About Us
There’s always a story behind why someone decides to do what they do in life. Mine is no different. I grew up just South of the Quad Cities in a town called New Windsor. When I was in fifth grade my father was diagnosed with a very rare condition back in 1972. This neurological disease was called Alzheimer’s. In the 1970s it wasn’t as prevalent as today, so nobody really knew what it was. As the disease progressed so did his condition. When I graduated from high school I wanted to be a welder, so I enrolled in Blackhawk Community college and over the summer became a welder. I had just completed my welding classes in 1979 and in the Quad Cities in 1979 recession hit no one could find any work especially for someone who was welding. Shortly thereafter in the end of 1979 my father died. The next day after his death not only did my life change it took a completely different path.
From somebody who was not the best student in school, it’s decided to take an undertaking that many that knew me thought was definitely was an impossible dream. My college classes with from a trade to the sciences such as biology and chemistry. I had to completely restructure my brain an essentially teach myself how to study. It wasn’t an easy task by no means, but it was a task that I was going to complete no matter what. I completed all my pre-med science courses in just one and half years.
Wanting to stay local, I then decided to go to Palmer college of chiropractic, I had been going to a chiropractor since I was a kid and I liked their idea that the body could heal itself. I enrolled in Palmer college and received my chiropractic degree in 1984. I decided to venture West to the land of opportunity and moved to California. There, I began to practice chiropractic and met a friend who was going to medical school. I enjoyed talking with him and his adventures and learning. Then my life took another course and I decided to go back to school and complete my medical degree.
Thankfully, I had plenty of support from my family to survive the demands of medical school. During medical school the last year is spent rotating and departments that your interests were. Seeing how a neurological disease devastated my father and my family, I wanted to do something in that field and help those going through what I went through as a kid. Also, chiropractic’s education is based heavily in the nervous system and during my course of training as a medical student, I fell in love with neurosciences and neurology. Once I completed and graduated medical school my goal was to get accepted into a neurology program. I looked at several across the country and fell in love with Louisville Ky.
I began my residency in neurology at the University of Louisville, Louisville Ky after a one-year internal medicine internship in Saint Louis, MO. Over the three years at the University of Louisville, I spent my time at the veterans hospital as well as the university. Upon completing my three year residency I stayed and completed a one year fellowship in clinical neurophysiology.
I then decided to return to my home near are the Quad Cities after 21 years. I began private practice in 2000 in addition to going to both hospitals Trinity and Illini.
My philosophy of practice is one of a pill doesn’t always correct the problem. In addition to normal pharmacological treatments to neurological conditions, I stressed to my patients the extreme importance of what I call the pillars of brain health. These pillars are as follows: #1, proper nutrition, #2 proper sleep, #3 exercise, #4 well-being, which is low stress, happiness and believing in God.
My own experience as a headache sufferer I’d completely cured my migraines what diet alone. After suffering disabling migraines for 30 years, I decided that there must be another approach. The American diet over the past 50 years has completely became non nutritional in addition to, that it’s actually harmful. Lack of fiber the introduction of artificial sweeteners, flavors and colors has literally made some foods toxic. The standard American diet (SAD) has made us fat and sick. Most are living with chronic diseases and the number one most devastating disease of health and our nation is diabetes.
With Alzheimer’s becoming so prevalent there is no disease that is more devastating and stressful to a family. In 2008 Alzheimer’s was called type 3 diabetes based on the metabolism of sugar in the brain. With the average American eating a high energy carbohydrate diet the body is always under the stress of too much sugar. This leads to an overproduction of insulin that leads to insulin resistance and subsequently metabolic syndrome.
My approach to treating the patient is education. Teaching and guiding them to make the right choices in nutrition and supplements. Sleep is also one of the most important things that we do in life. During sleep our brain cleanses itself of the toxins accumulated through normal metabolic function. Exercise is crucial not only for the heart and lung muscle function but just as important to the brain. Wellbeing is something that we frequently forget as being associated with good health a low stress lifestyle release the patients of hormonal stresses that are the direct response from the body to stress. People of faith have less stressed than those who do not. Social interaction frequently found with other believers is a key to happiness and longevity.
The journey to health it is not an easy one, especially for neurological diseases which are usually progressive. However, optimizing body function through the brain health pillars and reducing symptoms through pharmacological means in my opinion is the proper way to address disease. Many neurological diseases are not curable and our pharmacological therapies are not significantly effective. That’s why it is crucial for you to become educated and active in your treatment.
Brian Anseeuw, DC, MD