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Services and Techniques

At Path of Life, we take great pride in providing specific and tailored chiropractic health care to our patients.  Our goal is to support you in your journey of self-betterment; we believe that self-care is about giving the world the best of you instead of what's left of you.  Below is a description of the program we offer in our Nashua office to assist you on YOUR path towards enhanced health and function.

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NeuroStructural Biotensegrity (NSB) Spinal Assessment 

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Our comprehensive spinal assessment will allow us to determine if and where your spine has structural or functional issues (click here to read more about NeuroStructural Dysfunctions) that may be impacting the function of your nervous system.  Your NSB Spinal Assessment results will be shared with you in a clear and concise case review along with your proposed care plan.  The following methods may be used to assess the health of your spine and nervous system and can help us to find you the answers that other doctors have not been able to give:

 - Insight® paraspinal thermography and surface EMG, which is the only technology of its kind to be registered with the FDA as a Class II medical device.  This sensitive, non-invasive testing allows us to detect areas of the spine that show measurable nerve and muscle imbalance, and provides a window into how well your neurospinal system is adapting, or maladapting, to stress - both at the time of your NSB Spinal Assessment, and after you've been receiving care. 

- EliteHRV Heart Rate Variability (HRV) assessment, which measures microvariations in the time intervals between consecutive heartbeats.  HRV is directly related to the body's capacity to sense and respond to its environment.  HRV is an up-and-coming method that is becoming recognized by many healthcare disciplines as an important indicator of overall health, adaptability, and resilience; we use it as a "stress thermometer" that helps us understand the cumulative health impact of physical, chemical, and emotional stressors on your life, and to assess how your body's function and resilience is improving with our care;  

- Digital Weightbearing Structural Radiography, which provides the clearest X-rays of your spine to ensure the safety and appropriateness of care.  DWSR guides us to select which techniques will be best for you, and gives us vital information about your unique structure, to pinpoint areas that are obstructing efficient adaptation to gravity (and therefore causing you problems like aches and pains);

- SWAY Balance (TM) and reaction-time testing measures efficiency and accuracy in your body's static postural stability and postural feedback system.  SWAY testing is based on the BESS (Balance Error Scoring System) test, which is used to assess and predict athletic performance and how well your body is actively adapting to a gravitational field;

- Biotensegrity-based functional motion screening to assess motion coupling and coordination patterns in your body;

- Hands-on chiropractic assessment of the spine and lower extremities (feet, ankles, knees, hip joints) to characterize individual spinal subluxations as well as foundational extremity dysfunctions.  We use multiple analysis techniques (click here) to gain the clearest readout from your body about areas of compromise and about the degree of severity of your problem.  This may include muscle testing, active and passive range of motion testing, and motion palpation (used to identify specific areas of spinal restriction or obstruction).

If we determine that you are a candidate for our care, we will schedule an appointment for you to return for a Chiropractic Adjustment, which is the cornerstone of our care program.  We take pride in making sure your first adjustment experience is comfortable, and that it clearly shows you the true possibility of what you can achieve with care.  We’ll then offer you the opportunity to partner with us for a care program based on your body’s condition and on your response to adjustment, that will help you to achieve the long-term results you want and need.

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Neuroplasticity-Based Chiropractic Care

We provide spinal corrective adjustments using the most advanced chiropractic techniques available.  Dr. Amy draws from several different safe, comfortable, and effective chiropractic adjusting techniques (including Diversified and Gonstead Technique, Thompson Technique, Activator® Technique, Toggle Technique (upper cervical care), as well as Craniosacral and Sacro-Occipital Techniques to determine the best method of adjustment for your unique problem (we call that a person's "recipe!")  Every person's adjustment is different, and approaches and techniques may change with time as your neurostructure adapts and heals.  Our goal is to deliver the adjustment that restores freedom and adaptability to your neurostructural system, in order to allow your body to work via neuroplasticity to create improved or corrected motion and postural patterns that allow your to adapt better to the challenges you give to your body every day.  Further, Dr. Amy regularly attends continuing education seminars on the art, philosophy, and science of chiropractic care, in order to be able to offer you the most up-to-date information. Using the insights gained during your thorough spinal assessment at Path of Life, Dr. Amy will utilize the specific chiropractic adjustments and techniques that will work best for your unique situation, and will help you to achieve the results you need in your life, for your health.

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Extremity Adjustments: Restoring a Strong Foundation

Your feet, ankles, knees, and hip joints comprise your moving foundation as you walk, run, and jump.  Any structural or movement abnormality in this foundation (also called "lower extremities") would be expected to affect the structure and function of the spine situated above it, much like misaligned tires on a car will affect how the car handles and performs, and may cause damage in the short term and in the long term.  Dr. Amy has undertaken post-graduate training in assessment and adjustment of lower extremities through the CCEP (Certified Chiropractic Extremities Practitioner) program, a specialized training through which chiropractors for professional sports teams and olympic athletes obtain certification. Extremity correction is an essential tool for both athletes who want to be at their best, and for normal humans who stand and walk.  If that's you, be sure to bring this topic up in your Assessment!

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Corrective Exercises

In order to achieve true correction of vertebral subluxation complex and its manifestations, our corrective care patients are assigned simple yet powerful spinal exercises.  These exercises strengthen and stabilize areas of deficit, and allow the spine to maintain chiropractic adjustments so as to promote real, measurable change.  Eliminating these deficits with appropriate stretching and strengthening of specific muscle groups is an important part of your chiropractic care program that can be performed in the comfort of your own home, and will improve the effectiveness of your spinal corrective care.

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Activity and Ergonomic Advice

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One of our main goals is to enable you to get back to doing what you love to do.  We often find it helpful to "coach" our patients on certain activities they should avoid or do differently to not aggravate their particular health challenge; our goal is to help every patient achieve a fulfilling and happy lifestyle full of the activities they enjoy most. We recognize that each our patients is a whole person, and that helping them reach true health and wellness and a higher level of function is a collaborative effort between us and and our patients.

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Nutritional Advice

We provide specific recommendations on healthy food choices and nutritional supplements to enhance our patient's return to optimal health. Do you know which supplements and vitamins are good for you, or which brands are "cleaner" and better for your body? Do you know how these supplements and vitamins interact with one another?  Do you know how to get the most benefit out of the food that you take into your body? Dr. Amy approaches nutritional counseling from both a biochemical and a holistic perspective, and works to help you to find what's right for your body.

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