Relief by Design: Chiropractic Pain Relief in Moorhead, MN

Who is Relief by Design for?

It's for you if you have:

• Low back pain, including a back that "goes out" a few times a year
• Neck pain and stiffness from desk work, screens or an old injury
• Headaches that start in the neck or shoulders
• Joint pain in the shoulder, hip, knee or foot. As a CCEP, Dr. Bekkum adjusts the extremity joints, not just the spine.
• Pain that runs down a leg or an arm. See sciatica and herniated disc care in Moorhead.

It's not the right fit if:

• You have a red-flag symptom (see "When should you get medical care right away?" below). Get medical care first.
• Pain isn't your main problem, but you feel tired, foggy or run down. Start with Vitality by Design, our 90-day functional medicine program.
• You want a one-off "crack" with no exam or plan. Every Relief visit is based on your exam.

How does Relief by Design work?

1. Book a Free Discovery Session or call 701-347-1968. No referral needed.
2. First visit: we measure. Your pain score, a function questionnaire (driving, sleep, work, lifting), a full chiropractic exam (posture, range of motion, nerve tests, spine and extremity joints) and a short whole-body symptom score (MSQ).
3. Screen for red flags. If we find one, we refer you the same day.
4. Hands-on care. Adjustments, extremity adjusting and soft tissue work, matched to your exam.
5. Small daily habits. One or two posture and movement changes to do between visits.
6. Re-measure. We retake the same scores, so you can see your progress.
7. Move on when your scores say so, to Rehabilitation by Design.

What chiropractic care is included?

• Chiropractic adjustments restore motion to stuck joints in your spine.
• CCEP extremity adjusting for the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, ankles and feet.
• Soft tissue work releases muscles that have been guarding a sore joint.
• Gentle nerve work calms a nerve that's irritated along its path.
• Posture habits that add up fast: raise your screen, and set a 30-minute timer to stand, roll your shoulders and tuck your chin.

What is soft tissue therapy, and how does it help?

Soft tissue therapy is hands-on work on the muscles and connective tissue around a sore joint. Muscles that have guarded a joint for months get tight and tired, and they pull on the joints they're meant to protect. Releasing them helps your adjustments hold and makes movement easier.

At Integrix Health in Moorhead, soft tissue therapy is part of your chiropractic plan and matched to your exam. It's never a stand-alone rubdown.

Can a chiropractor help headaches that start in the neck?

Often, yes. When your head sits forward of your shoulders, the muscles at the back of your neck work harder. The top joints of the neck get irritated, and a headache follows.

We check your neck joints, your posture and your workday. Then we use adjustments, soft tissue work and simple posture habits.

For migraines, see functional medicine for chronic pain and migraine.

How does functional medicine support your chiropractic care?

Chiropractic care does the main work in Relief by Design. Functional medicine plays a supporting role, checking a few things outside the joint that can slow healing or turn pain up:

• Inflammation. Low-grade inflammation from food, high blood sugar and belly fat can make nerves more sensitive.
• Sleep and stress. Short sleep and a stress system stuck "on" both lower your pain threshold.
• Food. We start with one or two simple changes, like more vegetables and fatty fish and water instead of sweet drinks.
• Labs when needed. If your history points to it, we may check markers like inflammation, blood sugar, thyroid, iron and vitamin D. Some lab tests can be billed to insurance when medically needed, and others are self-pay. We tell you which before anything is ordered.

This support is part of your in-clinic plan, not a separate program. Pain gone but still tired? Learn about functional medicine in Fargo-Moorhead.

When should you get medical care right away?

Some symptoms aren't a chiropractic problem. With back or neck pain, get medical care right away if you have:

• New loss of bladder or bowel control, or numbness in the groin or inner thighs
• Weakness in an arm or leg that's getting worse
• Fever, chills or unexplained weight loss
• Pain after a serious fall or car accident
• A history of cancer with new back pain
• A sudden, severe "worst ever" headache, or trouble speaking, vision changes or weakness on one side

We screen for these on day one. If we see one, we refer you the same day.

How do you know Relief is done?

Not by a set number of visits. By your scores. Relief is done when your pain is low and your function is substantially back, measured on the same forms you filled out on day one.

That's also when most people stop care, and it's often why pain comes back. The next phase, Rehabilitation by Design, fixes what set the pain off.

Who provides and bills your in-clinic care?

• Who and where. Relief by Design is in-person chiropractic care by Dr. Paul M. Bekkum, DC, CCEP, at Downtown Health & Wellness, 22 6th St N, Moorhead, MN 56560, under his Minnesota chiropractic license.
• Insurance. Downtown Health & Wellness bills your insurance for covered services, such as your exam, adjustments and rehab. You pay any copay, deductible or coinsurance your plan requires. Coverage depends on your plan. Call 701-347-1968 and we'll help you check.
• Services that may not be covered. Some services may not be covered by your plan. We tell you in writing and get your OK before providing them.
• Medicare. Medicare covers only part of chiropractic care. We explain what is and isn't covered before your visit.
• Separate programs. Integrix Health's virtual programs (Vitality by Design and Longevity by Design) are separate, self-pay and not billed to insurance. Dr. Bekkum owns Integrix Health. If we suggest one of its programs, you're free to get similar services elsewhere.
• Results vary, and no outcome is guaranteed. In an emergency, call 911.

Does Relief by Design have support levels?

No. Relief by Design is one in-clinic chiropractic plan based on your exam. The four support levels (On Your Own, With Check-ins, Guided, Concierge) apply only to Vitality by Design and Longevity by Design.