduce systemic inflammation and improves nutrient absorption.

Closing Thoughts: Cultivating Health Like a Garden

Chronic pain doesn’t just come from broken parts. Often, it stems from a body that’s been operating in an energy-deficient, stress-driven state for far too long. The solution isn’t to fight or suppress the symptoms but to support the system. Just like a neglected garden, your body doesn’t need war—it needs nourishment, sunlight, removal of toxins, and time.

By focusing on restoring proper metabolism, improving oxygen utilization, and removing blocks to energy production, we can change the terrain. We can help the body do what it was always designed to do: thrive.

If you’re struggling with chronic pain or persistent dysfunction that hasn’t responded to traditional treatment, maybe it’s time to stop thinking like a mechanic—and start thinking like a gardener.