What to Expect During Your First Appointment

An initial appointment with me at Natural Family Medicine’s office, located in Osseo, typically takes 1.5-2 hours. This allows the time necessary for me to understand your health concerns, your health goals, your medical history, your family’s medical history, and to discuss a variety of treatment options available to you.

I ask detailed questions to better understand your health. Specifically, we discuss various aspects about your lifestyle, including:

• Sleep
• Stress level
• Energy
• Exercise
• Emotions
• Foods consumed
• Bowel habits

Functional Labs

After collecting a detailed medical history, I may also perform a physical exam and recommend laboratory tests for further evaluation. The types of lab tests I order depend upon your current health status, and may include similar markers run by conventional doctors. Most often, though, the labs I focus on include different types of tests called functional medicine labs. These labs look at how the body is working to determine the underlying core cause(s) for health concerns.

I will create an individualized treatment plan based on your medical history and any additional information provided from laboratory tests and physical exam. If I choose to order laboratory tests during the first appointment, I will likely make additional recommendations after I get the results back.

Individualized Treatment Options

I use safe and effective natural treatment options. Often there are several treatment options available to you, so we will discuss them all during your consultation. Common treatment options include:

• Lifestyle recommendations (such as recommendations for sleep, exercise, meditation, food choices and more)
• Herbal medicine
• Homeopathic medicine
• Hydrotherapy
• Bach flower remedies
• Vitamins
• Minerals
• Amino acids
• Detoxification programs

It is typical to begin to feel better after just a couple weeks of following your individualized treatment plan. This varies based on your health condition and your lifestyle, however.

Follow Up

After the first appointment, it is typical for us to follow up after a month to discuss your progress. However, I make myself available as needed to answer questions by phone or email as you take this journey to achieve optimal health and feel your best.