How We Work

Help chronic pain patients return to a thriving life through movement based medicine

Our History

Move Better Chiropractic was established in 2015. The concepts and ideas behind it began much longer ago. Dr. Whitney and Dr. Q created Move Better out of necessity. It quickly became clear to them that there was a way to use movement as medicine, but this required a fundamental reworking of the entire clinic from the ground up. After working for other practitioners, they saw that movement was simply an added service. It was apparent to Q and Whitney that this would never work. Movement could not be an add on, it must be the centerpiece. The entire clinic must be designed around movement from the beginning and everyone involved needed to be on the same page. We need more than an hour to work with new patients and more than 30 minutes for follow ups.

Move Better began with a humble start, in the basement of a Jui Jitsu gym in Northeast Portland. Through an evolution of providence and circumstance the practice moved to Dr. Q and Dr. Whitney’s home. The kitchen was the intake area, the living room a waiting area, a bedroom was the treatment room, and a two car garage was converted to a movement space. This experience cemented two concepts that will stay with Move Better; Creating a fantastic patient experience with extremely effective movement based medicine. Everything matters when treating people or pets in pain; A clinician’s language, dress, the cleanliness of the space, the color, the organization, the focus, and the never ending consideration of what a patient was experiencing. It also taught them that what they did worked amazingly well when other systems had failed. Growth happened quickly and they needed more space and more clinicians. In 2017 a Vancouver WA clinic was added and in 2019 they moved to a beautiful space on Hawthorne that was built from the ground up to make movement the clear focus of medical intervention.

They have grown from a small family clinic literally functioning out of a garage to a thriving business with a great team of other doctors and support staff. Most importantly, they have created a great base of patients and an ever evolving system of medicine not available anywhere else.

Our Foundations

BREATHING PARADIGM

Breathing is the most direct way to decrease pain and improve function. It allows multiple systems of the body to return to balance and proper capacity.

Reduces strain to the neck
Promotes a natural filter of air to prevent infection
Massages the muscles of the low back to keep normal tone
Restores normal motion of the shoulder

BRACING PARADIGM

Bracing is creating a stable system on which the body can attach movement. More importantly, it is the skill of being able to do this while breathing. Nearly all patients are unable to maintain midline stability while breathing upon initial evaluation.

Decompresses the disc of the low back to reduce disc bulges
Protects the midline from injury while lifting or falling
Allows large muscle groups to work instead of small ones

HINGING PARADIGM

Hinging creates the cornerstone of all motion. The screening is simple, sit in a chair without bending your back while keeping your feet flat on the ground. A small percentage of people can do this upon initial examination. This simple skill improves nearly all body pain.

Protects disc tissue to prevent and heal disc herniations
Removes unnecessary load from the knees, neck, and low back
Improves global flexibility