Meet Dr. Kim Tran, Owner of Integrated Chiropractic and Wellness
Happy Wellness Wednesday, mamas! Today we’re bringing you advice and knowledge from Dr. Tran, owner of Integrated Chiropractic & Wellness in Fulshear!
Integrated Chiropractic & Wellness is dedicated to providing holistic and the best effective health care for you and your entire family. They strive to educate patients and the community about the benefits of chiropractic adjustments and making healthy choices.
Their office is committed to taking care of the family as a whole, with an emphasis on neck pain, headaches, pediatric and pregnancy chiropractic care. Dr. Tran says they believe each child and parent should be as healthy as they can be from conception to birth. Can we get an amen!?
Truly, health begins before you’re born, so their passion is to help guide you in this journey. Integrated proudly serves the Katy, Fulshear, Richmond, Fort Bend, Wallis and Sugar Land area and we are honored to feature them today and get to know more about chiropractic care and their approach to achieving overall wellness.
Dr. Tran is a mama of three herself, so she understands first hand how to care for mamas bodies and their babies. I can speak from experience that chiro care got me through both of my pregnancies and I can see the benefit of getting your baby in there soon after birth.
I am a big believer in adding this kind of care to your wellness plan and excited to dive into how this practice is helping the community. Read our full interview with the brilliant Dr. Kim Tran below and give them a call for your chiro and wellness needs!
Where are you from originally and how long have you lived in the Katy area?
I’m originally from New Orleans and moved to Texas about 14 years ago. We actually live in Cypress, TX now but continue to work in the Katy/Fulshear area.
When did you decide you wanted to be a Chiropractor?
I always knew I wanted to work with people and do something hands on. I graduated Houston Baptist University with a degree in Kinesiology and was working as a personal trainer for about a year. We had a Chiropractor come do a lunch and learn with us one day and I was hooked. I shadowed his practice, saw how much a was helping people and knew being a Chiropractor is what I wanted to do.
Where did you go to Chiro School?
I went to Texas Chiropractic College in Pasadena, TX
When attending school, did you study all forms of chiropractic care? What are some of the different styles out there? (network spinal analysis, etc)
In school we were definitely introduced to different types of Chiropractic techniques. We do what’s called Diversified adjusting and Activator in the office. So we mainly use our hands to adjust but also use the Activator which is a small Chiropractic adjusting tool to make adjustments as well. We are also Webster certified which means we have an extra certification in taking care of pregnancy patients. Our office also does craniosacral therapy.
What made you decide to open your own practice as opposed to joining an already established one?
My husband Dr. Maxwell Tran and I are both Chiropractors (yes we met in school 😊). We both started out working for others but soon found out that’s not what worked best with our family. Our oldest was 5 months old when I graduated Chiropractic school and I wanted to have a flexible schedule so I could be with her. We decided to open our own practice to be able to work the hours we wanted and practice the way we wanted to. Having a family practice was a big goal of ours.
What did you do before you opened your practice and when did you open the doors?
Before we opened we worked for other Chiropractors for a few months. We officially opened our doors in April 2015.
Why did you choose the Katy/Fulshear Community for your business and how has the community helped in your success?
We chose the Fulshear area because it felt homey and was an up and coming area. We used to work in Katy and have always loved being in this area. In the past 6 years this Katy/Fulshear area has grown so much. We love how the community here is open to alternative care for health and wellness. We also love how providers in the are have also worked with us and vice versa for helping each other grow. We absolutely love our patients here because it’s been so important to us to have a true family practice. Everyone is like family, you’ll see babies and grandparents here!
Tell us more about what you do, what makes your practice unique, and different from other practices?
We have a family practice and we always say that we like taking care of you from preconception onwards. I personally only work with women and children with a specialty in pregnancy and pediatrics. I have been very passionate about attaining my pediatric Certification by the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics (CACCP) and Craniosacral Therapy. I am also Webster certified which is a pregnancy certification. With three kids I know how hard it can be to take care of yourself let alone kids too while being pregnant. I also have a special place in my heart for babies and kids with oral restrictions (lip/tongue tie). All three of my kids had oral restrictions so I know the breastfeeding and eating struggles. At the office we do adjustments, craniosacral therapy, bodywork, Acupuncture, manual therapy and TPI certification (Titleist Performance Institute). It’s amazing being able to work as a team with my husband. Dr. Maxwell Tran has a soft spot for golfers being an avid golfer himself. He uses his TPI certification to help golfers have a better swing and biomechanics. He also used to be in the IT world before being a Chiropractor so he knows what it’s like to sit at a desk all day working at a computer and the headaches and neck pain that can come with that. So he works a lot with headache and neck pain patients.
What’s your main goal when treating your patients?
Our main goal is always to help our patients function better. Pregnancy is already so hard on our bodies, now if we have back/hip pain on top of that it just makes it so much harder for mom. Then add on having other kids and having to chase them, do bath time, clean etc. We want mom to be as comfortable as possible during pregnancy and in general. With babies when there is an oral restriction it can be so hard for them to eat whether its from mom or a bottle. So that can be stressful on baby to not be able to feed properly and be fussy and not sleep well. That causes parents to be stressed too because we just want our kids to be happy. When you’re sitting at the desk all day and all you can think about is the headache you have or neck/back pain, it doesn’t make you be very productive at work. Then you come home even more tired and the kids are calling for your attention too. At the end of the day we are just wanting to help our patients function better so they can do and enjoy all the things they want to do to the best of their ability.
Do you do any other work for patients in your practice? (i.e. stretching tables, rolling tables, medical massage, decompression therapy, etc.)
We do Acupuncture in the office as well as Chiropractic adjustments. Our office uses AcuGraph technology to obtain real-time insight into your meridian energetics. This 2 minute exam measures electrical skin resistance at representative acupuncture points. It gives us real time insight into what your meridian energetics looks like! This way we can give you the best treatment points and care possible. We also do functional nutrition in the office to offer a whole health perspective to care. So we offer labs and different test kits to help with hormone and gut health and food allergy/sensitivity testing. We offer nutritional and supplement advice to help restore your health as a whole.
For any skeptics of chiropractic care, what would you tell them?
We have parents that may be nervous about pediatric adjustments but they are safe and gentle. We use no more than the pressure that you would use to test a ripe tomato or avocado. We explain everything we’re doing before hand and as we go. We also, demonstrate the amount of pressure used on mom or dad before applying it to baby. It’s not the typical adult adjustments that you’re used to seeing. We also always do a thorough exam and history. If patients are uncomfortable with manual adjustments, we do have instruments like the Activator and Arthrostim that deliver adjustments with a lighter force. We never do anything that you would be uncomfortable with. People are also curious about the audible “popping” sounds you here during adult adjustments. It’s actually called a cavitation and is just trapped air and gas between the joints being released. Depending how much build up of air and gas between the joints and how tight the joint is, dictates the sound you may or may not here.
Chiro care is said to help with many things, not just those in pain. What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen chiro care help with?
As a Chiropractor we not only work with the musculoskeletal system but with the nervous system as well. We live and breath through our nervous system. Misalignments in the spine can actually cause our nervous system to not function at 100%. So it’s definitely not always about pain but how are we functioning. With kids I’ve been able to help with bedwetting through a combination of adjustments and exercises. With our pregnant patients we definitely don’t flip breech babies. But when the hips and everything is in good alignment, it can give baby room to turn head down. Through Acupuncture we’ve actually helped with hair regrowth as well.
What is it about chiropractic care that makes you so passionate about reaching others with your mission?
Being a mom of 3 I know how hard it is to just try to keep the kids alive on a daily basis. Now you add in neck and upper back pain from nursing. Low back pain from carry the kids and then add on postpartum health and chronic fatigue. Then you add in a baby that may have feeding issues, colic, digestive problems, torticollis etc. Having to worry about how much longer until the baby cries again or praying that they eat enough before spitting it back up. It’s hard enough with kids let alone kids that may require more from you. As parents we know if the kids are happy then it makes for happier parents and a happier home. We draw from them and they feed off of us. When you’re working all day too you want to be able to focus on work and being productive, not on the headache or other pains you may have. Then you get home and don’t sleep well and still need to have energy for work and family life. It’s so important to us to help families live fuller happier lives. The days are truly short with our little ones (even if they’re grown) and we want to help make them as enjoyable as possible. It truly makes us so happy to see mom, dad, kids and grandparents in the office because when everyone is functioning at 100% it just makes living life more full.
Advice for anyone wanting to start their own practice?
Jump, just do it but do it with a plan. Market first, get to know the community and involve them in your office opening. From there have a niche for your office. You can’t just say you want to help everyone with a spine (even though we do). Who is the person you want to serve? Be very specific and always have that person in mind when designing your office, website and social media.
What are the biggest challenges you face as a business owner and as a doctor?
As business owners our biggest challenge is always that work life balance. We love our patients and cannot help but continue to work when we’re at home. It’s been hard to create that boundary of when we’re home, we’re home, and not to focus on work. Even though we’re a doctor’s office, we are still a small business. Our kids come first so if one of them gets sick that means I’m home with them for that day. Thankfully we are a team so we can help see each other’s patients if one is us is out for the day. Sometimes that means the kids are at work too and that’s okay. As a doctor it’s so hard to not voice an opinion when out in public or at a gathering. If someone says something about their baby/child, if they complain of an ache, if they’re asking about a supplement etc. It’s so hard to not say something to try to help. Then there’s also the opposite of everyone asking you for an adjustment or opinion cause they know we’re Chiropractors.
Future plans for your practice?
We’re always thinking of expanding our office. I’d love to have a space with an area big enough to hold classes. We were also thinking of plans to add another Chiropractor to the office and expanding into a second location. The possibilities are always endless with the things we want to do with the practice!
Any discounts or specials our moms can look out for?
We’re always holding promotions for our supplements and other giveaways throughout the year. Moms can check our social media for when those happen. Moms that mention the Katy Moms Network can also receive 20% their initial functional nutrition consult with me.
For more info on Dr. Tran and her practice make sure to visit the website and follow along on social media!
Website & Social Media: www.fulshearkatychiro.com, @dr_kimtran, @integratedchirowellness
