Naturopathic Medicine

At your first appointment at Northwest Health Services in Vancouver WA, your naturopathic doctor will take a very comprehensive health history, perform physical exams, and laboratory tests and imaging may be ordered to investigate the etiology of your symptoms.

Your naturopathic doctor will work with you to develop a treatment plan to address your individual needs. Initial recommendations can include lifestyle modifications, nutritional support, supplements, herbal treatments, and more.

At follow-up visits, your progress will be assessed, and your treatment plan will be adapted accordingly.

Our new patient visits are typically 45 to 60 minutes in length.

We take time with our patients to take a thorough history to help identify the underlying cause of your presenting symptoms. Follow-up visits are typically 20 to 45 minutes long.

For a session with a naturopathic doctor in our Vancouver clinic you may wear what you are comfortable wearing to a doctor’s visit.

Medical gowns will be provided when needed for physical exams. Please note that face masks are required in all medical settings.

Naturopathic medicine provides comprehensive medical care to patients throughout their lives. When patients are experiencing acute medical problems, they may see a naturopathic doctor up to once weekly while they regain their health.

For wellness maintenance, prevention and/or ongoing management of stable conditions, patients typically present for care anywhere from once monthly to every 6 months. Our goal is to not only address your current issue but to also identify potential future problem spots in your health and work on the prevention of health issues.

Our naturopathic doctors in Vancouver WA utilize both standard laboratory tests and specialized laboratory assessment tools to investigate the causes of their patients’ symptoms. The tests ordered by naturopathic doctors can provide insight into a patient’s cardiovascular, metabolic, immune, digestive, nutritional and endocrine health.

Tests requiring a blood draw or urine samples are typically performed at a commercial lab such as Quest Diagnostics but sometimes can be performed in the office. Many specialized and alternative testing can be performed at home by the patient via salivary, stool, blood spot, or urine collection.

Yes! On our team, Dr Julia Mortlock treats patients of all ages. We have many families registered, with all members coming to our clinic for family medicine and long term care.

We find great pleasure in helping the entire family through natural medicine and getting everyone in the household on the same page for health optimization!

Dr Julia will help your family all the way from preventative medicine, to acute to chronic health concerns with a natural and alternative focus where appropriate. 

It should be noted, however, that Northwest Health Specialities is not a primary care clinic with 24-hour care, and we are not a pediatrician clinic. It is recommended that kids maintain care with a full pediatrician, even if most of their care is covered holistically and naturally through Dr. Julia.

We are excited to help each person in your family!

As naturopathic doctors we are trained as primary care practitioners, including the ability to write most prescriptions when needed (some substances excluded).

We believe there is a time and place for pharmaceutical treatments, however, our goal is to utilize your body’s innate healing and alternative methods first whenever possible. We educate our patients on the options and standard of care treatments vs alternative treatments.

When pharmaceuticals are needed, we can still work to improve your health to be able to wean off of the pharmaceuticals in the future, when safe and applicable.

Yes! Our naturopathic doctors in our Vancouver WA health clinic are highly experienced with gut health and can treat a wide range of gastrointestinal problems including:

• GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease)
• IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)
• SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth)
• Chron’s Disease
• Ulcerative Colitis
• Functional or “unknown” Gastrointestinal problems

Yes! Naturopathy is well known for expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of hormone imbalances and womens health.

At Northwest Health Specialties we can assist with issues such as Hypothyroidism, Autoimmune Thyroiditis: Hashimoto’s or Grave’s Disease, Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction/ “adrenal-fatigue”, PMS/PMDD (Pre-menstrual symptoms or disorder), low libido, weight retention and hair loss.

We are here to listen and work with you to optimize your health and live your best life!

Yes! Contact us for chronic and acute pain management including pain from migraines, fibromyalgia, arthritis, sciatica, and acute injuries.

We also treat fatigue including chronic fatigue and fatigue related to burnout.

With a naturopathic doctor in Vancouver, WA we can treat a wide range of issues including:

Metabolic issues, including pre-diabetes and diabetes, metabolic syndrome and weight issues.

Cardiovascular/heart disease, hypertension & high cholesterol.

Skin issues including eczema, psoriasis, acne and rosacea.

Immune issues including colds and influenza, allergies and chronic infections.

Mental health including depression, anxiety, trauma and insomnia.

This list is not exhaustive! We look forward to working with you to achieve optimum health! Contact us at Northwest Health Specialties and step into the best health possible.