
What is Naturopathic Medicine?
Naturopathic medicine is a form of primary health care that beautifully blends conventional medicine with holistic, natural medicine. It is individualized (this is not a one-size-fits-all approach!), patient-centered (your goals and values are paramount!), and focused on uncovering and treating the underlying cause of symptoms.
The Six Principles of Naturopathic Medicine
1. First Do No Harm
My approach is to use the gentlest therapy that offers you the greatest benefit. I make every effort to ensure my recommendations don’t cause harm, and that I provide you with a safe and non-judgemental environment.
2. The Healing Power of Nature
Our bodies have an inherent ability to heal themselves. My role is to help you identify and remove the barriers to that healing.
3. Identify and Treat the Causes
I am always trying to dig deeper to identify and treat the causes of your symptoms. Headaches are a great example because I’m sure you can easily think of lots of different reasons why someone might have headaches (dehydration, caffeine withdrawal, low blood sugar, concussion, etc.). The best way to treat concussion headaches is going to be very different from the best way to treat caffeine withdrawal headaches. This is why addressing the symptom alone is not enough to support lasting health.
4. Doctor as Teacher
This is a personal favorite of mine. Beyond my primary goal, which is to help you feel better, my next greatest goal is to educate you about your body so that you have an enduring understanding of how to take care of your health. There is also a lot of misinformation out there when it comes to health, and I want to arm you with the skills to think critically about information that is presented to you.
5. Treat the Whole Person
Your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health all make up who you are, as do your social context and the environment around you. I take all of this into consideration when treating you, because it’s not enough to treat one part of the whole.
6. Prevention
There is something incredibly powerful about investing in yourself today to live more vibrantly tomorrow. There is so much that can be done to prevent disease and mitigate risk factors – your future health is within your control.
Never worked with a Naturopathic Doctor before?
That’s totally fine. 🙂 I work with many people new to Naturopathic Medicine. Please refer to my process and treatments for information on how we will work together. A good place to start is to schedule a free meet & greet, and we can walk through exactly what this process will look like for you.