Review: Acupuncture Session with Dr. Nekessa Remy at Integra Health Centre Downtown Toronto

Recently I was invited to try on a unique combination therapy by Dr. Nekessa Remy at the medical facility where she works, Integra Health Centre, a brand new state-of-the-art facility right in the heart of the financial district of downtown Toronto, and I gladly said yes. What I tried out and what I am about to review in this story is a combination therapy of acupuncture techniques, not used by any others in the medical community, so I was intrigued enough to accept the invitation.

Just to give you a little background here – if you think chiropractors simply “crack” backs, you’re not alone who thinks that. However, sports chiropractors, such as Dr. Remy, are trained in muscle work, such as Active Release Technique (ART) and Graston. These two types of muscle work are probably the best manual therapy for preventing injury and optimizing performance. This is why there’s always a sports chiropractor on Olympic and professional sports teams and this is why Dr. Nekessa Remy was part of the Pan American Games medical team in 2015.

With spring and summer upon us, we need to start thinking prevention and treatment.

Did you know that 80% of Ontario chiropractors report that gardening is the most common source of back and neck pain during the warm weather season?

Did you also know that one of the major causes of improper alignment is running? Major causes of improper alignment include running in the same direction on the same course every day; running often slanted surfaces, such as a beach; and not replacing shoes every few hundred miles.

This is why Dr. Remy has created a unique combination therapy to help treat these issues. This combination therapy consists of acupuncture and muscle release techniques, to get rid of pain; to alleviate tightness, tension and stretches; to increase flexibility along with an alignment adjustment; to ensure proper posture. When I got the invitation, she offered me to try this treatment out, as well as give me an assessment on posture and treat any issues related to sitting at a computer all day. And she also offered to show some new techniques using acupuncture for stress, sleep and to reduce wrinkles.

I had my appointment with Dr. Nekessa Remy last week, on Tuesday April 26th, at lunchtime. The medical facility where she conducts her practice, Integra Health Centre, is located at the Exchange Tower, at 130 King Street West, 13th floor. Everything is so modern and chic and cool in that tower, and in that whole area for that matter (we’re talking about the financial district here); but of course it is – the crème de la crème works, lives and breathes here, so no wonder. I have worked downtown Toronto in finance for the last 10 years, so going to Exchange Tower from 130 King Street West felt like having a nice lunch break from work on a usual day buried in finance.

When I met Dr. Nekessa Remy, we instantly hit on the right note, and I loved her bubbly personality right away. Customers were waiting for their medical appointments in the reception area, and there was a general good feeling in the office, which I sensed as soon as I arrived there, I could tell. Obviously, customers and patients felt good about themselves when they came at Integra Health Centre, because they felt taken care of, which is great of course, this is how a medical facility should be in the first place.

When we started our appointment, the first thing that Dr. Remy did was to show me around the office. There are several doctors working there, both practicing family medicine covered by OHIP and specialized and alternative medicine covered by private insurance.

Then we talked about acupuncture. I have never tried acupuncture, but apparently it’s a great stress reliever. Since I never tried it, I didn’t know how it works, and Dr. Remy assured me that it is not a painful procedure; the needles used for acupuncture are so thin that you barely feel that pinch. And I actually tried it on my hand while we were talking – Dr. Remy had me test one of these needles on my hand, and indeed it is not painful at all.

Then Dr. Remy took me to one of the acupuncture treatment rooms, she had me lie down, and she acupunctured my face.

Then she gave me 5 minutes to enjoy my acupuncture – that is to lie down on that treatment bench and relax for a few minutes. She left the room to come back later. So I took this time to completely relax and clear my head of everything. Boy was it so enjoyable just to lie down there and think of nothing whatsoever, and just to have my mind blanked out for a few minutes. How often do we do that, almost never? I don’t know about you, but I can tell for myself that I never really get to do that. Even when I go to sleep at night and I am supposed to clear out my head when I am getting ready to fall asleep, I still think about this and that and that… whatever concerns I may have on my mind on that particular day. Remember Sarah Jessica Parker in that I Don’t Know How She Does It movie, about a working mom of two who was thinking to-do lists at night before falling asleep? I am that person. Heck, time to take a break and decompress. So I was really enjoying this acupuncture session.

A few minutes later Dr. Remy came back, and she continued our session with a foot massage, another component of her practice at Integra Health Centre. The foot massage that Dr. Remy does is to relieve foot stress due to how we wear high heels. Women wear high heels all day long, be it work or weekend. Dr. Remy teaches her patients how to wear high heels wisely without affecting your general posture. Enjoy your high heels, but don’t be broken by them. One of the ways to do it, the most common way for that matter, is to avoid walking long distances wearing high heels, or avoid high heels on the commute, like TTC or suburban train. It’s a habit that I have had for years – wearing comfortable shoes while commuting to work (I live in the suburb and I take the train to downtown Toronto), and then changing into chicer and more elegant (and 5-inch high-heeled) shoes in the office. Some of my shoes have never been outside, because I have never worn them outside, since I have only worn them in the office, due to the fact that they are high heeled. Dr. Remy admitted to me that she does exactly the same, as she also commutes for work from outside of the city to downtown Toronto. Usually Dr. Remy prefers to focus on one treatment or the other for her patients, acupuncture or foot massage, rather than both at the same time, but she did it this way for me to show me both of them.

All in all, it was a great session which I really enjoyed. Dr. Remy cordially invited me to come to the centre on other occasions for another acupuncture or foot massage session, and I would love to come there again. No wonder why people looked so happy at Integra Health Centre on that day, Dr. Remy and her colleagues make them feel good about themselves, and this is how it should be in a doctor’s office.

Me and Dr. Nekessa Remy, Integra Health Centre, Toronto, April 2016

Dr Nekessa Remy is a licensed chiropractor and medical acupuncturist. She has developed an approach to injury management that is based on current research and measurable patient outcomes. Her passion for health and rehabilitation lead her to earning an Honors Degree in Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario followed by a Doctorate of Chiropractic from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. Dr. Remy is also a registered acupuncturist under the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario. Complementing Dr. Remy’s education and training in manual medicine, she also upholds a diverse background within the fitness and health industry. She has held certification as a Can Fit Pro personal trainer and has worked in both the athletic training and sports rehabilitation fields. Most recently Dr. Remy has become a sports injury consultant for the Brampton Rebel Soccer Team and in the summer of 2015 she was a Chiropractor for the Pan American Games medical team.

For more information about Dr. Nekessa Remy, please visit her website DrNekessaRemy.com.

Photo credit: Victoria West