Naturopathic doctors believe in getting to the root cause of any health issue. Their philosophy means that they take a whole-person approach to optimal health for lasting results. For example, if you have a headache, a naturopath will help you get rid of the pain without pharmaceutical drugs (whenever possible) AND help you to uncover why you are getting the headaches in the first place. Naturopaths can also request blood work and help you interpret your results to better understand your current state of health.
Your first visit with a naturopath is usually about 60 minutes. In this time you will discuss your main health concern(s) as well as your health history. This includes your diet, exercise, sleep and stress levels. Your naturopath will also go over your current supplements that you are taking and any recent blood work you may have had done. At the end of the visit you will discuss the next steps required to get to the root cause of your symptoms (extra testing, diet changes, adding supplements etc.) Follow up visits are usually 30 minutes and occur between 2-8 weeks depending on your specific concerns to make sure you are on track and no changes are needed.