Business Profile: Ideal Balance Opens in Temple Terrace

Long-time Temple Terrace resident Dr. Brian Lau, DOM, AP, LMT, has opened an integrative medical practice, Ideal Balance, at 10927 N. 56th St. in the Sherwood Forest Center.

Lau is joined by Dr. Marissa Byrum, DOM AP, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Randy Gainforth to create a center for natural primary care and a resource for physical and mental health.

Lau is best known to many in the area for his volunteer work as an instructor with the and his many years offering structural integrative massage.

Recent graduates of the East West College of Natural Integration, Lau and Byrum offer a full range of Traditional Chinese Medicine treatments, such as acupuncture, tuina and herbal medicine.

Gainforth is Adlerian in his approach to counseling.

“Adler believed that you don’t control others—a very Taoist idea,” he explained.

Although trained to deliver Eastern medicine solutions, Lau is insistent that his patients will not be asked to leave their Western treatments at the door.

“Although we practice oriental medicine, I don’t want people to feel they have to adopt a different mindset to come here,” he said. “There are aspects of Western treatment that I integrate into our approach to healthcare.”

Lau pointed out that in China, doctors utilize Western and Chinese medical treatments in caring for patients. Chinese doctors can choose from three types of hospitals—Western, traditional Chinese, and those that integrate both to treat patients.

For example, a stroke victim receiving integrated treatment might first be given acupuncture to improve the flow of blood throughout the body. Then, the patient might be prescribed a pharmaceutical pill, such as is commonly used to treat strokes in the West.

"We’re going to look at the whole person, everything the patient is experiencing—even symptoms that seem unrelated,” Lau said. “We’re going to match that with defined patterns within traditional Chinese medical protocols.”

In Chinese medicine, there are four pillars of treatment: acupuncture; herbs and diet; tuina; and exercise. Tuina is push/pull—clinical manual work, including massage, joint mobilization and more. 

“Alongside these four pillars, we’ll incorporate Western medicine,” Lau said. “We may recommend nutritional supplements for an individual patient along with an herbal remedy and diet.”

In his practice, Lau emphasizes that herbal medicines can comfortably be incorporated with pharmaceuticals—and with supervised care, patients don’t experience negative interactions between herbs and pharmaceuticals. The finding has been that patients receiving integrated care experience increased efficacy with the prescribed pharmaceuticals and less side effects.

Many Western doctors worry about the herb-drug interaction, but in China, doctors have research and experience that such negative interactions are rare, Lau said. A Chinese doctor is trained in the use of herbs and knows how to prescribe them alongside pharmaceuticals to avoid interactions.

For anyone with persistent healthcare challenges that haven’t been solved by Western medicine alone, the integrated care offered by Ideal Balance may have answers, Lau said. The practice takes insurance that provides coverage for acupuncture—as do most major policies. Those interested should call their company to find out the details of their coverage. For more information or to make an appointment for a consultation, visit Ideal-balance.net.