Chronic pain in joints like the back, knee, hip, or shoulder often lingers long after the standard, insurance based treatment ends. Many people feel discouraged when medications, cortisone, chiropractic care, supplements, or physical therapy only scratch the surface but never deliver true relief. At Michigan Integrative Health, Dr. Roy J. Picard, DC, and the medical team he works with take a deeper approach. Their focus is to find and address what is really feeding inflammation and pain in your body, aiming for progress even if you’ve tried many options over months or years. This article explains how targeting the root cause of inflammation transforms outcomes for people whose chronic joint pain would not improve elsewhere.
The Root Causes of Chronic Inflammation and Joint Pain
Joint pain that hangs on, despite care from multiple doctors or clinics, often has a hidden driver: systemic inflammation. Most people are familiar with acute inflammation, where swelling and pain follow an injury. Systemic inflammation, however, simmers under the surface. It often begins when internal systems—like glands or organs—aren’t working at full strength. Blood sugar, blood pressure, digestion, and even gut health can slip out of balance. Sometimes these changes are too subtle to register on standard medical tests, but they still create the conditions for pain to persist.
Dr. Picard emphasizes that Michigan Integrative Health identifies these overlooked sources. The clinic takes time to ask detailed questions about your health history, symptoms, and past care. Lab tests may be ordered to catch subclinical issues before they tip into diagnosable disease. By addressing the real cause, not just symptoms, the odds of lasting relief improve.
Why Traditional Treatments Often Fall Short
Standard pain relief focuses mostly on the area that hurts. Pills, creams, and even anti-inflammatory supplements like fish oil or turmeric target the outcome—inflammation—but rarely the specific reason why it’s happening. When inflammation flows from hidden imbalances in blood sugar, hormonal glands, food sensitivities, or gut health, a generic fix is unlikely to work.
Many pain clinics or family practices simply do not offer the deeper health detective work needed to find and tackle these root causes. This explains why some patients spend years bouncing between appointments without seeing progress. Michigan Integrative Health’s approach steps back, reviews the whole picture, and connects the dots that others often miss.
Detecting Subclinical Imbalances: Functional Lab Testing
To break the cycle of pain, Michigan Integrative Health pursues precise answers. They look at lab results through the lens of “functional” medicine—a system that values optimal ranges, not just broad reference values. For example, your blood sugar may be technically “normal” but still not ideal, creating low-level stress in joint tissues.
This approach doesn’t rely only on lab values that meet medical criteria for disease. Subclinical imbalances, like blood sugar trending high but not crossing the diabetes line, can still allow inflammation to thrive. Advanced lab work, paired with in-depth history-taking, helps detect issues earlier and more accurately than traditional testing alone.
Common Root Causes Identified at Michigan Integrative Health
Through this method, several patterns often appear in people with stubborn joint pain:
- Borderline high or low blood sugar: Even slight changes can promote inflammation.
- Unstable blood pressure: Variations, not just outright hypertension, affect tissue health.
- Food sensitivities: These do not show up on standard allergy tests but still irritate the immune system and joints.
- Gut bacteria imbalance: Overgrowth of harmful bacteria feeds inflammation and can worsen pain.
- Leaky gut: When the gut wall isn’t intact, it can allow irritants into the bloodstream, triggering immune responses.
These issues rarely attract medical diagnoses in early stages but can still interfere with joint health and pain recovery.
All-Natural Systemic Anti-Inflammatory Care: Michigan Integrative Health’s Method
Michigan Integrative Health offers an individualized plan that addresses inflammation from the inside out. Unlike the common advice to take a supplement from the store shelf, their plans are based on real needs identified through testing and conversation.
Their process stands out in several ways:
- Focus on finding the exact driver behind your systemic inflammation, not just treating symptoms.
- Use of advanced diagnostics that highlight issues missed by broader lab ranges.
- Safe, all-natural protocols that work with your body to restore balance, not override it.
Personalization is the central theme. Dr. Picard’s team recognizes that what works for one person may not work for another if the deeper problem is different. For example, if chronic joint pain is linked to blood sugar swings, addressing those swings is more effective than simply silencing the pain.
Personalized Dietary Changes and Nutritional Protocols
Food choices matter far more than many expect. Rather than suggesting a basic dietary guideline, the clinic recommends specific changes that can reduce the sources of inflammation unique to your case. Changes might include adjusting meal timing, changing carbohydrate sources, or removing foods identified as triggers.
Targeted supplementation is also common. Short-term use of vitamins, minerals, or blends of carefully chosen herbs may support underperforming glands or organs so the body can self-regulate and heal. These are selected according to your needs, your test results, and your personal health story, not a one-size-fits-all recipe.
Working Alongside Conventional Medical Care Safely
Michigan Integrative Health’s approach values patient safety as a core principle. Care plans are designed to support, not replace, conventional medical advice. Dr. Picard’s clinic never tells you to pause, adjust, or stop any medication prescribed by your primary doctor or specialist. Instead, they encourage ongoing communication and periodic check-ins so that as your health improves, your other doctors stay informed and they will be responsible to adjust medications as needed.
This collaboration ensures that every aspect of your health is supported. If your blood pressure, blood sugar, or other functions improve, your doctor may choose to reduce prescribed doses. Michigan Integrative Health does not make those calls and always advises patients to consult their prescribing physician before any changes to any medical prescription.
Frequently Asked Questions About Integrative Anti-Inflammatory Care
How soon can I expect pain relief using this approach?
Timelines vary by patient and by the complexity of underlying issues. Most notice improvement within a few weeks, especially as inflammation drops. For others working with long-standing imbalances, progress might require 3-4 weeks.
Are these protocols safe to use with my current medications?
Yes, every plan at Michigan Integrative Health is designed to work alongside your established medical regimen. You are encouraged to check in with all your health care team and bring them up to date on progress.
Will I need to stay on supplements forever?
In most cases, targeted supplementation is a short-term bridge while root causes are being addressed. Long-term changes primarily involve diet and lifestyle, not ongoing pills or powders.
What other improvements might I notice?
Patients often report better blood pressure, improved blood sugar, improved digestion, and more energy, in addition to less joint pain.
Success Stories: Why Chronic Pain Patients See Results Here
Patients who turn to Michigan Integrative Health after years of frustration often discover improvement they hadn’t thought possible. Patients arrive after trying medications, injections, chiropractic care or therapy elsewhere, only to find pain returns or never truly leaves. By looking beyond quick fixes, Dr. Picard’s method identifies the underlying contributors that continue to fuel inflammation.
The stories shared within the clinic often highlight more than just pain relief. Patients experience steadier blood pressure, improved blood sugar, and a return to simple daily activities they once avoided. It is very common that patients will have their their primary care physicians or specialists who initially prescribed their medications, decrease or stop the drugs because their body functions improved following the care at Michigan Integrative Health. The process is steady and measured, but the results often reach beyond what conventional care alone could offer.
Conclusion
Dr. Roy Picard, DC and the Medical Team at Michigan Integrative Health provide a clear and thorough approach for patients struggling with long-term joint pain. Their method stands apart because it takes the time to identify and correct root imbalances that often go overlooked. Patients are empowered to understand what is happening in their body and receive a focused plan to regain comfort and mobility, in partnership with their existing medical care.
If standard treatments have left you without answers, it may be time to consider whether hidden inflammation is at the core of your own pain journey. Watching the complete three-part video series, starting with part one, will help you see if this approach could make a difference in your life. Reach out to Michigan Integrative Health for more information or a consultation to start your plan toward real relief.
