No! In Canada, chiropractors have the professional designation of Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) and are considered to be primary health care practitioners. This means that you do not need a physician’s referral to seek chiropractic care. While some insurance companies may ask for a referral for direct billing purposes, this is not a common occurrence.

Yes! We offer direct billing for most insurance companies, as long as your plan allows it. We are not able to access the details of your insurance plan ourselves, so we strongly encourage you to check with your insurance provider to confirm your coverage prior to booking. 

If your insurance plan does not allow for direct billing, we will collect payment on the day of the service and we can provide you with printed or electronic copies of all necessary receipts required to submit for reimbursement.

Unfortunately, we cannot direct bill to a secondary insurance plan. If you have secondary health insurance benefits through an additional insurance plan, we can provide you with printed and/or electronic copies of all necessary receipts required to submit for reimbursement.

Unfortunately, we do not accept MVA or WCB treatments at this time.

Everyone! If you have a body that has muscles and joints and nerves, then chiropractic care can be beneficial for you. We see people from a range of ages and activity levels including teenagers, adults, seniors, pregnant women, competitive or recreational athletes, manual labourers, office workers and more. Anyone who wants to improve pain, movement, quality of life or sport performance can be well-suited for chiropractic care. In our practice, treatments are always tailored to each individual client according to their needs and preferences.

Chiropractic treatment is widely recognized as a safe, non-invasive, drug-free therapy available for the treatment of neuro-musculoskeletal conditions. However, no health treatment is ever completely free of potential adverse effects. Your chiropractor will perform a thorough history and physical examination, review the findings and diagnosis with you, make treatment recommendations, and discuss the benefits and any potential risks to treatment with you, in addition to exploring possible alternative forms of treatment. 

You are always the most important person in the room, and your voice is an important part of the process. Our recommendations are based on our best clinical judgment for you from our assessment, and the best available research and clinical guidelines. Following our recommendations, our treatment plan is then determined in conjunction with your comfort level as our client, as every patient and every body is different. During the initial assessment, Dr. Petropolis also makes it a habit to inquire about any previous treatment(s) you’ve had with any healthcare provider (chiropractor or otherwise) and if you have any likes/dislikes from other treatment approaches. Please tell her if you do have any preferences so we can work together on a treatment approach that is best for YOU. 

If you have any questions or concerns about treatment techniques when you come in for your initial assessment or follow-up treatments, please discuss them with us. We will answer any questions as best as we can and make sure that you feel confident and comfortable with your diagnosis and treatment plan.

An adjustment or manipulation is a joint treatment technique that applies a high velocity, low amplitude (i.e. quick speed and small amount of movement) force to a joint within the body, whether that is a spinal joint or an extremity joint (such as the jaw, wrist, elbow, foot, or ankle). It is intended to help restore range of motion and gliding biomechanics at a particular spot that has been assessed by the chiropractor and found to not be moving well, and may be tender to touch, thereby directly contributing to your stiffness or pain. A joint restriction is first determined to occur through range of motion testing, muscle and joint palpation, and other orthopedic testing. The adjustment intends to bring the joint to its current end-range of motion and then a quick small force helps to restore a more normal physiologic end-range of motion. 

An adjustment can also help with associated muscle tension, as muscles cross and attach to joints to help us move our bodies. Muscles have tension and length-sensitive receptors in them, which can be positively influenced to decrease tissue tension through the rapid neural signaling from the body to the brain and back again.

The sound that people often associate with chiropractic treatment is sometimes referred to as a “pop” or “crack.” In the chiropractic field, this is what we call a joint cavitation. A joint cavitation occurs when the pressure changes within a joint cause a release of air or gas bubbles within the fluid surrounding your joints. You may or may not hear or feel a cavitation during an adjustment. This does not necessarily mean that the technique was not successful. We will recheck the muscles, joints, range of motion, and perhaps also other tests previously performed following treatment to make sure that your issue feels improved once we are finished treatment.

For most patients, an adjustment is painless. We utilize different techniques to work with your body so that we can alleviate any tension and restriction in the affected muscles and joints. Often, Dr. Petropolis finds it optimal to begin with some active movement, soft tissue therapy or acupuncture in the area to ease some tissue tension before performing an adjustment. However, this is not always the case as sometimes a more acute or sharp pain from joint restriction needs to be addressed first. Our goal with an adjustment (or any treatment technique) is to make sure your body is relaxed so we’re working WITH it to ease the tension and restriction.

No! The decision of whether or not you get adjusted is entirely yours. Patient preference is very important and you are always the most important person in the room. Our treatment recommendations are based on our best clinical assessment and the best available research and clinical guidelines. However, following our recommendations, our treatment plan is then determined in collaboration with our clients according to their preferences and comfort level.

Some people do not get adjusted in one particular area of their body, or at all, due to personal reasons. Some people may have surgical rods, metal plates or screws implanted in certain joints of the body, which means the joint is “fixed” in place and an adjustment should not be performed. If an adjustment is not part of your treatment plan, either for a particular area of your body or in general, then we can still use joint mobilizations, soft tissue therapy, acupuncture, rehabilitation exercises, and education to help alleviate your complaint and progress towards your health and wellness goals. 

If you have any questions or concerns about any treatment techniques when you come in for your initial assessment or follow-up treatments, please discuss them with your chiropractor. We will answer any questions as best as we can and make sure that you feel confident and comfortable with your diagnosis and treatment plan.

Yes, chiropractors can treat tailbone pain. There are external and internal methods in assessing and treating tailbone pain (or coccydynia) from a slip and fall, previous fracture, pregnancy, or sudden unknown onset of pain. External methods are part of typical chiropractic treatment methods. The internal coccygeal (tailbone) mobilization is a treatment procedure that is a regulated act and part of a chiropractor’s scope of practice; however, this is lesser known to the public. Dr. Petropolis is specifically sought out for this treatment as not every chiropractor performs it as part of their practice.

Yes! You are always able to have a third party of your choice in the treatment room during your appointment. Just know that during your initial assessment or subsequent visits, we will be reviewing details of your personal health history, performing a physical examination, and some of our treatment techniques may require asking your permission to adjust clothing or asking you to remove bulkier clothing items like sweaters. This is to allow for proper access to the affected area during examination and treatment. Knowing this, if you would like your third party to leave for certain parts of the appointment, please tell us if that is your preference. Our goal is that you are as comfortable as possible during your appointment.

Your initial assessment will be approximately 60 minutes in duration. Follow-up appointments can vary between 20-40 minutes, depending on the appointment type chosen. Our standard follow-up appointment is 30 minutes, but we also offer extended (40 minute) and focused (20 minute) appointments depending on your treatment plan.

Further details on our appointment types can be found here.

Each individual treatment plan is unique. The frequency and number of visits will depend on the nature of your complaint, as well as your health and wellness goals. We understand that insurance coverage and finances can play a role in access to care, so we want to develop a treatment plan that is effective for you and can be sustainable over time to keep you feeling well. We often recommend more frequent visits in the earlier stages of treatment to get symptoms under control, and then decrease the frequency of care as you complete recommended home exercises to maintain the effects of your treatments.

Yes! Many people find significant benefit to seeking chiropractic care during their pregnancy. It can help with aches and pains that might occur as your body changes to accommodate the growing size of your little one. We have pregnancy pillows in the office that are specifically designed with medium-firm cushioning and abdominal cut-outs to allow you to lie face down comfortably during treatment. The two different sized pillows allow us to accommodate for earlier and later stages of pregnancy. 

Please let us know if you are a current patient and learn you’ve become pregnant, or if you are specifically seeking care for the first time during your pregnancy. This is important so we can get a detailed history and monitor for any health changes with your medical team, or modify some of our techniques during your treatments.

Unfortunately, we do not assess or treat pediatric patients at our clinic, but there are many excellent chiropractors who do and we are happy to help direct you to them if required.

Yes! Dr. Petropolis has an advanced education in concussions, and does make an exception to assess younger children aged 7-12 who have sustained a head injury or concussion. Typically, it is our first recommendation that if your child has hit their head they should be medically cleared for serious injuries either at the hospital, with your family doctor, or a walk-in clinic before they see us.

If you are bringing your teenager or child in for an appointment, it is recommended that the parent or guardian be present for the initial assessment so that we can review relevant health history, assessment findings, and obtain consent for treatment. This helps ensure that you and your minor are fully informed as to assessment findings and treatment recommendations and are both comfortable with the treatment plan. 

Note: If your teenager is seeking treatment for acute or chronic tailbone pain it is always recommended that a parent or guardian be present throughout the entire appointment. This is because tailbone pain can be treated externally and internally and we will not know how it needs to be addressed until you arrive for your appointment. It is necessary that a minor is accompanied by their guardian as a support person and chaperone for any internal treatment if it is found to be clinically necessary.