Midwest Allergy Relief Offers Seasonal Help

by Carrie Jackson

While springtime temperatures bring longer days and new growth, for many with environmental sensitivities, it can also lead to disruptive symptoms. Midwest Allergy Relief, in Arlington Heights, offers a number of holistic, non-invasive treatments for patients suffering from seasonal sensitivities and allergies. Dr. Amanda Thiry is the medical director and owner of Midwest Allergy Relief, which specializes in Advanced Allergy Therapeutics (AAT), an effective treatment solution for almost anyone. “We understand that allergies affect your everyday quality of life, and customize a treatment plan that helps patients reach their optimal level of health without the use of drugs, needles or supplements,” she says.

Thiry, who took ownership of Midwest Allergy Relief in 2017, worked for years as a school nurse and was frustrated by conditions that did not respond to traditional medications. “Too many people, even at a young age, have their quality of life impacted by bothersome symptoms that Western medicine doesn’t have a treatment for,” she says. Thiry has Bachelor of Science and nursing degrees, as well as a Doctor of Chiropractic degree and certificates in acupuncture, nutrition and AAT. She prefers holistic healthcare to treat allergies naturally and help people of all ages live their lives without debilitating symptoms.

Many people have misconceptions about allergies, or think there’s nothing they can do to treat them. “Very few people have actual allergies, which are a reaction by our immune system to an otherwise harmless substance. They have sensitivities, which are an inflammatory response and develop as a stress response when the nervous system is triggered and the body is looking for something to blame it on. That could come as a reaction to a food, fragrance, environmental factor, skin product or something like barometric pressure,” explains Thiry. A seasonal allergy to grass, pollens, molds, fungi or dust can be an immune response, but more often are an inflammatory response. They tend to manifest with sinus congestion, sneezing and runny noses, and are highly treatable with AAT.

Midwest Allergy Relief is one of a few centers in the area to offer AAT, a non-invasive, holistic treatment that is safe and gentle enough to use on babies and the elderly. “We start with digital testing, which uses biofeedback to identify what substances are a stressor. Our system is able to look at over 400,000 unique substances and evaluates how the body responds once it’s exposed to a digital frequency representation of a substance. If body views it as a stressor, it triggers the sympathetic nervous system and goes into fight-or-flight,” explains Thiry.

Once they determine what components are a stressor for a patient, they use gentle acupressure stimulation down the sides of the spine while exposing it to the disruptive substance. “This eases the sympathetic nervous system and trains the body to slip into relaxation instead of stress when exposed. By working directly with the organ system instead of the immune system, it focuses on changing the inappropriate reactions and produces long-term, rapid results,” says Thiry.

AAT is uniquely successful in treating the symptoms caused by almost any negative reaction, regardless if the symptoms are caused by allergies or sensitivities, says Thiry. Most patients see improvement with just one session and lasting results after a series of follow-ups, depending on how severe the sensitivity is.

While it’s not possible to totally prevent all allergies or sensitivities, there are things we can do to minimize their impact. “Holistic medicine understands that health conditions can often develop as a result of stress, so managing stress through meditation, exercise and other lifestyle changes allows the body responds more appropriately. Anything we can do to keep the nervous system out of fight-or-flight will help desensitize us to outside factors,” says Thiry.

She also encourages patients to be mindful with their decisions as they go through the day. “Humans are naturally intuitive, and often know what’s wrong before something effects them, but we’ve gotten away from that with constant stimulation from our phones and environment. The more we pay attention to how we respond to certain triggers, the better prepared we can be. Looking at symptoms from a holistic perspective allows us to fully understand what’s causing them and find a lasting treatment that promotes optimal health and well-being,” says Thiry.

Carrie Jackson is an Evanston-based writer and frequent contributor to Natural Awakenings magazine. Connect at CarrieJacksonWrites.com.