Laying the Foundation for Total Health
Integrative medical care is like building a house - certain things have to happen in a particular order in order for everything to stand strong and work correctly. When building a house, if you tried to put up your walls before you had a solid foundation, your walls would be weak and eventually collapse. If you tried to put on your roof before the walls were ready, you would run into the same problem. The same is true for your body. Your body has to go through a particular plan of care in order to repair itself correctly and fully.
On your first visit we will collect your health history, your current injury/condition information and your payment/insurance information. We will gather a detailed history of your current conditions, perform a physical exam that will assess your range of motion, test for acute and chronic injuries using orthopedic testing, test muscle strength, perform medically necessary X-rays, digitally scan and assess the foot and ankle function and most importantly we will discuss what your goals are with treatment at White Sands Integrative Medical.
There are three general phases of Integrative Medical care:
Phase 1: Relief Care
If you are in pain when you come into our office, the first objective is to help you feel better by reducing inflammation or muscle spasms. This could be due to an auto accident, sports injury, overuse injury or a chronic condition. Depending on the severity of your problem, it is typical to need care two to three times per week for four to 12 weeks. As your symptoms decrease, we will transition you to our corrective care phase.
Phase 2: Corrective/Restorative Care
During the corrective care phase, muscles and other tissues are allowed to heal more completely, thereby helping prevent injury. In this phase you will be working on correcting any of the biomechanical and postural issues that were identified in your exam along with continuing to treat your original complaints until they are gone. It is typical to need care three times a week for 6 to 10 weeks, depending on your overall health and the severity of your problem.
Phase 3: Wellness Care
Once your body has fully healed, it is important to come in for periodic maintenance treatments to avoid problems in the future. Usually, this only requires a quick visit to the chiropractor and/or the massage therapist one to four times per month, based on your lifestyle and goals.