Independence: A Celebration of Freedom, Purpose, and 25 Years of Doing Medicine Differently

This July is especially meaningful.

As America celebrates 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we at Integrative Therapies, Ltd. celebrate 25 years of our own declaration of independence.

While our journey is certainly much smaller than the birth of a nation, it was inspired by the same principle:

Sometimes you have to leave what is comfortable to build what you know is right.

Twenty-five years ago, Cris Ortiz (medical assistant) and I made one of the most important decisions of our professional lives. We left the security of employment at Gottlieb Hospital to create a different kind of medical practice—one built around our beliefs rather than the limitations of the healthcare system.

Soon afterward, we declared our independence from insurance companies, Medicare, Medicaid, and the traditional fee-for-service model that often rewards treating disease rather than preventing it.

We believed there had to be a better way.

Our Declaration of Independence

We declared that Lifestyle should be the first medicine.

We declared that symptoms are not simply inconveniences to suppress—they are messages from the body that deserve to be understood.

We declared that abnormal laboratory numbers are not diseases, but clues pointing toward deeper physiological imbalances.

We declared that medicine should focus on identifying and correcting the root causes of illness rather than simply managing symptoms for a lifetime.

We declared that physicians should not be the drivers of a person’s health.

Instead, we should become teachers, coaches, guides, and partners who empower people to become the primary caretakers of their own health.

Our goal has never been to create patients who depend on us.

Our goal has always been to help create people who understand their bodies, make healthier decisions, and ultimately need us less.

Building Something Different

Leaving a stable salary, health insurance, and paid vacations was not an easy decision.

There were no guarantees.

Only faith in a vision.

We wanted to build a practice where we had the freedom to spend more time educating patients, introducing innovative testing, researching nutrition and supplements, and exploring therapies that could improve health before chronic disease developed.

Long before virtual medicine became commonplace, we were offering virtual consultations.

Long before wellness memberships became popular, we created our own hybrid membership model because we believed ongoing education and prevention should be accessible to more people.

We weren’t interested in seeing patients only when they became sick.

We wanted to walk beside them throughout their health journey.

More Than a Medical Practice

Over the past 25 years, our vision has grown into something much larger than a clinic.

Together we have:

• Published hundreds of educational newsletters available to members and the public.
• Hosted community lectures, movie nights, wellness gatherings, and “Walk With the Doctor” events.
• Built relationships that extend far beyond office visits.
• Introduced advanced wellness technologies including:
  • IV Nutrition Therapy
  • High-Dose Vitamin C Therapy
  • Ozone Therapy
  • Red and Near-Infrared Light Therapy
  • Far Infrared Sauna Therapy
  • Thermography
  • Body Composition Analysis
  • Carotid Intima-Media Thickness (CIMT) testing for early cardiovascular disease detection
  • CNS cognitive testing
• Carefully researched and offered high-quality nutritional supplements at discounted prices.

Every decision has been guided by one simple question:

“Would we recommend this to our own family?”

If the answer was yes, we wanted to make it available to our patients.

A Community, Not Just a Practice

Perhaps what makes us most proud is not the technology or the therapies.

It is the people.

Many of you have been with us since the very beginning.

You’ve watched us grow.

You’ve witnessed our successes, our setbacks, and the countless lessons learned along the way.

You’ve referred your family and friends.

You’ve challenged us to keep learning.

You’ve encouraged us when the road became difficult.

You’ve believed in our vision, even when it was considered unconventional.

Together we have built something far more valuable than a medical practice.

We have built a community of people who believe that health is something we create every day through our choices.

Independence Means Taking Responsibility

The founders of our country believed that freedom came with responsibility.

The same is true for health.

No physician, medication, supplement, or procedure can replace the daily decisions that determine how we eat, move, sleep, manage stress, nurture relationships, and care for our bodies.

True wellness begins when we become active participants instead of passive recipients.

That has always been our mission.

To educate.

To inspire.

To partner.

To help people become healthier than they ever imagined possible.

Looking Forward

Twenty-five years later, our purpose has not changed.

If anything, it has become stronger.

Healthcare continues to evolve, but our guiding principles remain the same:

• Prevention before disease.
• Early detection before complications.
• Root-cause investigation before symptom suppression.
• Lifestyle before medication whenever appropriate.
• Partnership instead of dependency.
• Education that empowers lifelong health.

These ideals have guided us for the past quarter century, and they will continue to guide us into the future.

Thank You

As America celebrates 250 years of independence, we celebrate our own 25-year journey of choosing a different path.

To every patient, family member, staff member, colleague, and friend who has supported Integrative Therapies over these past 25 years—

Thank you.

Thank you for believing in our vision.

Thank you for trusting us with your health.

Thank you for helping spread the message that lifestyle truly can be the first medicine.

Most of all, thank you for becoming part of our family.

To my dedicated assistant Cris Ortiz who has been working side by side with me for the past 35 years (10 years at Gottlieb Health). You have helped make my life and the live's of our patients more stress free. You have worked tirelessly to support me and our patients without complaints and with love and empathy. You have truly been a godsend when patient's needed someone they could count on to answer questions, give direction, or just to listen to their complaints. Our patients are better off for having you in their lives. They have learned to confide in you even telling you things they won't tell their doctor. You have gone out of your way to make sure they have what they need (even to the point of chasing them down to remind them). You give our patient membership more value than a patient could ever pay.

Here’s to more years of learning, growing, serving, and helping people live healthier, happier, and longer lives.

Happy 250th Birthday, America.

Happy 25th Anniversary, Integrative Therapies, Ltd.

And here’s to the enduring spirit of independence—the courage to stand for what you believe, even when it means taking the road less traveled.