“Most people already have an idea of what ‘health’ and ‘wellness’ means to them. What they lack is someone who has the knowledge, the skill and the time to go on that journey of discovery and accountability with them.” – Andreas Thyssen, MD
Hi, I’m Andreas Thyssen, MD. I’m a board-certified physician in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics.
For the past decade, I’ve worked in a large academic hospital taking care of adults and children that are too sick to be cared for at home. Over time, I’ve realized that our healthcare system has become exceptionally good at treating the effects and complications brought on by chronic diseases like heart disease, strokes and diabetes. But they don’t often succeed at looking for the root cause.
Many of these “effects” and “complications” are a direct result of our lifestyle and the choices we’re making every day. In fact, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 80% of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes could be prevented, primarily with improvements in diet and lifestyle.
My journey began when I came across the work of Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, two titans in the scientific community. They independently showed the relationship that nutrition has in preventing and even reversing chronic disease. I was amazed by their discoveries and this transformed the trajectory of my career and how I approach conversations with my patients today.
From that point forward, I committed to learning as much as I could about a growing field called Lifestyle Medicine. I found an incredible wealth of scientific research demonstrating how people can transform their health and their lives, simply by making different choices when it comes to nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress, substance use and loving relationships! I dedicated myself to expanding my knowledge even further and went on to obtain my third board certification in Lifestyle Medicine. I am also privileged to be an associate professor of medicine at Tufts University where I help train and coach medical students along their journey to becoming physicians.
It has become clear to me that it is essential to put people at the center of their personal wellness plan and to recognize them as “the expert” in their own journey. This understanding led me to become a certified health and wellness coach!
My mission now is empowering people to take control of their health. It’s my belief that most people already have an intuitive understanding of what “health” and “wellness” means to them and the habits necessary to get there. What they lack is someone who has the knowledge, the skill and the time to go on that journey of discovery and accountability with them.
