Frequently Asked Questions

Questions:

What is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic is a branch of the healing arts based upon the understanding that good health depends, in part, upon a normally functioning nervous system (especially the spine, and the nerves extending from the spine to all parts of the body). "Chiropractic" comes from the Greek word chiropraktikos, meaning "effective treatment by hand." Chiropractic stresses the idea that the cause of many disease processes begins with the body's inability to adapt to its environment. It looks to address these diseases not by the use of drugs and chemicals, but by locating and adjusting a musculoskeletal area of the body which is functioning improperly. Often, muscles, bones, joints and ligaments have correlations and direct/indirect relationships with other organs and systems of the body. Oftentimes, we are able to help and support these organs and systems heal by focusing attention to the physical structure of the body.

What is Acupuncture and how can it help me??!

Acupuncture uses ancient strategic points to relieve pain and other symptoms, to strengthen the immune system, and to balance, harmonize, and integrate functions of the organs with each other, making for a unified healthy person--rather than a collection of fragmented disharmonious parts. We sometimes use very fine, one-time use, disposible acupuncture needles to bring vital energy into the body to help your body heal itself naturally. We also sometimes use an infrared laser or powerful "Micro-current" to stimulate the acupuncture points if the patient is more comfortable with that mode of treatment. Acupuncture has been proven to work for almost any medical condition for the last 3000 years! Ask Dr. Paul or Amy about any more questions you may have about how Acupuncture can help you.

What is Applied Kinsesiology and How can it help me?

Applied Kinesiology is an interdisciplinary approach to health care which draws together core elements of complementary therapies, creating a more unified approach to the diagnosis and treatment of functional illness. Included in the AK approach are specific joint manipulation or mobilization, various myofascial techniques, cranial techniques, meridian therapy, clinical nutrition, dietary management, and various reflex procedures. AK uses muscle testing to examine how the body is functioning and to make a diagnosis. A patient's health history is required, along with examination and sometimes laboratory findings, to determine the treatment required. AK uses functional assessment measures such as posture and gait analysis; manual muscle testing as functional neurologic evaluation; range of motion; static palpatation; and motion analysis. These assessments are used in conjunction with standard methods of diagnosis such as clinical history, physical examination findings, other laboratory tests, and instrumentation to develop a clinical impression of the unique physiologic condition of each patient. When appropriate, this clinical impression is used as a guide to the application of conservative physiologic therapeutics. The Doctor finds a muscle that tests weak and then attempts to determine why that muscle is not functioning properly. The practitioner will then evaluate and apply the therapy that will best eliminate the muscle weakness and help the patient.
What to expect from this technique: The outcome of an AK diagnosis will determine the best form of therapy for the patient; provide an interactive assessment of the functional health status of the individual which is not equipment intensive but does emphasize the importance of correlating findings with standard diagnostic procedures; restore postural balance, correct gait impairment, improve range of motion; restore normal afferentation to achieve proper neurologic control and/or organization of body function; achieve homeostasis of endocrine, immune, digestive and other visceral function; and intervene earlier in degenerative process to prevent or delay the onset of some pathologic processes.

What is "Total Body Modification" (TBM) and how can it help me??

TBM is a combination of testing systems, organs and specific points and then making corrections on the body that are connected with certain health impairments and structural imbalances. These dysfunctions are frequently associated with short circuits in the body's bioelectrical system.

What occurs in this form of therapy?

We are correcting functional physiological malfunctions.

What are Functional Physiological disturbances?

Functional physiological disturbances occur when you are experiencing signs and symptoms. Your body is giving you a clue that something is not right within your body.

Laboratory Tests Will Frequently Be Normal and You Will Have Symptoms

In order for a lab test to show positive results, a loss of function of the affected area has to be present by a factor of 40% or more. In other words 40% or more of the affected tissue or organ is not working properly in order to show a positive lab test indicating something is not right.

TBM will demonstrate abnormal findings when there is a loss of 1-2% of the function of your affected organ. You may have various symptoms that bring you into the office, but what you have may not have anything to do with the problem that needs treatment. TBM is one way of tapping into your body's internal computer system.

Your Body's Bio Electrical System

It has been taught for the last few decades that a biological computer within the body controls all of the body's functions.

TBM has found that by using certain reflex points and an indicator muscle, various computer programs, such as diseases, systems, organ body points and more, within the system can be tested. Structural or soft tissue manipulations can then be used to realign the function of your body's computer program thereby restoring optimal functioning within your body.

If your body's programs are running too quickly or too slowly, disease may develop. TBM helps to normalize the flow of function and energy by balancing your body's computer program.

In TBM, one of the ways to gain access to the body's computer is through a combination of reflex points along the body that correspond to various systems, organs or diseases.

What Does A Therapist Do To Perform TBM?

The therapist will help to reprogram your body's internal computer by a combination of muscle testing, touching specific points on the body corresponding to various body parts or systems, making specific corrections at specified levels of the spine in specific orders. Sometimes blocks, an instrument, or the hand itself are used to make the corrections.

Your body's electrical system can be likened to a bio-computer. This electrical system operates on small internal direct currents that mirrors the nervous system. When your body's short circuits are rebalanced it your healing forces that God supplied you with will be refocused and your body will move towards balance and healing.

Another question that we commonly get as we are treating is: "Why are you using the vials, and what is in those small vials that you use?"

The vials are used for treating allergies, infections, flues, and such. We have over 300 testing items. For example, we have a testing vial for "Bee Pollen". A Bee Pollen "Allergy" will include the actual bee pollen itself and/or things that bees pollinate.

If, for example, this vial comes up as being positive, we would check to see what organ points this is involved with, and make the appropriate spinal corrections. Then we would clear the Immunoglobulins (which is the body's first line of defense), both separately and collectively.

Everything, whether living or not, has its own vibrational electromagnetic frequency. Each disease also has its own frequency. In TBM we are looking for energy imbalances and making appropriate corrections to the bio-computer to restore the imbalances within the body's electrical energy system.

What are foot Orthotics and why do I need them?

Foot Orthotics are custom made shoe inserts that we make in the office for you. What ends up happening is that many patients have dys-function in their feet. We mostly see the foot muscles and ligaments losing their tone, and also the foot bones coming out of proper alignment. When this happens, you will be bio-mechanically standing and walking incorrectly! This sets up a massive whole body reaction, which effects your knees, and then your hips, and then your spine, all the way up to your neck and head. A simple, cost effective way to fix this problem is to put a properly custom made orthotic into your shoe so that you will stand and walk with your foot bones in place. When the bones in your feet are in good alignment, your muscles and ligaments follow in suit. Proper structure allows for proper function. Many patients see an improvement with energy levels, and chronic knee, hip and back pains within a few days of using their custom made orthotics!

What is "Neuro-Emotional Technique" (NET)and how can it help me??

Basic emotions — Fear, Anger, Grief, Disgust, and many others — can negatively influence our health when they don’t resolve normally. When our body fails to “let go” of what was originally a healthy response, it can short-circuit our nervous system, affecting our beliefs, our behaviors, and even our physical body.

Meet Pavlov’s Dog

Does your mouth water when you hear a doorbell or telephone ring? Probably not. Most of us know the story of the famous experiment Pavlov conducted with his dog, where he rang a bell each time before he fed his dog. Soon, the dog linked the sound of the bell with eating and would salivate simply at the sound of a bell — even when no food was present!

Emotional responses can also be conditioned, and sometimes we can even be emotionally conditioned from just one life experience, especially if it was a traumatic event.

Similar But Different

Pavlov discovered something else. If a dog is conditioned to salivate at the sound of a bell, the bell can be changed to another bell that sounds slightly different and the dog will still salivate. The same thing can happen with our conditioned emotional responses.

For example. A little boy is simultaneously scolded and spanked by his father. This incident not only causes physical pain, but also great fear. He gets an upset stomach and cries himself to sleep. This is considered a natural response. However, due to an imbalance in his body that does not allow him to fully return to normal, he can now be triggered in the future by a similar event. Today, as an adult, he finds himself becoming overly tense and gets upset whenever an older man criticizes him. He doesn’t consciously connect the two incidents, and can’t figure out why he feels ill.

Where Do You Keep Your Emotions?

Scientists recognize the connection between the nervous system, emotions, and health. Historically, emotions were thought to reside entirely in the brain. Now we know other parts of the body hold emotions too. If you’ve ever felt butterflies in your stomach, or referred to something as a “pain in the neck,” or encountered someone who was “heartbroken” or who “vented their spleen,” then you’re familiar with how parts of the body can be linked to our emotions.

Dreaming Without Sleeping

Even imagined events can stimulate a response and have a dramatic effect on how our body works. Have you ever awakened in the middle of the night in a pool of sweat with your heart racing after a disturbing dream? Fortunately, the attacker wasn’t real, but your body thought he was! Of course, we’re more conscious of this process when we have to give a speech, ask the boss for a raise, suffer the loss of a loved one, or experience other negatively-charged emotional events.

Finding the Emotional Short Circuit

The “emotional baggage” associated with past events in our lives (remember Pavlov’s dog?) can sometimes haunt us for years. Like a computer “bug,” unresolved negative associations are stored in our bodies, often short-circuiting our true desires; even our health.

NET practitioners can help you identify and “let go” of a stuck emotional event (real or imagined) that is locked in a particular part of your body. The wonderful result can be a new level of health and confidence.

A Simple Test

Just as static electricity can make your hair stand on end, certain parts of your body can become “charged” with an emotional memory. Finding and balancing these stuck memory loops can be a lot of fun. By testing your muscle response, usually using your arm, your practitioner can identify which nervous system “circuit” in your body is holding the particular emotionally charged memory.

Your Emotional Reality

Research has proven that muscle testing can be used to determine whether or not your body is “in harmony” with a particular concept or idea. When doing NET, it is important to note that the muscle response is not confirming whether something is really “true” or “false,” nor is it producing a “yes” or “no” answer. In fact, there are times when muscle testing will reveal that your body is not “in harmony” with a fact you know to be true!

In NET, all memory events are considered “EMOTIONAL REALITY,” because they may or may not correspond with actual or historic reality. NET is never used to make claims as to what may have happened in the past. Likewise, NET is never used to predict the future or make a recommendation of action for the future.

Your Memory and Your Body

To assist your NET practitioner in the correction, you’ll be asked to form a mental picture, or “snapshot,” of the original triggering event. Science has proven that when you actively recall a remembered past event, your body chemistry will respond in a way that is similar to how it responded then.

Visualize a lemon . . . go ahead . . . try it. Now, think about cutting into the lemon. See the juice squirting out. Now, take a bite of the lemon. Is your mouth watering? If you’re like most people, it is, and what you’re experiencing is a body response to the memory of a lemon. Our emotions work the same way.

Making the Correcting

When you recall the mental picture of the triggering event, your body will respond in a way that is similar to way it originally responded. Your practitioner will contact, or ask you to contact, a specific body point, which will help your body “let go” of the stuck emotional event. It’s really that simple.

You’re Always in Control

After the correction many patients report feeling that a burden has been lifted from their shoulders. Normally the procedure is a very simple and comfortable. If it becomes too personal or uncomfortable, simply tell your practitioner. A different approach may be suggested or, if you prefer, the session can safely end. Patients enjoy the fact that they are always in control.

What can I expect on my first visit?

The first thing a chiropractor will do is ask you about the health complaints about which you are chiefly concerned. The doctor will also ask about your family history, dietary habits, other care you may have had (chiropractic, osteopathic, medical, etc.), your job, and other questions designed to help determine the nature of your illness and the best way to go about treating the problem.

A physical and neurological examination will be performed in accordance with your Chiropractic physician's clinical judgement, which may include ordering x-rays, laboratory analysis and other diagnostic procedures. In addition, a careful spinal examination and analysis will be performed to detect any structural abnormalities which may be affecting or causing your condition.

The doctor also takes two inventories, which you fill out, about your daily stressors in your life, and also certain questions about potential nutritional deficiencies. We also perform a urine analysis to check your calcium levels and metabolism as well as a test that specifically tells us how "stressed out" your body is.

Finally, the doctor checks your posture and that all your major muscle groups are working properly as well as your major electrical energy circuits (Read about TBM up above) relating to the internal functions of your body. This provides information about all your internal organs / systems, as well as other areas such as your hormones, blood sugar, molds, yeasts, fungus, bacteria, etc... Also, through dynamic muscle testing the doctor checks any emotional stressors that may be contributing to your primary complaint.

What other services do you offer besides chiropractic?

Currently, our office offers a variety of Alternative Medicine health treatments, including Muscle Testing, Acupuncture, Micro-Current, Infrared laser therapy (stimulating acupuncture points with a laser instead of using acupuncture needles), Interferential Current, Ultrasound, Applied Kinesiology, Total Body Modification, Neuro-Emotional Technique, Homeopathic remedies, Herbal medicines, and nutritional consulting to provide you with exactly the right nutrients your body is craving. We are always learning about new and exciting natural alternative treatments that are less toxic and ultimately will help your stay more healthy.

What is a Chiropractic Adjustment and does it hurt?

A Chiropractic Adjustment is any kind of specific manuever, by hand or by other instrument, the doctor performs in order to free abnormal positioning or function / motion of a physical structure of the body. This mostly consists of specific stretches or other motions that slightly move a muscle, bone, joint or ligament to help restore its normal function and motion. Under normal circumstances, adjustments don't hurt. The patient may experience a minor amount of discomfort during the adjustment which lasts only seconds. Sometimes, if you are new to our office you will notice you are "sore" the night of, or day after your first treatment. This is normal. Your body is literally shifting into a new posture and trying to "learn" how to restore itself into a more healthy stance. This soreness subsides as your body gets used to standing up more straight and sitting better without hunching as much.

What kind of education and training do Chiropractic Physicians have?

Modern Chiropractic physician's receive an education of five postgraduate academic years (B.A. or B.S. degree required first) that emphasize diagnosis, treatment and management of both internal disorders and those of neuromuscular origin. Preparation for the practice of chiropractic is concentrated on three areas of learning; advanced training in the basic medical sciences (anatomy, physiology, histology, biochemistry, clinical and radiological diagnosis); specialized training in the chiropractic sciences (theoretical studies, practice, diagnosis and applications); and extensive clinical training which features a full year of supervised internship under a licensed Chiropractic physician. All professors who teach at Chiropractic school must have PHD, MD, DC or other advanced degree.

What are Homeopathic Remedies and how can they help me??

Sometimes your nervous system can become overloaded to the point that it may need additional support, and your practitioner may recommend a specific homeopathic remedy to help activate your body’s natural healing process. You’ll find these liquids are safe, fast acting and free of side effects.

All Homeoopathic Remedies are compatible with vitamins, food supplements, herbs and medicines (including prescription drugs) and are free of sodium, sugar and yeast. Homeopathic remedies can be recommended for all ages, including babies, children, the elderly and pregnant women.

All homeopathic products are made by “diluting and shaking” the original ingredient to the point that there is hardly any of the original ingredient left in the bottle. The full-strength version of the ingredient is not in the bottle. Instead, the remedy actually consist of very, very diluted version of the original ingredient.

For example, when an ingredient has been diluted and shaken a number of times (i.e., “30 X” means that it has been diluted and shaken 30 times). After being diluted and shaken, the “energized” homeopathic form of the original ingredient will actually pull out the full strength version of that specific ingredient that may have become stuck in your body tissues (from pollutants, etc.). There are many scientific studies that prove this phenomenon.

What type of disease can homeopathy treat?

Homeopathy does not treat diseases per se. Homeopathy activates the body's own healing processes in both the physical and mental/emotional levels. The range of problems in which homeopathy can be effectively utilized is extensive and includes first aid, acute illnesses, and all manner of chronic conditions.

In 1991, three professors of medicine from the Netherlands performed a meta-analysis of 25 years of clinical studies using homeopathic medicines and published their results in the British Medical Journal. This analysis covered 107 controlled trials. The professors concluded, "the amount of positive results came as a surprise to us." Specifically, they found that:

10 or 13 trials showed successful treatment of respiratory infections,
6 of 7 trials showed positive results in treating other infections,
5 of 7 trials showed improvement in diseases of the digestive system,
5 or 5 showed successful treatment of hay fever,
5 of 7 showed faster recovery after abdominal surgery,
4 of 6 promoted healing in rheumatological disease,
18 of 20 showed benefit in addressing pain or trauma,
8 of 10 showed positive results in relieving mental or psychological problems, and
13 of 15 showed benefit from miscellaneous diagnoses.
Healing, of course, is done by the body's intelligence—the only thing that heals. This is different than allopathic drugs which often cover up or suppress symptoms. Allopathic drugs FORCE physiological reactions, whereas homeopathic remedies ALLOW for the body's intelligence to "awaken" and get on with the business of healing.

How soon can results be expected?

In acute illnesses, the appropriate remedy can act within minutes. It is not uncommon to see a person who is experiencing an allergic reaction to a food, quickly return to normal body chemistry after a dose of the appropriate remedy. Though astounding improvements often take place, do not be discouraged if these instant improvements do not occur in chronic or long term conditions. It may take as long as 1 to 2 months for significant improvement in chronic cases. Because of our specific dilution and potentization process, only minute quantities of our all-natural ingredients are needed to activate the body's defenses.

Does my insurance cover your services? What if I don't have health insurance?

Most PPO insurance covers our services. From Chiropractic to Physical Therapies, to Acpuncture to Foot Orthotics. Somewhere in there your carrier will probably cover something that we do! Let us call your insurance company and get the information for you. Give us a call at (630) 795-1889 and we will be more than happy to check this information for you and ask the right questions to make sure you are utilizing your benefits as best as possible. If you were in an Auto or Work comp accident, then your car insurance (or the person's who hit you) will cover your treatments in our office. Your rates DO NOT go up if you use your auto insurance to pay for your treatments in our office (Only if you were at fault!!) Finally...All employers must provide workman's comp coverage to you if you injured yourself at work. We have experience with these kinds of cases, and in Illinois, you have the right to choose TWO seperate medical opinions / courses of treatment for your injury including all services that we provide in our office. Your employer may require you to get checked one time by the company doctor, but that is all, after that, you can choose up to TWO other doctors to treat your case. Call us for details. If you have no health insurance, then you can pay out of pocket. We take cash, check and credit cards. We have payment plans and "point of service" discounts off our normal fees. We will never turn away any patient who is in need of care.

I don't live close by, can you still treat me?

YES!! We have many patients who come in once a month, or every other month to get some quality work done. We normally schedule multiple sessions for one day with breaks in between. That way you get a power dose of treatment sessions, as well as get all caught up with which nutrients your body is craving and sort out what to do between office visits. Some of our patients we have worked on are from out of state!

I have a few people in mind (Friends, Family, etc...) who I know would benefit from your care. Can they come in to see what its all about?

Totally YES! We always offer a free consulation and evaluation for any patient who is curious about what we do. We will sit down with you for about 10 minutes, listen carefully to you, and then check some of the major parameters that you have described. Once you have experienced some areas of what we do, we will make our recommendations about how we feel we can help you and then you are free to make up your mind about where you want to go from there. Most perspective patients know in the first 5 minutes if there is a good fit and connection with our office. Call (630) 795-1889 to schedule your free consultation and evaluation today!