I started Naturopathic College at NCNM (now NUNM) in 1982, was licensed and began practicing as a Naturopathic Physician in 1989. I am retired from practice in Oregon and now live in Kalispell, MT. I do not see Oregon patients. For Naturopathic treatment in Oregon, you may call Dr. Gary Dreger at 503 722 7776.

Naturopathic medicine is a cause-oriented medicine. which attempts to help to support each of the body’s systems to restore balance. I am a primary care, family medicine, General Practitioner. I use natural medicines to facilitate the body’s own healing abilities to repair and regenerate.

Statement of Philosophy and Summary of Practice:

As a Naturopathic Physician, I am a primary care provider, licensed by the State of Montana.

During my time in practice, I saw many conditions. This site lists a summary of some of the conditions I have treated. My practice was general and patients came to see me for a wide variety of internal medicine problems. My area of special interest was Christian Counseling. I diagnosed and treated most medical and psychological conditions. I referred patients for treatment when their conditions fell outside of my expertise.

Many people who came to see me had already been diagnosed and treated by the medical system, and drugs or surgeries had failed to restore their health and/or relieve their symptoms. Nevertheless, using the principles, methods, and materia medica of Naturopathic medicine, I often saw these patients obtained relief from their conditions.

Some patients came to me because they wanted to pursue their healing using natural methods instead of drugs. Other patients chose me as a doctor because they wanted a Christian Naturopathic doctor. Others chose me because they had a friend who was helped. I am open about my faith because it has been such an important part of my life, and is so integral to my approach to healing.

I was raised as a Christian, but I had to prove the faith for myself as an adult, so I spent many years searching for Truth. I participated in many world religions and lifestyles, but by God’s grace, I was able to come to faith in Jesus as Lord. My strong science background (UCLA engineering, and Naval Nuclear Power) biased me toward rationality. Given my nature, I required logical proof and evidence before I committed myself to any belief system. This seemed like an impossibly high barrier to faith in the Christian paradigm, and one I never considered could be met. But, it happened. I was given the understanding and insight I needed to accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior as an adult. I can only attribute a miraculous intervention and the prayers of the many people who loved me. I was able to return to the faith of my youth without compromising my commitment to logic when I embraced Christianity.

I made an adult commitment to Jesus in 1987, in my mid 30’s just as I was finishing my clinical work at the Naturopathic College. Since that time, I have diligently pursued a deeper understanding of how to live properly according to the Word in His world. As a result of my own search, I am often able to empathize with the struggles my patients have around questions of spirituality and faith, moral dilemmas and failures, and the need for compassion, forgiveness, and discernment in the Christian walk. I also see patients who are of other faiths, and we are usually able to work well together as a team to restore the health that I believe God desires for every person.

I shall attempt to summarize my practice and philosophy of natural medicine: 

I believe God gave us natural medicines to maintain and restore our health. God made us and embedded our bodies with the biochemical programs which give the body the ability to restore itself to normal function. Proper nourishment, lifestyle, prayer, and a right relationship with God are the foundations for long term health.

The medicines of Nature such as herbs, foods, water, air, sunlight, exercise, right thought, right action, and prayer are usually sufficient to restore and maintain health. But, sometimes the stronger interventions of drugs and surgery are necessary and should be used to restore or maintain life when the natural methods would take too long, or there is not enough body vitality available to heal itself without such strong externally administered support. Ideally, as the body is strengthened by proper nourishment, detoxification, mobilization, etc. the body will be able to eliminate its dependence on drugs and/or machines and assume autonomous function.

The medicines of nature are meant to work with the body and support it in healing itself. I believe God made our bodies to be self-healing if they are properly nourished, cleansed, stimulated, tonified, or sedated. Naturopathic medicine simply works with the processes of the body to assist it in returning to the pattern of health inherent in God’s design of the body.

This approach to healing is easily integrated into the conventional medical approach to healing and can be used as an adjunctive therapy to conventional medicine. Or, this medicine can be used to transition from sickness and dependence on drugs to a healthy body using herbal, nutritional, homeopathic, and other natural remedies. Health may then be maintained using the proper nutrition and proper lifestyle and a minimum of ongoing therapeutic interventions to support the inherent weaknesses of the body.

My approach to diagnosis is to take a complete history of the present illness, perform a physical exam appropriate to the condition, evaluate the complaint in relation to the past medical history, current diet, exercise, interpersonal stresses, habits and vices, family history, and exposure to toxins. I recommend a broad spectrum panel of laboratory tests. I use an optimum range around the center of the laboratory reference range as an indicator of metabolic health/balance. I correlate symptoms and laboratory values to give added weight to the appropriateness of the diagnosis and treatment. I recommend more detailed lab tests when suspicions warrant to confirm, eliminate, or to broaden the search for a possible diagnosis. I look at the symptoms and laboratory findings as indicators of the level of function/dysfunction of each organ system. Ultimately, we (the patient and myself) attempt to integrate the diagnosis with a causal chain associated with life events, stresses, and weaknesses that may rationalize the disease etiology (how this condition has developed).

This approach brings about a deep understanding of the causative sequence and factors which led to the current health condition. Analysis and diagnosis of the cause and nature of the dysfunction help create a clear picture of the disease, which in turn makes the healing approach more logical.

This approach to medicine is time-intensive, but I feel that I can obtain a much firmer understanding of the patient and his/her condition by spending the time necessary to thoroughly examine his/her full picture of health.