A few weeks ago I spoke at a Complimentary and Alternative Medicine class at University of Northern Iowa.  I really enjoyed speaking to the students and a big thank you to their professor Dr. Diane Depken for the opportunity.

During my preparation for the lecture I came across some important truths about my treatment philosophy.  I was able to analyze why I do certain things clinically from almost a third-party perspective.  I learned some very valuable things during this process.

What I found is that this clinic really functions in three distinct modes of treatment: Traditional, Mixed, and Comprehensive.  Allow me to explain a little about each and how you can best use the services of this office in your own Self-care Regimen.

 
TRADITIONAL TREATMENT
Many people know that Iowa is the birthplace of Chiropractic.  As such people feel like they have a pretty good handle of what Chiropractic is.  There is a cultural awareness of what Chiropractors do, what they're good for, and what to expect with treatment.  This is good because it means that Chiropractic has to some extent penetrated the mainstream of our culture.  This cultural view of Chiropractors is essentially this "One who helps with back pain, neck pain, headaches, and may help with miscellaneous forms of disease.  Chiropractors adjust people's spines and help nerves stay healthy."

That's great!  I'm glad people know about this and this is the basic expectation that many have when they come into this office.  For people that come in asking for this form of care we give them the best Chiropractic Care we can and often their presenting complaint is treated with success.

MIXED TREATMENT 
For many, Chiropractic is one of the few Alternatives to Conventional Medicine that they are aware of or would want to try.  However, this clinic functions in a more integrative capacity than most clinics.  That is to say in some patients we combine different kinds of Alternative Treatments to better facilitate their healing

Mixed Treatment is what we consider a basic level of "Integrative Medicine."  Integrative Medicine is when you combine different treatments that all have a common purpose.  Many people that receive Mixed Treatment probably came into the office looking for Traditional Chiropractic care because it was the only thing that they were familiar with.  Over the course of treatment, either by need or want, other treatments were added to help the patient achieve a better result. 

For instance, if a person wanted treated for Migraines, Neck Pain, and Upper Back Pain they may very well need an Chiropractic Adjustment to clear that up.  What if the person is severely stressed-out?  Could that also be contributing to the problem as well?  You bet it could!   So for this person, the right mix of treatment may be Chiropractic AND Mind/Body Medicine to control the stress.  He or she came in for Chiropractic, but needed an additional form of care to get the maximum results!  Rarely in health is a condition caused by a single cause, usually it is a combination of factors.  That is why combining different classes of treatments make sense. 

Mixed Treatments usually combine 2-4 treatments simultaneously to promote greater healing.  Possible choices for this kind of care are a combination of Chiropractic Adjustments, Acupuncture, Massage Therapy, Therapy Devices, Evidence-based Supplementation, Diet/Lifestyle Modification, Detoxification Therapy, Mind/Body Stress Management,

COMPREHENSIVE TREATMENT
There are really two different kinds of patients that utilize our Comprehensive Form of treatment:  Those that have a chronic or severe problem that has been resolved with other treatments and those that are greatly interested in increasing their health on all levels using Integrative Medicine.  For these people health optimization is their ultimate goal.

Our Comprehensive Treatment program utilizes the best what the clinic has to offer.  Treatment begins with the patient consultation and the filling out of a "Comprehensive Health Questionnaire."  Over several pages, this questionnaire helps us determine risk factors for chronic disease, areas where lifestyle modification may be necessary, alerts us to hidden sources of disease, and analyzes the patient's diet.

During the initial information gathering stage a patient's health goals, results of the questionnaire, health history, examination, and laboratory measurements are all compiled.  From this a Treatment Plan is orchestrated that employs all the treatments that are possible Evidence-based Solutions.  The Integrative Treatment Program lasts for 12-weeks.  Goals and treatments are re-evaluated every 4 weeks to make sure treatment is effective.

Treatments are laid out chronologically over the course of 12 Weeks.  While this may seem like a lot for a person to get better, many of our patients that have gone through it achieve a higher state of health after years of little to no success.  This method of treatment is great for severe Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  We've met with great success for both of these conditions.

Our goal with this method of care is enhance the individual's health to the point that the disease process can no longer exist.  Symptoms are just a sign there is a problem with a person's health.  If we work to make the person healthier in a  variety of ways usually symptoms resolve on their own. 

While it cannot fix every form a Chronic Disease the net effect of all this positive stimulus can be rather profound.  Health and healing are closely tied.  The healthier the individual the more likely they will heal from a condition.

For more information about any of these forms of treatment or any other questions please contact us.