The Architecture of Wellbeing: How Functional Medicine, Maslow, and Chakras Align

Mind–Body–Soul and Layered Health

Across centuries and disciplines, humans have sought to understand what it means to be healthy and whole. Different systems – ancient, psychological, and clinical – have developed unique frameworks to describe this process, yet all point to a common truth: healing occurs in layers, from foundational stability to higher-order growth and purpose.

In this blog, we explore three complementary lenses on human wellbeing:

Functional Medicine’s 7 Systems

Illuminate how the body’s physiology supports health from digestion to energy, defense, and structural integrity.

What is Functional Medicine? 

Functional medicine is a systems biology–based, patient-centered approach that focuses on identifying and addressing the root cause of diseases, rather than just treating symptoms. It views the body as an interconnected system, combining conventional and natural medicine to create personalized, lifestyle-based treatment plans for chronic, complex conditions. 

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maps the psychological journey from safety and belonging to self-actualization and transcendence.

What is Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? 

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a motivational theory in psychology, often depicted as a five-tier pyramid, suggesting that humans must satisfy basic physiological and safety needs before ascending to higher-level social, esteem, and self-actualization needs. Developed by Abraham Maslow in 1943, it posits that lower-level deficiency needs must generally be met before focusing on growth needs. 

Ayurvedic Chakras

Describe the energetic and spiritual dimensions of health, from grounding to insight and enlightenment.

What is Ayurveda and the Chakra system?

Ayurveda is a 5,000-year-old Indian holistic medical system ("Science of Life") focused on balancing body, mind, and spirit through diet, herbs, and lifestyle. The Chakra system refers to seven main energy centers (vortexes) located along the spine that govern physical, psychological, and spiritual well-being. Both systems work together to align energy, with Ayurveda's doshas (Vata, Pitta, Kapha) often influencing the functionality of specific chakras. 

Each system tells the same story in its own language. Functional Medicine addresses the body, Maslow illuminates the mind, and chakras reflect the soul’s experience. By viewing these frameworks together, we gain a holistic, mind–body–soul map of human health, revealing how growth, connection, and purpose emerge only when foundational needs are met.

1. Foundation: Safety, Survival, and Regulation

Functional Medicine System: Digestion & Assimilation
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Physiological Needs
Chakra: Root (Muladhara)

Every healing journey begins with safety in the body.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, physiological needs – food, water, rest, and shelter – form the base of human motivation. Without these essentials, the nervous system remains in survival mode, making higher-level growth impossible. Ayurveda echoes this truth through the root chakra, which governs stability, grounding, and our sense of being supported in the world.

From a Functional Medicine perspective, this foundation is expressed through the system of digestion and assimilation. Digestion is not simply about breaking down food; it is how the body receives information, nourishment, and safety from its environment. When digestion is compromised – through chronic stress, inflammation, irregular eating patterns, or nutrient deficiencies – the body interprets this as a threat.

This state of internal insecurity often manifests as fatigue, anxiety, digestive discomfort, blood sugar instability, or sleep disturbances. Psychologically, it may show up as hypervigilance, difficulty focusing, or a persistent sense of unease. Energetically, root chakra imbalance is experienced as feeling ungrounded, unsupported, or disconnected from the body.

Supporting this foundational level means prioritizing regulation over optimization. Regular meals, adequate protein and micronutrients, consistent sleep, and a predictable daily rhythm help signal safety to the nervous system. When the body feels fed and supported, the mind can begin to relax, and the energy of survival can shift toward growth.

This is why no amount of mindset work, supplementation, or spiritual practice can fully compensate for unmet physiological needs. Stability precedes transformation. When digestion and assimilation are supported, the foundation of the entire system strengthens, allowing higher levels of healing to unfold naturally.

2. Elimination, Flow, and Emotional Processing

Functional Medicine System: Biotransformation & Elimination
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Safety → Belonging
Chakra: Sacral (Svadhisthana)

Once basic physiological needs are met, the body’s next priority is learning how to process and release – not just what it takes in, but what it no longer needs.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, this stage represents the transition from basic safety toward belonging. When the nervous system feels relatively stable, humans begin to orient toward connection, pleasure, and relationship. Ayurveda reflects this developmental step through the sacral chakra, which governs flow, creativity, emotional expression, and our relationship to pleasure and intimacy.

In Functional Medicine, this level aligns with biotransformation and elimination – the body’s ability to neutralize, process, and excrete metabolic waste, hormones, toxins, and byproducts of daily living. This system relies heavily on the liver, gut, lymphatic system, and kidneys, and it is deeply sensitive to stress.

When elimination pathways are sluggish or overwhelmed, the body holds on – physically and emotionally. Clinically, this may appear as hormonal imbalances, bloating, skin issues, headaches, or increased inflammation. Psychologically, it can show up as irritability, emotional reactivity, or feeling “stuck.” Energetically, sacral imbalance is often experienced as a loss of joy, creative stagnation, or difficulty accessing pleasure and connection.

Importantly, this is not a failure of willpower or mindset. A body that cannot safely eliminate will often resist change. It may cling to patterns – foods, relationships, habits – not because they are healthy, but because familiarity feels safer than uncertainty.

Supporting this level of the hierarchy means creating conditions that allow for gentle release. This includes supporting liver detoxification through adequate nutrition, hydration, and micronutrients, maintaining regular bowel movements, and reducing the chronic stress that diverts energy away from elimination. Equally important is emotional permission: space to feel, express, and move emotions rather than suppressing them.

When the body learns that it can let go without threat, a deeper sense of safety emerges, one that extends beyond survival into relationships. Flow returns. Creativity softens the edges of control. And the system becomes ready for the next developmental step: personal power and agency.

3. Energy, Agency, and Self-Efficacy

Functional Medicine System: Energy
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Esteem
Chakra: Solar Plexus (Manipura)

When the body feels nourished and capable of releasing what it no longer needs, energy becomes available for something more than survival: choice.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, this stage aligns with esteem – our need for competence, confidence, and a sense that our actions matter. Ayurveda locates this developmental shift in the solar plexus chakra, the center of personal power, digestion, and transformation. It governs not only how we metabolize food, but how we metabolize experience.

From a Functional Medicine perspective, this level corresponds to the energy system, including mitochondrial function, blood sugar regulation, and metabolic efficiency. Energy is not merely about how much rest we get or how motivated we feel; it reflects how effectively the body converts nutrients into usable fuel. When this process is compromised, even the most disciplined lifestyle can feel exhausting.

Imbalances at this level often show up as chronic fatigue, blood sugar crashes, burnout, or reliance on stimulants to get through the day. Psychologically, this may manifest as low confidence, indecision, or a persistent feeling of pushing against resistance. Energetically, solar plexus imbalance is experienced as a loss of agency – either feeling powerless or, conversely, overcompensating through control and overwork.

This is a critical point in the hierarchy because it is where many people attempt to bypass foundational healing. Productivity culture often encourages individuals to “power through” fatigue, ignoring the body’s signals in favor of performance. Yet true personal power does not come from force, it emerges from metabolic stability and self-trust.

Supporting the energy system means restoring balance rather than maximizing output. Consistent meals that stabilize blood sugar, adequate protein and micronutrients, and respecting the body’s need for rest all reinforce this level. Just as importantly, rebuilding agency involves shifting from external pressure to internal regulation – learning when to act and when to pause.

When energy is stable and accessible, confidence follows naturally. The body no longer needs to conserve or defend. Action becomes intentional rather than reactive. This opens the door to the next layer of wellbeing: connection, compassion, and resilience within relationships.

4. Defense, Connection, and Emotional Resilience

Functional Medicine System: Defense
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Love & Belonging
Chakra: Heart (Anahata)

As the body moves out of survival and into stability, the focus naturally expands beyond the self. At this stage of development, health is no longer only about personal regulation – it becomes about connection.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, this level reflects the human need for love, belonging, and meaningful relationships. Ayurveda locates this shift in the heart chakra, the energetic center of compassion, balance, and relational awareness. The heart governs our ability to give and receive – not just affection, but support, trust, and care.

Functionally, this stage aligns with the defense system, which includes immune function, inflammatory responses, and the body’s ability to distinguish between what is safe and what is a threat. A healthy defense system is not overly aggressive nor overly passive; it responds appropriately, adapting to the environment while maintaining internal balance.

When defense is dysregulated, the body often mirrors relational patterns. Chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, frequent infections, or allergies can reflect a system that is either constantly on guard or insufficiently protected. Psychologically, this may correspond to difficulty trusting others, fear of vulnerability, or emotional withdrawal. Energetically, heart chakra imbalance can be experienced as grief, resentment, or a sense of disconnection, from others or from oneself.

This level reveals an important truth: the immune system is not separate from our emotional world. Social isolation, unresolved grief, and chronic stress all directly influence inflammatory pathways and immune resilience. Likewise, supportive relationships and emotional safety have measurable physiological effects, enhancing immune regulation and cardiovascular health.

Supporting the defense system at this stage means tending to both physical and emotional boundaries. Anti-inflammatory nutrition, adequate sleep, and stress regulation create biological safety, while connection, compassion, and community reinforce emotional security. When the heart feels safe enough to open, the body no longer needs to remain in constant defense.

This balance allows resilience to emerge – not as rigidity, but as adaptability. From this place of connection, the system is ready to move into its next expression: clear communication, authenticity, and truth.

5. Communication, Expression, and Truth

Functional Medicine System: Communication
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Esteem / Self-Expression
Chakra: Throat (Vishuddha)

Once connection feels safe, the next developmental task is learning how to express truthfully – to communicate needs, boundaries, and inner experience with clarity.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, this level bridges esteem and self-expression. It reflects the human need to be seen and heard as one’s authentic self, not only accepted by others but respected. Ayurveda places this function in the throat chakra, which governs communication, expression, and alignment between inner truth and outward voice.

From a Functional Medicine perspective, this stage aligns with the communication system, which includes hormonal signaling, neurotransmitters, and the biochemical messengers that allow systems within the body to coordinate effectively. Health at this level depends on clarity of signaling – messages must be sent, received, and interpreted accurately.

When communication is disrupted internally, the effects ripple outward. Clinically, imbalance in this system may show up as thyroid dysfunction, brain fog, mood instability, or irregular stress responses. Psychologically, it can manifest as difficulty articulating needs, people-pleasing, or fear of speaking up. Energetically, throat chakra imbalance is often experienced as feeling silenced, misunderstood, or disconnected from one’s authentic voice.

Importantly, the body often mirrors patterns of suppression. When expression is chronically inhibited, emotionally or physically, the nervous system remains in a low-grade state of stress. Over time, this can distort hormonal rhythms and impair the body’s internal dialogue.

Supporting the communication system requires both physiological and relational alignment. Adequate nutrition to support thyroid function and neurotransmitter balance, stable blood sugar, and nervous system regulation all reinforce clear signaling. Equally vital is creating psychological safety for expression – spaces where truth can be spoken without fear of rejection.

When communication flows freely, coherence emerges. The body’s systems begin to work in synchrony, and expression becomes less effortful. From this place of alignment, awareness naturally expands inward, preparing the system for deeper insight, meaning, and integration.

6. Insight, Meaning, & Integration

Functional Medicine System: Transport & Structure
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Self-Actualization
Chakra: Third Eye (Ajna)

 With the ability to regulate the body, release what is no longer needed, harness energy, connect safely, and express authentically, the system is ready for integration and insight. At this level, health is no longer just about survival or expression, it becomes about understanding, aligning, and expanding awareness.

In Maslow’s hierarchy, this stage corresponds to self-actualization: realizing potential, pursuing meaning, and living in alignment with personal values. Ayurveda places this process in the third eye chakra, the energetic center of intuition, insight, and perception. Here, individuals are attuned not only to themselves, but to patterns and truths beyond immediate sensory experience.

In Functional Medicine, this stage aligns with transport and structure, systems that move nutrients, hormones, and signaling molecules throughout the body and maintain architectural integrity. When transport pathways – blood, lymph, cerebrospinal fluid – function optimally, and when structural integrity – muscles, connective tissue, bones – is supported, the body is equipped to integrate information efficiently. In essence, the body’s internal “communication highways” enable both physical and cognitive coherence.

Imbalances at this level can manifest as fatigue, brain fog, slowed metabolism, or difficulty processing information. Psychologically, they may appear as indecision, lack of clarity, or disconnection from purpose. Energetically, third eye imbalance can feel like confusion, lack of focus, or a sense of being “lost” in life despite external stability.

Supporting this level involves both physical and mental practices: nutrition that fuels optimal circulation and cognitive function, gentle movement that maintains musculoskeletal integrity, and activities that stimulate reflection, mindfulness, and pattern recognition. Meditation, journaling, and intentional quiet support both insight and nervous system regulation.

When transport and structure systems operate efficiently, and when mind and energy are aligned, the individual experiences clarity. Patterns become visible, decisions feel intuitive, and the sense of self expands beyond immediate needs – setting the stage for the final level of human development: wholeness, purpose, and transcendence.

7. Wholeness, Purpose, and Transcendence

Functional Medicine System: Systems Integration (Zoomed-Out View)
Maslow’s Hierarchy: Transcendence
Chakra: Crown (Sahasrara)

At the apex of human development, all prior layers converge. The body is regulated, energy flows freely, connections are balanced, expression is authentic, and insight has been cultivated. Health at this level is no longer simply a collection of functioning systems – it is coherence, wholeness, and purpose in action.

Maslow describes this stage as transcendence: the ability to rise above the self, contribute meaningfully, and connect to something larger. Ayurveda locates this in the crown chakra, the energetic center of consciousness, spiritual alignment, and unity. Here, the individual experiences a sense of expansion and interconnection, where life feels purposeful and aligned.

Functionally, this stage represents systems integration: the orchestration of all physiological processes into a harmonious whole. Nutrient transport, elimination, energy production, hormonal signaling, immune defense, structural support, and cellular communication operate in balance. The body has become a responsive, self-regulating ecosystem capable of both resilience and adaptability.

Imbalances at this stage are rare but can appear as chronic disconnect between mind, body, and spirit – living out of alignment with values, or experiencing persistent stress despite functional systems being intact. Energetically, crown chakra imbalance can feel like purposelessness, disconnection, or spiritual stagnation.

Supporting integration involves nurturing both external and internal alignment: lifestyle choices that sustain physiological coherence, ongoing reflection, connection to meaningful work, and practices that cultivate presence and awareness. Meditation, nature immersion, creative engagement, and purposeful service help anchor transcendence in lived experience.

At this pinnacle, health is no longer a pursuit – it is an embodied state of being. The individual moves through life with intention, clarity, and a sense of connection to self, others, and the world. By supporting the body, mind, and soul at each prior stage, this level becomes not a distant ideal, but a natural outcome of aligned, layered growth.

Takeaway: Integration and Universal Patterns

As we move through each level of this layered model, a clear pattern emerges: across physiology, psychology, and energetic experience, human health follows a consistent trajectory. We must first feel safe and supported in the body, then cultivate emotional flow and energy, build connection and personal power, express truthfully, integrate insight, and ultimately move toward purpose and transcendence.

This universality demonstrates that mind, body, and soul are not separate entities but interdependent aspects of a whole-person model of health. Each perspective – Functional Medicine, Maslow, and the chakras – offers a different lens, yet all converge on the same principle: sustainable health unfolds from foundation to integration.

As Dr. Junger emphasizes, personal health is inseparable from broader systems, including our planetary ecosystem. In Ayurveda, the principle that the body is a microcosm of the macrocosm reflects this idea: self-actualization and purpose are most fully realized when we align not only our physiology, mind, and energy, but also our actions with the well-being of others and the planet. By viewing healing through this integrated lens, we can better understand our unique paths to wellness while recognizing our place within the larger web of life.

Next Steps

Beginning at this foundational level is exactly where Clean Programs are designed to meet you. Clean 21 and Clean 7 offer structured, gentle ways to reset digestion, reduce inflammatory triggers, and rebuild trust with your body through nourishing food and mindful routines. Pairing this with Functional Medicine Health Coaching allows you to deepen your understanding of your body, troubleshoot challenges, and move intentionally through each level of healing.

Learn More

• The Science of The 7 Systems
• Ayurveda 101
• Ayurveda, Digestion, and The 5 Senses
  

Resources

• The Integral Role of the Seven Chakras and Their Activation Mechanisms in Human Energy Dynamics
• Integrating the Nodes of FM Matrix with Ayurvedic Doshas: A Unified Model Using the Signature Strength of Functional Medicine 
• Simply Psychology: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
• Humanities and Social Science Studies - Toward Self Actualization: Exploring Insights From Indian Knowledge System
• IFM’s Functional Medicine Matrix: Organizing Clinical Imbalances
• The 7 Chakras - Their Colors, Symbols, Meanings, & Glands Explained - VOLTLIN
• Demystifying Integrative Medicine vs Functional Medicine - Rahav Wellness