During a whiplash type injury, the neck and spine become abnormally elongated and bent into positions they are not designed to endure. The result of this crash can cause damage to the vertebrae, ligaments, joint capsules, the joint facets (surface), muscles, discs, and nerves. Even micro fractures of the vertebrae and joints can occur and not be detectable without special types of imaging. Pain is usually the first symptom of a car accident however studies also show that pain may not be the initial symptom. Injury symptoms can begin many days, weeks or even months after the accident.

Besides pain, some of the symptoms one could experience after a car accident , based upon the severity and extent of injury, could include:

• Headaches
• Dizziness or problems with eye coordination
• Cognitive disorders (concentration, remembering, thinking or focusing problems)
• Insomnia (sleeping problems) or irritability (short temper)
• TMJ problems, jaw pain and tightness, a feeling of fullness in the ears
• Chronic muscle tightness/spasm around the face, neck, upper shoulders or shoulder blades
• Numbness and tingling in the extremities or unusual sensations
• Weakness of limbs or coordination problems
• Post traumatic stress symptoms. nervousness and even nightmares

I have personally seen and treated individuals with those symptoms following a car accident. Many of those persons came to me immediately after the accident however often they don?t seek treatment for days, weeks, months or even years later. Often times the symptoms show up so late, or are ignored for so long, the person may forget they were even caused by the accident. These symptoms can manifest a long time after the initial trauma.

The biggest mistake my patients have made in the past is that they generally fail to come in as soon after the accident as possible, because they don’t feel pain immediately after the accident. This mistake often causes the injuries to become worse and more difficult to treat. There are specific do’s and don’ts when treating these types of injuries.

I have the specific training, equipment, knowledge and experience in treating folks with injuries due to an motor vehicle collision. If you or someone you know has been involved in an accident and need immediate assistance or seek relief from a chronic problem, please call our office at 630-351-4700

Amino acids in weight loss are designed to suppress the appetite which allows one to reduce caloric intake comfortably. In other words, you can eat less food without feeling hungry. The only way to lose weight is to eat less, exercise more or both. Many who are obese have neurotransmitter levels that are so low they cannot shut off the sensation of hunger, thus they eat constantly or excessively. Amino acids increase the levels of neurotransmitters into therapeutic ranges so a person is able to actually suppress the pangs of hunger. Serotonin, dopamine, epinephrine and nor-epinephrine are the major neurotransmitters that we try to modulate. A person could never eat enough food to increase the neurotransmitters to required levels in the body, that is why it is important to supplement them.

My program is simple, when you come in for your first visit, together we determine how many calories you must consume on a daily basis, to lose a specific amount of weight, in a specific amount of time. That number then becomes your calorie prescription, meaning that is the number of calories (or less) you must eat on a daily basis to lose weight and reach your goals. You take your amino acids daily as recommended, you keep a diet log of all the food you consume, you keep track of the calories for all food eaten in the diet log and you come in for a weigh-in once a week.

Most people eat 500-600 calories a day more than they think and this alone can add one pound of fat to your body in a week (3500 calories = 1 pound fat). Studies show that those that track their eating and caloric intake do much better losing weight.

Every weight loss patient must bring their diet log to each weigh-in. The purpose of the diet log is two-fold. First and foremost it allows us to see what you eat, when you eat and how much you eat. Second, after two weeks of reviewing your diet log, we can tweak your diet to help you eat healthier and time foods during the day when they might be more beneficial in controlling hunger and blood sugar swings.

I will teach you to count calories if you do not understand how to do so. I will teach you to read food labels that allow you to understand what is in the foods you eat and how to determine serving and portion sizes. You will learn when to eat, what to eat and not just what not to eat. There are many other aspects of this program that will help you lose weight and for those very difficult cases, I use the help of a medical hypnotherapist, trained in medical cases, who can help you with other issues that prevent you from achieving success.

If you wish to know more about amino acid therapy, click on the amino acid therapy link or call my office at 630-351-4700

• Obesity, weight loss and management and appetite suppression
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Depression/anxiety
• ADHD
• Migraine headaches
• Fibromyalgia
• Chronic fatigue, chronic pain syndromes

There are many more associated diseases not listed here

What are Neurotransmitters and Amino Acids?
Neurotransmitters are tiny chemical messengers that allow your nerves to keep the nervous signal traveling and communicate with each other.  They are released from the end of one nerve, dumped into the space between the nerves and then move on to attach to a receptor on the next nerve.  This works great until there are not enough neurotransmitters to allow for effective communication between nerves.  When you do not have enough neurotransmitters in your system, such as reduction or depletion of proper neurotransmitters levels, you can suffer the symptoms of one or more specific disease process.  Amino acids are the building blocks of the neurotransmitters.  We can only make neurotransmitters if we have the proper nutrients (amino acids) and amounts to do so. There are many neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine (among a few) which are responsible for many body functions including mood, cognition, hunger, sleep as well as a host of others.

What are Amino Acids?
As I stated earlier, amino acids are those protein by-products that help build neurotransmitters in the body. The reason we need amino acids is that the brain cannot generate its own neurotransmitters without them and the central nervous system cannot function without them. Many foods and drugs/medications/pharmaceuticals can actually deplete the neurotransmitters from your body.  Drugs do not make neurotransmitters, they only shuffle them around in your body.  The fact is, many drugs actually deplete or diminish the number of neurotransmitters in your system thus eventually making you feel worse and contributing to disease symptoms.  We all need amino acids.

Information and Misinformation
I have read much about amino acid therapy and neurotransmitters both in medical literature/studies and from websites posted on the internet.  There is a growing body of information and misinformation. Here are a few things I have learned:

• Amino acid therapy must be balanced and specific in its dosages.  Too much of one amino acid can deplete another thus creating as many problems as it is designed to help.
• Lab testing for neurotransmitter levels is in its infancy and several labs have developed a urine test.  However giving a urine test prior to beginning amino acid therapy is a waste of time and money because there is no correlation between systemic and urinary levels.  The reason? The kidneys make their own neurotransmitters.
• There is only one lab I know of that is actually calibrated to account for the discrepancies in the kidneys involvement in making neurotransmitters.
• All nutritional supplements are not made equally.  The purity of the product is important.
• When disease is present, supplement dosages should be used to elevate neurotransmitters levels into therapeutic ranges and not necessarily normal values.
• Many physicians are jumping on the amino acid treatment bandwagon without proper training in their uses especially for specific disease processes.

Obviously amino acid supplementation is important enough, that I feel it imperative to let patients know that they should have trained professional guidance relative to its usage.  One could buy all the products necessary from a health food store however it would be cost prohibitive and there is the possibility of poor quality and improper self dosages.  In trained hands amino acid treatment is very safe with relatively few side effects and can even be used with children and adolescents.

For more information to find out if you or a loved one is a candidate for amino acid therapy call our office at 630-351-4700.

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(630) 351-4700

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• Acupuncture is safe and extremely effective.
• Can be performed with or without needles.
• Virtually no side effects.

Acupuncture has literally been used for centuries for almost all health problems.

Acupuncture is probably the most amazing part of my practice, in that it has provided many of my patients with unbelievable and unexpected success. I have been utilizing it ever since I graduated from Chiropractic College, as I studied it while still in school. At this point I have over 12 years experience using it with my patients. Another neat aspect about acupuncture treatment is that most of my patients receive some degree of relief from their problems. Some get full relief and others partial relief however most patients experience positive results to one extent or another. Please keep in mind, that with any type of therapy, this may or may not be the right treatment for you and you may not have the success you are looking for, however it is a great treatment option when other avenues fail. You may experience success beyond your expectations. Often times it is a last resort for those seeking relief from problems that traditional approaches did not help. For many of my patients it is the first and only treatment they need.

Simply put, in layman’s terms, the basic theory/philosophy of Acupuncture is that each person has a ‘vital force or life energy’ (Chi) flowing throughout their body in ‘Meridians’. Meridians are invisible ‘channels’ that run along and within the body. Each meridian has multiple acupuncture points that allow access to those meridians. This Chi is usually in ‘balance’ however when you do not have this balance, you can experience disease or dysfunction.

The purpose of acupuncture is to locate and stimulate those specific points on the body that can revitalize or return the Chi to balance. When the vital force is balanced then the body will have reached an environment that allows resolution of the problem. There is not a ton of ‘scientific’ research on acupuncture however existing studies show that it is an effective treatment alternative to a variety of problems. Many of the acupuncture points are located near a nerve or blood vessel. Almost any problem that western medicine treats is also treatable with acupuncture.

Finally, it is not so important as to what one uses to stimulate the acupuncture points, but more importantly, to stimulate the correct points. Needles are typically used in acupuncture treatments, however there are other methods also including, electrical stimulation, cupping, stones and acupressure. If you cannot tolerate needles, there is still a method that will provide similar results. There is so much to learn about this ancient form of Asian medicine that one could probably study a lifetime and not know or understand it all. All I can tell you is that I use it in my practice and it works, often remarkably so!

For more information or to set up a consult or appointment, please call or office at 630-351-4700

• Reduce pain or pressure from injured discs, joints and nerves.
• Relax tight muscles and reduce spasms and pain.
• Improve performance and daily function.

Most professional and college sports teams utilize Chiropractic care because it works.

This form is meant for general comments and questions and should not be used to request an diagnosis of a condition or to schedule an appointment.
For appointments, please call (630) 351-4700.
If you need Emergency Care, please dial 911.

The spine is so complex that it allows us to bend, twist, lift and move without us realizing all the structures that allow all the movements we perform daily, that is, until something goes wrong.

An injury that seems to be the most problematic is the “slipped disc” which is a misnomer, as it is medically known as a herniated disc. Between the vertebras of the spine are soft structures known as discs and they can be injured or they can deteriorate and often lead to severe pain, muscle spasm and a “pinched nerve”. Almost everyone knows someone with back pain or a pinched nerve.

Chiropractors lead the way in conservative treatment of low back and neck pain in individuals of all ages from kids to seniors. We are trained in the diagnosing, evaluation and nonsurgical treatment of individuals with various types of neck, midback and lowback problems.

We have the education, knowledge and skills to improve your health and allow a more active lifestyle, hopefully avoiding other more invasive and costly treatments including surgery.

To find out more about the various problems we treat and the different therapies we utilize, check out the other sections of this website or call us for any additional information.