natural health treatments

Magnetic field therapy uses different kinds of magnets on the body to help boost your overall health. It may also help treat certain conditions.

There are several types, including:

Static magnetic field therapy: In this, you touch a magnet to your skin somehow. You might wear a magnetic bracelet or other magnetized jewelry. It could be a bandage with a magnet in it, or you may wear a magnet as a shoe insole. You could also sleep on a special mattress pad with a magnet in it.

Electrically charged magnetic therapy (electromagnetic therapy): The magnets you use here have an electric charge. Treatment with electromagnetic therapy usually comes through an electric pulse.

Magnetic therapy with acupuncture: Magnets go on the same sections of your skin that an acupuncturist would probably focus on in an acupuncture session. You may hear these areas called your energy pathways or channels.

Your body naturally has magnetic and electric fields. All your molecules have a small amount of magnetic energy in them. The thought behind magnetic field therapy is that certain problems happen because your magnetic fields are out of balance. If you put a magnetic field near your body, it’s believed things will go back to normal.

Ions like calcium and potassium help your cells send signals. In tests, scientists have seen magnets change how these ions act. However, so far, there isn’t evidence that magnets have the same effect on cells when they’re in your body.

Most magnetic field therapy is a treatment option for different types of pain, like in your feet and back.

Scientists have specifically studied its use for:

Depression is the leading cause of disability in the United States among people ages 15 to 44. While there are many effective treatments for depression, first-line approaches such as antidepressants and psychotherapy do not work for everyone. In fact, approximately two-thirds of people with depression don’t get adequate relief from the first antidepressant they try. After two months of treatment, at least some symptoms will remain for these individuals, and each subsequent medication tried is actually less likely to help than the one prior.

What can people with depression do when they do not respond to first-line treatments? For several decades, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT or “shock therapy”) was the gold standard for treatment-resistant depression. In fact, ECT is still considered to be the most potent and effective treatment for this condition, and it continues to be used regularly across the country. For many people with depression, however, ECT can be too difficult to tolerate due to side effects on memory and cognition. For those individuals and the many others who have had an inadequate response to medications and therapy alone, there is a newer treatment option called transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).

Transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, is a noninvasive form of brain stimulation. TMS devices operate completely outside of the body and affect central nervous system activity by applying powerful magnetic fields to specific areas of the brain that we know are involved in depression. TMS doesn’t require anesthesia and it is generally exceptionally well tolerated as compared to the side effects often seen with medications and ECT. The most common side effect is headache during or after treatment. A rare but serious side effect is seizures, and TMS may not be appropriate for people at high risk such as those with epilepsy, a history of head injury, or other serious neurologic issues.

Approximately 50% to 60% of people with depression who have tried and failed to receive benefit from medications experience a clinically meaningful response with TMS. About one-third of these individuals experience a full remission, meaning that their symptoms go away completely. It is important to acknowledge that these results, while encouraging, are not permanent. Like most other treatments for mood disorders, there is a high recurrence rate. However, most TMS patients feel better for many months after treatment stops, with the average length of response being a little more than a year. Some will opt to come back for subsequent rounds of treatment. For individuals who do not respond to TMS, ECT may still be effective and is often worth considering.

TMS is being studied extensively across disorders and even disciplines with the hope that it will evolve into new treatments for neurological disorders, pain management, and physical rehabilitation in addition to psychiatry. There are currently large clinical trials looking at the effectiveness of TMS in conditions such as pediatric depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, smoking cessation, and post-traumatic stress disorder. While promising avenues for research, TMS for these conditions is not yet approved and would be considered “off-label.”

Acupuncture is one of the oldest forms of treatment in use around the world today. By using sterile disposable acupuncture needles or cold laser specific points on the skin for the purpose of stimulating or calming conditions of imbalance, a state of relaxation and change can occur. This 5000-year-old practice is used for acute and chronic pain, whiplash injury, frozen shoulder, muscle spasm, weight control, addictions to drugs and cigarettes, infertility, and a wide number of other conditions.

The session typically takes about 30 minutes and requires about 10 weekly treatments to complete a treatment program.

History of Acupuncture

• predates recorded history
• started over 8000 years ago as a meditation practice.
• meditation allowed the acupuncturist to observe the flow of energy

Acupuncture needles were initially made of stone, bamboo, and bone. These have been found in archeological ruins in China.

Acupuncture was described as a treatment during the Yellow Emperor dynasty (2600 BC). During that time the function of the acupuncture points, the description of meridians, the location of 160 points were defined.

Later in the 20^th century, it has been accepted in both the eastern and western civilizations and has been extensively studied with the use of MRI with a surprisingly accurate demonstration of the acupuncture meridians.

Common Uses of Acupuncture

Chronic or acute pain

• joint pain
• dental pain
• postoperative pain

Anesthesia

• in operations instead of drugs
• in setting fractures
• in childbirth

Medical conditions

• Thyroid disorders either hypo- or hyperthyroid
• Adrenal fatigue
• Irritable bowel syndrome
• Trigeminal neuralgia
• Bell’s palsy

Craniosacral Therapy is a gentle non-invasive manipulative therapy developed about 100 years ago and is based on osteopathy. By putting very light finger pressure on specific areas of the body, a re-alignment of areas of imbalance can occur. These areas of tenderness can cause sensory, motor, or intellectual dysfunction. Craniosacral therapy has successfully treated people with persistent migraine headaches, autism, Bell’s palsy, trigeminal neuralgia, tinnitus, traumatic head injury, and post-traumatic stress disorder to name a few. The benefits of a brief course of treatment can give welcome relief to those suffering from these disorders.

This treatment usually is an hour and requires 5 to 6 treatments to be effective.

• Concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury 
• Migraines and Headaches
• Chronic Neck and Back Pain
• Autism 
• Stress and Tension-Related Disorders
• Chronic Fatigue
• Fibromyalgia
• TMJ Syndrome
• ADD/ADHD
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

CranioSacral Therapy was developed by Dr. Upledger in 1970 who noticed during a surgical procedure that the fascial membranes or the thin tissues surrounding the surgical field were vibrating at a very slow but regular pulse. He started to study this phenomenon and developed a method to detect where an injury had occurred.  He was trained as an osteopath and he started training people to treat this soft tissue injury using osteopathic techniques.

From 1975 to 1983 Dr. Upledger served as a clinical researcher and Professor of Biomechanics at Michigan State University, where he supervised a team of anatomists, physiologists, biophysicists, and bioengineers in research and testing. The results not only confirmed his theory but led to clarification of the mechanisms behind this motion – the craniosacral system.

These techniques involve light touch in specific targeted areas to release identified strain patterns which can be released resulting in relaxation in the tension that is characteristic of a damaged or injured tissue.

Dr. Upledger has been able to teach his techniques as well as to conduct research to verify the effectiveness of these techniques so that there is an improvement, speeding up the healing time of chronic injuries. This technique will very effectively treat closed head injury and concussion. Studies done on young people with closed head injury demonstrated not only an improvement in pain control but also a significant improvement in their ability to get higher grades in school.

The Montreal Neurological Institute of Montreal uses craniosacral therapy regularly on brain-damaged patients with a resulting shortening of their hospitalization.

Cold Laser Therapy is a type of treatment that applies a light which is in a strength similar to the warming rays of the sun which is infrared light waves. It is called cold laser but it actually is a warming light much like an infrared sauna.

The effect on injured tissues is that inflammation is decreased and pain is relieved.

The result of laser treatment is generally diminished pain, reduced inflammation, decreased edema, faster healing times and increased strength of repaired tissues. Laser therapy heals a wide range of conditions including: soft tissue injuries (muscle, ligament and tendon), degenerative conditions, arthritic issues, and neurogenic conditions

Laser treatment is painless and may result in warmth when applied to an injured tissue.

There is a specific light range and intensity for different conditions and using the exact frequency and length of treatment can increase the benefit to an injured tissue whether it is a whiplash injury or a knee sprain. Laser treatment can also help with TMJ pain and is very effective to reduce muscle spasms and allow the TMJ to relax.

The treatment time is usually complete in a matter of a few minutes and the effect of the laser treatment can last for several days. It is recommended that laser treatment for some chronic pain conditions be done several times a week for optimal results.

Cold laser is also a very effective treatment for diabetic skin wounds and varicose veins. The healing of skin wounds is accelerated and varicose vein swelling will be reduced. The result is much less pain and improved function.

Laser therapy will also speed the healing of surgical scars resulting in a decrease of the appearance of the scar tissue.

Therapeutic nutrition refers to the use of nutrition, through different forms such as food or supplementation, with the intention of optimizing health.   When we use nutrition as a way to treat ourselves, we can help ensure optimal health throughout our lifetime.

Therapeutic nutrition is a combination of both diet and supplementation.

Focusing on the consumption of whole, fresh produce and quality protein sources is an important aspect of overall therapeutic nutrition.

Eliminating processed foods and added sugars from the diet is key to optimizing nutrition.

In terms of supplementation, additional plant extracts that can help restore metabolic health as well as provide beneficial phytochemicals and micronutrients can maximize health.

Consultations for the health assessment usually take about 60 minutes with regular follow-up visits.

This office has a number of therapeutic tools such as health appraisal questionnaires, insulin resistance questionnaires, and stress questionnaires which will indicate areas of deficiency causing an imbalance in a person’s health. This can often be helped or significantly improved with specific dietary recommendations or natural supplements.

Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM) is a therapy that was introduced to me in 2004 and I have used it with great success in treating nerve and muscle pain, inflammation and scar tissue, disc-related pain, muscle and tendon injuries, stress fractures and speed up the healing of muscles and joints after surgery.

Most of the time FSM produces immediate dramatic changes in tissue that make it an indispensable tool in treating pain and many other health concerns.

Frequency Specific Microcurrent can treat some very difficult to manage conditions because it manages the tissues that cannot be reached with other forms of manual therapy. For example, there is a specific type of fibromyalgia associated with spine trauma that is particularly painful and difficult to treat. When FSM is used, the outcome is astonishing. There is another frequency combination, (and only one frequency combination) that has been observed to eliminate pain in patients with shingles. Patients with shingles often find that their pain is eliminated in 20 minutes and causes the lesions to dry up and disappear in approximately two to three days.

Benefits of FSM treatment include:

• Acceleration in healing of acute injuries up to 200%
• Improved oxygenation and cellular repair
• Decreased cellular electrical resistance
• Reduced inflammatory chemicals in tissues
• Increased feel-good endorphin levels
• Increased cell energy (ATP) levels by up to 500%
• Boosts protein synthesis by 70%
• Restored adrenal function
• Repaired regulation of nerve tissue
• Boosted immune function
• Improved cellular function
• Softening of tight tissues
• Emotional release
• Pain Relief
• Reduction of muscle spasms
• Increased blood circulation to injured areas,
• Maintenance and/or increase range of motion to injured areas

The results are impressive and consistent.
Chronic injuries clear up in record time. FSM can remodel scar tissue in one therapy session that would take months to do manually.

Microcurrent is a faint electric current that is so small it is measured in millionths of an amp or microamps.  By comparison, a TENS unit and most other electro-therapies produce milliamps, 1000 times greater.

Your own cells generate a current in the microamp range and this is why you can’t feel it – the current is so low it doesn’t stimulate sensory nerves.

Frequency Specific Microcurrent works on the principle of biologic resonance. Microcurrent frequencies seem to be able to resonate with the biologic tissue when the correct frequency is applied. Each cell has an ideal resonant frequency. When your body experiences any type of injury, trauma, stress or increased inflammation, the normal resonant frequency of that tissue is altered.

The almost immediate response to the correct microcurrent suggests that other mechanisms are involved as well.  The exact effects or changes that result from microcurrent frequencies have not been proven because no biopsies have been done after microcurrent has been applied.  However, the changes in the tissue are unmistakable; scars will often suddenly soften; trigger points often become less painful; swelling often drains within minutes when the “correct” frequency is applied.  Changes are often long-lasting and in many cases permanent.

FSM frequencies address a wide variety of physical conditions, reduce pain, and improve function.

Conditions effectively treated with FSM:

• Back pain
• Concussion
• Frozen shoulder
• Lymphedema
• Migraine headaches
• Myofascial pain
• Neuromuscular pain and inflammation
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Scar tissue
• Sciatica
• Shingles
• Sprains/strains
• Temperomandibular Joint (TMJ) Pain
• Tendon and ligament injury or pain

Once the tissue is changed and stable, it seems to be able to stay in the new configuration with proper nutritional support.

Facts about FSM:

• Increases ATP (the body’s own chemical energy) production by up to 500%
• Helps restore depleted adrenal function
• Reduces fracture repair time by up to 50%
• Enhances neuromuscular recovery rate between events

What does that mean to you?

• Decreased pain
• Increased rate of healing
• Increased range of motion
• Decreased swelling

How long do the benefits last?

Every patient responds individually but the changes to the muscle seem to be long-lasting. About 60-80% of the changes created in one treatment last until the next treatment, about 4-7 days. Your muscles are often used to being the way they are and may return to the old configuration if not treated again.

Why is Hydration so Important for FSM?

In order to be effective, the patient must be hydrated. This means approximately 1-2 quarts of water in the 2 hours preceding treatment and then again following treatment. Athletes may need more. This will also help reduce some potential side effects. Taking a good-quality antioxidant supplement can also be helpful.