On a quiet, frosty morning in Springfield, sunlight spills warmth into offices of the Plaza Towers, one of which is home to the functional medicine practice of Dr. Gabriel Ariciu, DC. The atmosphere is calm and inviting, a stark contrast to the sterile and chilled environment of traditional medical offices. Within this space, the chiropractic physician uses restorative practices that offer his clients paths to health that don’t begin with a prescription pad, they begin with observation and conversation.
“I tell people we’re not here to fix the body,” he says in a gentle but confident tone. “We’re here to support what the body already knows how to do.”
For Ariciu, this methodology is deeply personal. Raised in the small town of Ava, Missouri, where he graduated high school before moving to Springfield, he had plans for a career far different than the one he has today. “I planned on studying theology, but after suffering for years with debilitating migraines and watching my mom suffer with diabetes, I felt led to pursue medicine.”
Ariciu originally applied to nursing school and later chiropractic school, eager to find solutions for his migraines. However, he found that traditional adjustments made his headaches worse, and he had been unable to find a permanent solution beyond temporary symptom relief to the persisting pains in his head.
“I had a friend in one of my classes that told me about applied kinesiology and said I should check it out,” he says. “In learning all I could about it, I figured out I had a gluten intolerance that was causing my migraines. By the grace of God I solved my own health issues,” he states.
Ariciu was elated and felt confident that he had found the career he would build a life on.
Applied kinesiology views the body as an integrated network of systems that influence each other. It integrates neurological, structural and biochemical pathways to uncover what’s going on with the body, Ariciu explains.
“Every muscle in your body communicates with the nervous system,” he says. “Through gentle muscle testing, we can tell which muscles are weak and that signals to us what isn’t right.” These signals can even detect underlying imbalances, such as hormonal or nutritional deficiencies, gut issues, and emotional burdens.
In 2017, he opened his practice and has helped the Springfield community with whole-body approaches to health and wellness ever since.
“I’ve seen patients with complex issues from Hashimoto’s to Crohn’s experience meaningful improvements,” he says. “Many times, it starts with something seemingly small or insignificant, like food, and that small change has a profound impact on the patient’s health.”
He recalls one such patient who had been battling Chron’s disease. When she walked through his office doors, she weighed just 80 pounds. “We discovered that most of her symptoms were being triggered by soy. Once she eliminated it, she began gaining the weight back and smiling again. Watching that transformation was extraordinary.”
Appointments are intentionally unhurried, allowing Ariciu time for thorough evaluation and discussion with each patient. Taking time to deliberately investigate the root cause of symptoms allows most patients to see improvement by the fifth visit.
In both his professional practice and in his personal life, faith and family are what ground him. He and his wife, Nancyann, are enjoying every minute of parenthood to their two young children. Their time as a family is filled with life’s simple pleasures– playing together outdoors or listening to their daughter play the piano. And when time allows, the family enjoys traveling.
Ariciu says that he is grateful he is able to offer relief to those seeking a more natural and holistic approach to wellness, one that honors the multi-faceted nature of the human body. The path to true wellness takes time, but supporting the body with patience and the tools it needs to do its job is what Ariciu’s approach to functional medicine is all about. “The body was designed to heal itself,” he says. “We just have to get out of its way.”
We're not here to fix the body. We are here to support what the body already knows how to do.
Many times, it starts with something seemingly small or insignificant, like food, and that small change has a profound impact on the patient’s health.