Frequently Asked Questions

Chiropractic is a hands-on healing art and science dedicated to restoring balance, alignment, and optimal communication within the body—particularly through the spine and nervous system. It’s based on the understanding that structure and function are deeply intertwined, and that misalignments in the spine (subluxations) can disrupt nerve signaling, impair body systems, and diminish overall health. Chiropractic care works to correct these imbalances, helping the body return to a state of self-regulation and healing.

What sets this approach apart is its integrative nature—addressing not only structural issues, but also the emotional, biochemical, and energetic factors that influence well-being. By using tools like manual muscle testing and reflex analysis, treatment becomes a dynamic dialogue with the body’s innate intelligence. Techniques such as cranial work, Applied Kinesiology, SOT, and TBM may be woven into care depending on each individual’s needs.

Rather than focusing solely on symptoms, chiropractic care seeks to understand and treat the root causes of dysfunction. The goal is to awaken the body’s natural healing potential and support the nervous, immune, hormonal, and digestive systems as part of a whole-person path to wellness.

Manual muscle testing is a tool used to assess the functional status and stress patterns in your body.  In this work we recognize that each muscle in the body relates to an organ and each organ relates to an acupuncture meridian. By isolating and testing specific muscles, the practitioner can attain highly specific information about your system and use that to build an accurate and actionable clinical picture.  

The testing procedure itself varies depending on the muscle being tested, but generally the practitioner will ask the client to resist a force directed to a specific muscle and then gauge the response. We are looking for a “lock” in the muscle (which is normal) or a weakness (which is abnormal).  The practitioner can gauge this response using relatively little force and for this reason testing is generally quick and comfortable.

I will employ a wide variety of modalities in your treatment process.  The specific techniques we work with on your visit depend entirely on the specifics of your case.  Your body’s own innate intelligence is in the driver’s seat and it has a very real awareness of which approaches will be most helpful in getting to the roots of the issue. As your system conveys what it needs, we move forward with treatment.  

Elements of your session can range from spinal adjustments, acupuncture meridian therapy, soft tissue work, cranial adjusting, organ reflex therapy, extremity adjusting, emotional clearing, nutritional therapy, allergy desensitization and much more. Each treatment is unique and tailored to your specific needs on that day and in the context of your overall healing process.

Your first visit will last about an hour. We will go through a thorough health history and discuss in detail your concerns.

Following this I will perform a thorough functional exam of your system which will involve various orthopedic tests as needed, as well as an array of functional tests to assess your general status as well as to flush out the dynamics of your specific concerns.  

Following the exam, you will usually receive your first adjustment based on what was uncovered during your exam. This first treatment tends to address a specific level of dysfunction in your system that relates to held patterns of trauma or overwhelm in your system. We call these patterns “injury recall” patterns, and because they are held so deeply in one’s system if present, they are always addressed first and often result in deep and immediate shifts and open the way for lasting change in your system.

Your second visit is usually 40 minutes long and will be full of information and feedback after your first visit. We will discuss in detail the findings of your exam and I will make a recommendation for the first phase of your care as well as share expectations and diagnoses.  We will also go over in detail your experience after the first treatment and I will answer any questions you may have.  

After this, there will be a short re-exam of some of the original findings and additional testing as indicated.   You will then receive your second treatment.

Regular office visits are generally 20 minutes long, but can be 40 or 60 minutes under special circumstances.

In these visits we will jump right into treatment after a quick check in.  Feedback is always important, but during these sessions there is generally less talking as I will be very focused on listening to your system and allowing the body to guide the sequence of treatment.

Each case is unique and the recommended course of care will be discussed on your second visit which is usually scheduled within a week of your first visit.  The most common initial course of care is to come in once a week for 4-6 weeks.  At that time we will talk about ongoing care and if appropriate we will begin to spread out our visits.  This all depends on your situation, the complexity of the case and how you are progressing.  

I respect your time and investment in this care and will always be honest with what I believe is needed for your best outcome.  

Once we are through the initial care phase we will move to a maintenance schedule that we will decide on together. Once you’re established and feeling well I generally like to have a minimum of one visit every three months, but you will develop your own sense of the right timing for you once you’ve experienced the work.

Generally, you can wear your normal clothes when you come for a visit.  But when possible it can be helpful to wear loose fitting clothing made from natural fiber.  We also have gowns to wear if needed for your exam or treatment.  If your injury or issue is specific to an area, dress accordingly so the area can be examined easily.  

Yes!  This form of care is very safe and effective, even for newborns.  I feel very strongly about the importance of having your children checked and adjusted as soon as possible.  Because of how quickly children grow and can compensate for imbalances in their system, it is important to to have them checked sooner than later, especially if there are signs of issues like colic, rashes, allergies, sleep problems or missing developmental markers.

Absolutely! As a former college athlete, I understand the demands of training, the impact of injuries and the quest to perform at your best. The approach I use gets deep into specific muscle dynamics and the fluidity and coherence of specific motions. I can evaluate and tune your musculoskeletal and nervous systems to a highly refined degree and you will immediately notice the difference in your training.

This work is also extremely effective at resolving old injuries and helping the body recover and integrate after a surgery. It is equally effective with preventing injuries. Often times an injury is a result of an underlying instability or functional issue that has been going on, noticed or not, for a while.  

For example, we know that cortisol dysregulation can cause ligament laxity throughout the body. If this is left unchecked, that laxity can be the difference between a major injury and a successful ski jump, hockey move or dead lift.  

Beginning with Injury Recall Technique where we can permanently disengage the protective reflex patterning in the nervous system that often persists after an injury, sometimes for decades, we can evaluate and treat areas of concern with high precision.