How The Spero Clinic Offers Hope in Healing Root Causes of Pain

“I could not recommend The Spero Clinic highly enough. They literally gave me a second chance at life! Everyone there is extremely dedicated to getting the patients better. The staff is very talented and one of nicest groups of people you could meet.” – Justin, full body CRPS patient.

These words, and those of several hundred other patients, are not an exception at the Spero Clinic in Fayetteville, Arkansas. For many patients suffering from debilitating conditions such as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, or Fibromyalgia, the Spero Clinic has been their last port of call and a new hope in life.

What is Chronic Pain?

In her book, Putting Out the Fire, Founder and CEO of the Spero Clinic, Dr. Katinka van der Merwe, explains that “very few people understand daily chronic pain, not to mention conditions such as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) or CRPS. These conditions are like an uninvited bully quietly taking possession of your body. It rarely shows its face to the world as it tears you apart from the inside.”

In general, few doctors truly understand the real causes of chronic pain. Before patients are first diagnosed, they typically must navigate an endless maze of specialists, often painful tests, and misdiagnoses.

The problem is that a lot of medical professionals are unfamiliar with the real causes of chronic pain. Many will treat chronic pain with medications which, in most cases, bring more harm to the body – especially with long-term use.

Living with Chronic Pain

Chronic pain patients themselves often do not fully understand all the symptoms that may be associated with their condition. Digestive issues, cringing when a baby cries, trouble swallowing, or not being able to take a shower since it causes too much pain, are all symptoms from hell and are all connected.

Most people suffering from CRPS have considered (at least once) to end it all – because they have been told by their doctors that there is no cure. Patients are ashamed and this is not often openly discussed.

The Spero Approach

At the core of Spero’s treatment and holistic approach lies the chiropractic philosophy that the body is in essence a self-regulating and self-healing machine. It performs a multitude of functions without a person being aware of those functions. If the body’s natural defenses and healing processes are blocked, all sorts of problems can occur. Any symptoms of a physical situation are caused by an underlying root cause which, if left untreated, will continue to create mayhem.

At the root of the body as an “engine” is the central nervous system. CRPS is linked to a global failure of the central nervous system, as several studies have demonstrated. Think of your central nervous system as the power supply to a building – without it, no electrical appliance will function.

If the central nervous system fails, it gives rise to a myriad of problems manifesting in all sorts of symptoms. It may affect nerves, muscles, organs, and systems. It may also interfere with the way our body is supposed to function and respond to its environment.

Within the central nervous system, the Vagus nerve is a major player in building the puzzle that forms CRPS. The Vagus nerve is the single most important nerve inside the human body outside of the spinal cord. It is one of twelve pairs of cranial nerves. These nerves emerge directly from the brain and brainstem and provide motor and sensory information mainly to the structures of the head and neck (like smell, taste, hearing, or vision, for example).

The Vagus nerve is responsible for many different tasks, including (but not limited to): heart rate, digestion, sweating, speech, coughing, fainting, and vomiting, to name but a few. People who suffer from CRPS, by definition, also suffer from an underactive Vagus nerve.

Spero’s Treatment Programs

CRPS, as well as other chronic pain conditions such as Fibromyalgia or Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, must be approached by a method where the central nervous system is repaired, rebuilt, and reactivated systematically. Spero’s treatment programs are created to do exactly that.

These programs are no “miracle cures.” They require intensive treatment and persistence from patients to go through the entire treatment process. But, according to their success rate, they work.

“Ever since I treated my very first patient suffering from CRPS, I became obsessed with helping people who suffer from this horrible, life-robbing condition,” says Dr. Katrina. “I had two rules that I held sacred while studying other treatment methods: all treatments had to involve healing the central nervous system, and no treatment could possibly harm the patient in any way.”

And bringing that into daily practice, Dr. Katinka’s Spero Clinic is doing exactly that – giving their patients a new chance in life.

For more information about the Spero Clinic, visit our site or call (479) 304-8202.