FAQs
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Integrative medicine is an approach to wellness that combines both Eastern & Western philosophies of wellness. Naturopathic doctors like Dr. Thomson are trained in the art and science of both natural and conventional medicine.
Unlike conventional health models, naturopathic and integrative medicine address the whole person, not just his or her “parts.” Another underlying principle is treating the root cause of illness.
Finally, integrative medicine is personalized, not cookie-cutter. Even when there are treatment steps, as with biotoxin illnesses, each person receives their own treatment plan.
Intravenous (IV) therapy is standard in many hospitals and private practices. IV therapies involve injecting medications, vitamins, and other revitalizing nutrients directly into your bloodstream. Larger doses of nutrients can be administered via IV that you could not take orally. IV medications are often needed for people who don’t absorb their nutrients well through the gut, either because of infection or because of genetic issues. IV therapies can speed up the timeline to reach your health goals.
It's important to note that IV therapy isn't just for emergencies. IV therapy can help anyone see improvement with chronic infections, pain, mood issues, or fatigue in their day-to-day lives. You don't need to have conditions or symptoms to get an IV, either. If you feel good and want a boost, you are welcome to be treated.
You absolutely can! Our team regularly works with out-of-state patients that utilize Telehealth. Please reach out to us for a virtual consultation, and we'll be happy to get you started.
Your first visit will be over video call (we use HIPAA-compliant formats such as Vsee). During your visit, the doctor will take a thorough health history, review past labs, perform a physical examination (as able, over video), and create an individualized treatment plan, which often includes testing to get to the root cause of your symptoms.
A thorough health history, physical exam (as able over telemedicine) and records review are needed to do a complete evaluation of your individual case and give you specific treatments to get you feeling better. Cookie-cutter medicine does not work well! For this reason, Dr. Thomson makes sure there is plenty of time in your visit to collect all the information needed, and for you to ask questions. This means, depending on your condition, your first visit will be about 90 minutes long.
What to expectAfter contacting us, you will meet with Dr. Thomson via video call or phone call to ask some questions and get signed up to be a new patient.
As a new patient, you will be asked to complete a health history questionnaire via our electronic health record system, as well as submit any previous records. For those who suspect biotoxin illness, documents like an exposure history and a health history timeline (to provide details about your past exposure to environmental toxins or tick infections) are needed before your first visit. We will provide you with these forms to fill out after we get you scheduled.
During your visit, Dr. Thomson will decide what kind of lab tests are needed to further evaluate your case. These labs will be gone over at your next visit, about one month later. A treatment plan will be provided to you and posted to your electronic health record, where you'll always have access to it.
Dr. Thomson orders labs when clinically indicated. She can order all general labs, nutrient testing, food sensitivity panels, stool panels, hormone panels, adrenal assessments, osteoporosis assessment, specialty testing for CIRS and Lyme disease (biotoxin illnesses) via LabCorp and Quest Lab, urine tests for nutrient status and bone loss, and more. We also refer out for X-ray, MRI, ultrasound, colonoscopy, mammography, and other specialties when appropriate.
Dr. Thomson recommends various therapies, depending on the patient and their condition. These include pharmaceuticals, IV therapy, peptide treatments, hormones, supplements, herbal remedies, diet and lifestyle modifications, as well as naturopathic therapies such as hydrotherapy; also sauna, massage, lymph drainage, chiropractic, and physical therapy. We can help guide your treatments and refer you to these therapies. Treating with therapies works best with some guidance, as we don't want to overload your system.
Yes, on a case by case basis.
We don't directly bill insurance but will give you everything you need to self-submit your claim to your insurance company. We recommend sending both the superbill we provide and a photocopy of your insurance card to the address on the back of your insurance card to receive reimbursement. It is up to you to contact your insurance to see if our services are covered through your individual insurance plan.
If you have an HSA debit card, we can bill that account directly. We do not work directly with insurance companies.
No, to keep costs as low as possible for all of our patients, we do not accept partial payments or payment plans, as this would require additional staff to manage payments.
Lyme disease and mold toxin exposure are both biotoxin illnesses. Because of this, they are well-suited to treat at the same time. Dr. Thomson is one of the best doctors to help treat you. Treatment for Lyme disease and mold toxin illness is achieved through various therapies, including pharmaceuticals, IV therapy, ozone therapy, peptides, supplements, herbal remedies, diet and lifestyle modification, etc.
Biotoxins are tiny toxins that come from natural sources such as bacteria and mold. Illnesses like Lyme disease and mold toxin illness are caused by continual irritation from tiny toxic elements in our surroundings. At Trillium, we use an in-depth assessment and testing to determine which biotoxins or illnesses are affecting your body, and which body systems are affected. We also incestigate where the source of the biotoxin is coming from. This gives Dr. Thomson a road map to your particular illness, and treatment for both Lyme disease and other biotoxin diseases is implemented in a step-by-step fashion that we define together. Every biotoxin, and every person, requires a unique, carefully planned approach.
Your recovery speed depends on many factors, including repeated exposure, adherence to the treatment protocol, and the case's complexity. Most people recover completely within 1 to 3 years, but recovery can be much shorter.
Yes, Dr. Thomson can prescribe pharmaceuticals. Most pharmacies in other states accept prescriptions from out-of-state physicians. One exception is non-national compounding pharmacies, but we work with many compounders with national licenses in other parts of the country to make sure our patients get the medications they need.
Yes, Dr. Thomson uses IV and oral antibiotics when clinically indicated. Patients do get to choose natural therapies versus antibiotics in most cases. In all cases, Dr. Thomson and the Trillium Integrative Medicine team will work to provide treatments that will work for your health issue.
Dr. Thomson will help guide you. A mold remediation company cleans a home based on specific recommendations from an IEP. Due to conflicts of interest, your IEP and remediation company should NOT be the same person or work for the same company.
Dr. Thomson may recommend you contact an IEP who may then suggest you work with a mold remediation company. These are in cases where cleaning remediation is not successful, symptoms are recurring, or other cases.
In some cases, testing and cleaning may be all that is needed. We recommend you follow direction from Dr. Thomson as your case progresses.
Biotoxin Illness
So, what is biotoxin illness?
But why can’t they just “push through it”?
If this is real, why doesn’t my doctor know about it?
Here’s what else is important to know:
What can you do?
Your belief is medicine.
A short guide for family and friends
If someone you love shared this page with you, it’s because they care about you—and they’re hoping you’ll take a few minutes to better understand what they’re going through.
So, what is biotoxin illness?
Biotoxin illness (also called CIRS—Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome) is a complex, invisible illness caused by the body’s inability to properly eliminate toxins from the environment, like mold, or substances from tick borne infections (such as Lyme disease). People with certain genetic markers can’t detox these biotoxins effectively, which leads to chronic inflammation throughout the body.
This inflammation can affect energy, memory, mood, digestion, sleep, hormones, and more. The person might seem “normal” one day and unable to function the next. That unpredictability can be frustrating for everyone—especially the person who’s sick.
But why can’t they just “push through it”?
Your friend or family member wants to show up. They want to go to dinner, come inside your house, attend your party, or take that vacation. But the truth is: they often can’t.
Many buildings—even ones that look perfectly clean and well-maintained—can have hidden mold from past leaks, water damage, or humidity issues. Even a small amount of mold exposure (as little as five minutes in a moldy environment) can trigger a severe and prolonged reaction in someone with biotoxin illness. It might make them feel dizzy, foggy, anxious, nauseous, weak, or exhausted for hours or days after.
This isn’t about being sensitive or picky. Their body is in a hyperreactive state, and exposure to the wrong building can derail their healing progress or worsen their symptoms significantly.
Because of this, they may stick to a small number of places—usually ones they’ve tested extensively or remediated themselves. They may have to decline events, gatherings, or even stepping inside your home or car. Not because they don’t want to be with you—but because they physically can’t tolerate the environment.
This part of the illness is often the hardest to explain. It can make them feel ashamed, burdensome, or misunderstood. But please know: they’re not being dramatic or overcautious. They’re doing what they need to do to heal.
If this is real, why doesn’t my doctor know about it?
The answer has a lot to do with how our medical and insurance systems are structured. CIRS requires specialized lab testing, longer appointments, and individualized treatment plans that don’t fit easily into short visits or standard insurance billing codes. As a result, most conventional doctors aren’t trained in how to recognize or treat it. Additionally, the CDC and major medical boards rely on large-scale, standardized research before officially recognizing new conditions. While CIRS has not completed that entire process yet, there is a growing body of peer-reviewed research and over 20 years of clinical success behind it. Still, mainstream medical systems and insurance companies have been slow to acknowledge or support it. The fact that your friend was able to get a diagnosis is a huge step forward–it means they finally have answers and are now on the path to healing.
Here’s what else is important to know:
- It’s not contagious, and it’s not all in their head. This illness is backed by years of research and medical protocols. It’s just not well known in the mainstream. And it is not just depression!
- Laundry from a moldy washing machine can affect them, too. It is that sensitive. Even if your clothing looks, smells, and “is” clean, it may make someone with CIRS very sick.
- It’s not like a seasonal allergy or a long cold. It’s a full-body immune system dysfunction that can affect every system in the body. It can be debilitating, and make people too sick to function.
- The treatment is step-wise and has different phases. Many words may buzz around - like detoxification, MARCoNS, binder, VIP, and more. Each phase of treatment has its challenges.
- The cure takes time—but it works. Biotoxin illness is treatable. The journey is often a year or more, and it can be intense, but people do get better. Dr. Thomson is one of the best!
What can you do?
- Believe them. Just knowing you trust them makes all the difference.
- Be flexible. Meet outdoors, talk on the phone, plan visits around their needs, and be understanding if they can’t hang out this time, or next time.
- Be patient. Their life has changed—and they’re doing everything they can to get it back.
- Be hopeful. Recovery is possible. And the other side of treatment is worth the wait.
- Be supportive. A simple “I’m thinking of you” text can be more powerful than you realize - even if they may not have the energy to reply that day.
- Offer to help. Your friend might need help putting away their grocery delivery or laundry, and if you have time in your day to help them, it could feel life-changing for them.
Your belief is medicine.
People with biotoxin illness are often questioned or dismissed—by coworkers, doctors, even family members. But your belief in them is healing. It tells them they’re not alone, that they don’t have to keep “proving” they’re sick, and that they’re still worthy of love, fun, and connection.
Your friend or family member is fighting something you can’t see. But their love for you hasn’t changed. They just need you to meet them where they are right now—with trust, patience, and open-hearted support.
If you want to learn more, feel free to explore the other pages on our website. We’re so glad you’re here.