About Uss Wellness, Comprehensive Health and Wellness Services
I’ve been providing naturopathic care to my patients for over 20 years. I believe it’s an approach to health that can make a tremendous impact on someone’s life. I started my career as a physical therapist, but I wanted to be able to do more for my patients. I was drawn to naturopathy because of its focus on whole patient wellness and addressing the underlying cause of the patient’s condition. So, with the support of my loving wife, I returned to school.​
Today, as a doctor of naturopathic medicine, I specialize in functional medicine – patient-centered medical healing that treats individuals who may have imbalances and dysfunctions, as opposed to treating health problems as isolated diseases. In other words, I focus on uncovering and treating the root cause of disease, rather than just alleviating symptoms. Anything from joint pain to fatigue may be symptoms that trigger an investigation of an underlying cause. I’ve treated many patients who came to me for help with various mental health issues and it’s amazing and rewarding to see how with proper brain support, serious symptoms such as anxiety, depression, lack of focus and insomnia often resolve.
In my own personal life, I watched my mother suffer and deteriorate with Alzheimer’s disease. Despite skilled, knowledgeable care, no medications were able to change the course of her disease. She passed away, surrounded by her family, at age 68. Now, I know there is much more that could have been done for her. A functional medicine doctor would have determined what was driving the disease to progress. In fact, research is now demonstrating how the functional medicine approach can reverse early dementia symptoms, despite the fact that conventional wisdom tells us Alzheimer’s disease is chronic, progressive and untreatable.
If you are seeking a path to overall health from a naturopathic approach, I would be honored to help you achieve it. I look forward to meeting you on your road to wellness.
~ Dr. Brian J. Uss
Meet the Team
Meet the Team at Uss Wellness committed to helping you move and feel better!
Services
No two patients are alike (even if they have the same diagnosis!) and no two treatment plans are alike. Once we get to the root cause of the problem, there are many tools and techniques that can be customized to restore and sustain health. From dry needling and radial pressure wave therapy to homeopathic treatments, nutrition or hormonal therapies, each individual will follow a unique path towards long-term health. Read more about the various healing modalities I use in my practice.
Physical Therapy
We begin assessing where structural problems and weaknesses exist. Then, our hands-on sessions utilize various modalities to improve structure and function.
Naturopathic Medicine
We use a system of primary health care that emphasizes prevention and the self-healing process through the use of natural therapies.
Functional Medicine
Find out how and why illness occurs and restore your health by addressing the root causes of disease per individual.
Physical Therapy in Fairfield County, CT
Physical therapy uses prescribed exercises, hands-on care and patient education. Physical therapy techniques can help ease pain, help patients feel stronger, move better and increase performance in activities that are important to them. Physical therapy begins with assessing where structural problems and weaknesses exist. Then, one-hour, hands-on sessions will utilize various modalities to improve structure and function.
01
Radial Pressure Wave Therapy (RPWT)
Radial waves hit the body at the skin’s surface, traveling radially into the body to a depth of about two inches. The pressure waves stimulate metabolic activity and the body’s intrinsic healing mechanism. It is one of the most powerful modalities for pain reduction and musculoskeletal tissue healing.
02
Dry Needling
When acupuncture needles are used to treat dysfunctional muscle tissue, it is known as dry needling. Having trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine as part of my naturopathic education, I received further training in dry needling from Dr. Ma, the creator of the technique. Needling the entire myotome, or all the muscles innervated by a specific spinal level, is very effective in stimulating healing.
03
Manual Therapy
While advanced modalities are wonderful tools in a clinician’s toolbox, the importance of the human hand in various massage techniques and mobilizations cannot be overlooked or underestimated. Manual therapy has been used since ancient times and continues to be an important component in promoting healing.
05
Laser Therapy
Laser therapy is a quick and easy treatment allowing patients to relax during the procedure. In contrast to “cold lasers,” which provide no feeling or sensation, high power diode laser therapy provides a warm, soothing feeling. The main goal of laser therapy is to stimulate the cell to perform its natural functions, but at an enhanced rate.
04
Electric Muscle Stimulation
By using a specially designed machine that delivers alternating and direct current, electric muscle stimulation is very effective. The machine I currently use offers a more comfortable experience than any other I have tried. When pads are strategically placed, electric muscle stimulation allows the patient to move, train and stretch. I’ve seen patients with straight knees able to touch the floor for the first time!
06
Corrective Exercises
The human body is designed to move. To maximize our genetic potential, we need to exercise. Through monitored, individually tailored training programs, I help my patients maximize flexibility, strength and endurance, while decreasing the risk for injury and disease
WAVI - Brain Analysis
WAVi is a new technology for understanding the activity and health of our brains that has the potential to help us better understand ourselves and each other. WAVi stands for Waveform And Visualization Interface, and it's a program that helps translate brain data into visualizations that we can understand.
What is Naturopathic Medicine?
Naturopathic medicine is a distinct health care profession that combines the wisdom of nature with the rigors of modern science. Naturopathic doctors (NDs) are trained as primary care providers who diagnose, treat and manage patients with acute and chronic conditions, while addressing disease and dysfunction at the level of body, mind and spirit.
​
NDs concentrate on whole patient wellness through health promotion and disease prevention, while addressing the underlying cause of the patient’s condition. They provide individualized, evidence-informed therapies that balance the least harmful and most effective approaches in order to help facilitate the body’s inherent ability to restore and maintain optimal health. Naturopathic doctors are experts in natural medicine, and naturopathic medical education is the most efficient and direct way to train as a primary care doctor who specializes in natural medicine.
Functional medicine is a patient- centered medical healing at its best. It’s a science-based, natural way to become healthy again. Functional medicine looks below the surface of disease to find its underlying cause. It adheres to the idea that illness does not occur in isolation. It is sometimes referred to as “root cause medicine.” Almost always, beneath the symptoms of disease is an underlying imbalance or dysfunction in one or more bodily system. Only by identifying and treating the root cause can a patient achieve long-term relief and vitality.
​
Using the analogy of an iceberg, named diseases such as diabetes, cancer or fibromyalgia may be visible above the surface, but according to functional medicine, the cause lies in the altered physiology below the surface. The named diseases are just the tip of the iceberg. The real causes of a patient’s health problems rest below the surface.
​
If we treat only the tip of the iceberg, the patient rarely achieves long-term relief and vibrancy. Identifying and treating the underlying cause or causes, however, offers a better chance to resolve health challenges. Using scientific principles, advanced diagnostic testing and treatments other than drugs or surgery, functional medicine restores balance in the body’s primary physiological processes. The goal? Lifelong optimal health.
​
Using this approach can lead people to overcoming major life challenges. When practicing root cause medicine, there is great variety in testing and treatment modalities. The process can seem overwhelming at first – both to the patient and the doctor. That’s why I utilize the Comprehensive Patient History Questionnaire (CPHQ). It offers insight into what is happening on a biochemical level and helps to guide the next steps, which may include laboratory testing. The CPHQ will serve as our road map to your health. I cannot overstate its importance.
What is Functional Medicine?
Connect, Grow, and Thrive
Empowering Health, Embracing Wellness
Discover the Path to Optimal Health and Vitality