DEFINITION
What is Naturopathic Medicine?
Naturopathic medicine is a complete system of primary health care that blends modern scientific knowledge with traditional and natural forms of healing. Rather than simply managing symptoms, naturopathic medicine is built on the principle that the body has an inherent ability to heal — and that a skilled physician's role is to identify and remove whatever is getting in the way of that process.
Naturopathic doctors (NDs) are trained to look at the whole picture: your physical health, mental and emotional wellbeing, lifestyle, environment, and genetics. They work with you to uncover the underlying causes of illness, not just the surface-level complaints. The result is a deeply personalized form of care that respects your unique biology and your goals for health.
Qualifications & Background
Our naturopathic doctors hold doctoral degrees from accredited four-year naturopathic medical schools, where they receive comprehensive training in conventional medical sciences alongside detailed study of natural therapies. All are board-certified and licensed in the District of Columbia. GWCIM's naturopathic physicians bring additional expertise in areas including Traditional Chinese Medicine, functional medicine, women's health, endocrinology, and integrative oncology.
INDICATIONS
What conditions does it help with?
ADVANTAGE
Why Naturopathic Medicine at GWCIM?
Our NDs bring decades of experience with complex and chronic conditions — the cases where conventional medicine alone hasn't provided answers. Whether you're navigating a new diagnosis, managing a chronic illness, supporting your body through cancer treatment, or simply looking to optimize your health, our naturopathic team meets you where you are.
At GWCIM, naturopathic medicine is part of something larger — a fully collaborative integrative team. Our NDs work alongside MDs, functional medicine specialists, acupuncturists, mental health practitioners, and other healers, giving you access to the full spectrum of care under one roof. This means your naturopathic physician can coordinate seamlessly with your other providers, both at GWCIM and beyond.
APPROACH
Our Approach
Your first appointment is an extended intake — typically 75 to 120 minutes — designed to explore not just your current symptoms, but the terrain underneath them: your history, patterns, diet, sleep, stress, relationships, and the factors that may be quietly driving your health challenges.
From there, your ND develops a personalized plan: clinical nutrition and therapeutic diet, nutritional supplementation, Western and Chinese herbal medicines, homeopathy, flower essences, lifestyle counseling, and physical therapies including craniosacral therapy and qigong healing. When medications are needed, NDs can prescribe. When referrals are warranted, your ND coordinates them. Every recommendation is delivered through our patient portal, with detailed instructions and links to exactly the supplements and resources your ND recommends.
The Healing Power of Nature
The body has an innate, ordered capacity to heal. Naturopathic physicians work to identify and remove obstacles to that healing — and support the process rather than override it.
Identify and Treat the Causes
Seeks to identify and remove the underlying causes of illness, rather than merely suppress symptoms.
First Do No Harm
Treatment begins with the gentlest, least invasive approaches — using the minimum force necessary to support healing and minimize side effects.
Doctor as Teacher
NDs spend time educating patients, helping you understand your own health, and empowering you to take an active role in your healing.
Treat the Whole Person
Physical health cannot be separated from mental, emotional, social, environmental, and spiritual well-being. Naturopathic care accounts for all of it.
Prevention
The best time to address illness is before it starts. NDs partner with patients to identify risk factors and build a foundation for lifelong health.
Care Options
Initial Consultation
An in-depth 75–120 minute visit covering full health history, current concerns, and development of a personalized care plan.
Follow-ups
horter visits (typically 30–60 minutes) to review labs, track progress, update your treatment plan, and address new questions.
Telemedicine and In-Person
Availability varies depending on the state of residence.
EXPERTISE
Recommended Providers
LEARN MORE
What to expect as a patient
- Extended First Intake: Plan for 75–120 minutes. Your ND will take a thorough history covering current concerns, past health, diet, lifestyle, emotional health, and more — leaving time for questions and next steps.
- Personalized Lab Work: Based on your intake, your ND may order standard or specialized labs to get a clearer picture of what's happening beneath the surface.
- A Detailed Care Plan: All recommendations — supplements, dietary guidance, labs, referrals, and handouts — are sent to you through our secure patient portal after your visit.
- Collaborative Care: Your ND communicates with other members of your GWCIM care team and can also coordinate with outside physicians to ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
- Ongoing Support: Follow-up appointments track your progress and adapt your plan as your health evolves. Many patients continue seeing their ND long after their initial concerns have resolved, for ongoing preventive care and wellness optimization.
Transparent Pricing
View our complete fee schedule for consultations, treatments, and ongoing groups.
FAQ
Common Questions
NDs have a different training path than MDs, but it's equally rigorous. Naturopathic doctors complete a four-year doctoral program at an accredited medical school, covering the same foundational sciences as conventional medical schools — plus extensive training in natural therapies. In DC, NDs are licensed as primary care providers and can order labs, prescribe medications, and refer to specialists.
The two overlap significantly in their root-cause orientation and personalized approach, but they have different foundations. Functional medicine is a framework used by various practitioners (MDs, DOs, NDs) that focuses heavily on lab-based biochemistry. Naturopathic medicine is a distinct licensed profession with its own philosophy, training, and therapeutic toolkit — including herbal medicine, homeopathy, and physical therapies. At GWCIM, our NDs and functional medicine doctors often collaborate.
Absolutely — and this is one of the greatest strengths of seeing an ND at GWCIM. Our naturopathic doctors are skilled at integrating natural therapies alongside conventional medications and treatments, checking for interactions, and helping your body tolerate and recover from more intensive treatments like chemotherapy or surgery.
EDUCATION