Meet Dr. Kilcup

The saying, “God works in mysterious ways,” comes to my mind when I think about my journey.  I was a very sickly child.  From the time I was born until I was seven I was often sick.  My main problem was my respiratory tract.   I either had croup, asthma, bronchitis, or all three.   I had a cough that would rattle the windows. Nothing helped my condition, and every year I got worse.   Out of desperation my dad, against my mother’s wishes, decided to take me to a chiropractor.  Someone my dad knew had a son whose asthma was helped by this doctor, so my dad wanted to give it a try.  To all of our amazement, I was greatly improved after the first treatment.   From that time on, my family and I were sold on chiropractic. This is what I meant by God working in mysterious ways.   No one in my family had ever been to a chiropractor before my dad took me.   If I had not had my health problems, I would most likely not have become the doctor I am today.

The chiropractor became our “family doctor”.  When we got sick we went to the chiropractor first.   The doctor would prescribe some kind of non-drug treatment for the problem.   If our ailment was something that needed a drug, the chiropractor would send us to a medical doctor.   I went from being a really sick kid to being very athletic.   The care my family received from our chiropractor was great.

By my Sophomore year in high school, I had a pretty good idea that I wanted to be a Chiropractor.   I started classes at Glendale Community College while I was a junior at Sunnyslope High School.   After completing all the prerequisites, I was accepted into Southern California University of Health Sciences.  While I was in school, I worked for six different chiropractors and one medical doctor doing all sorts of things.  Between the college education and the real life experiences, I felt well prepared to be a doctor.

In 1991 I started my practice in the same office I am in today.  I have been very blessed over the last 29 years.  It is so rewarding to now care for the 3rd generation of my patients.  I feel extremely gratified that in today’s healthcare structures, I have had patients remain loyal to me in spite of insurance changes.  My relationship with my patients is built on honesty and trust.  My whole business plan has been to treat my patients as well as I can so that they will choose to include me in their health care and recommend me to their family and friends.  I think that getting to know all these different families is what I enjoy the most about my work.

In 2013 I decided to get some advanced training in a new field called Functional Medicine.  Instead of focusing on and treating symptoms like traditional medicine does, Functional Medicine figures out what’s not working correctly in the body.  This has been one of the most exciting learning experiences of my career.  You can learn more about Functional Medicine HERE.

In March 2015, I graduated from Functional Medicine University.  I’m now a Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner.  Currently I am one of only five doctors in the greater Phoenix area with this certification.  I have had the joy of helping people get well who once had some major health issues.  PCOS, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, chronic fatigue, and all sorts of stomach and intestinal disorders,  are just a few examples of conditions that we resolved through a Functional Medicine approach.  With Functional Medicine, I don’t treat any of these diseases; instead I treat the FUNCTIONAL physical problems, and as the patient gets healthier the body is able to heal and get well.

That is pretty much the story of my professional life.

To me, family is huge, literally!  My wife and I have been blessed with six daughters and four sons.  We love our big family, and do most everything together.  Way back when our oldest was a toddler, my wife and I decided we would give homeschooling a try.  We figured if it didn’t work out we could go with more traditional schooling options.  We had a rocky start, but today we are very thankful we stuck with it.  Homeschooling our kids has been one of our greatest blessings.  While we have made many mistakes, we know that our choice is one we would make all over again.

With a huge family, I am often asked if we are Mormons or Catholics.  I don’t blame people for wondering.  For the record, we are neither.  We do admire people of these faiths who have large families.  We have a large family simply because we could never think of a good enough reason not to have another wonderful blessing from God!

If you couldn’t tell already, I am a man who believes in God.  I really hate labels because these words so often mean different things to different people.  I read the Bible every day.  I  do my best to follow what it says.  I don’t cram my beliefs down other people’s throats, but I do hope the people I interact with are blessed because of my beliefs.  In 2004, following Jesus, for us, meant leaving behind “going to church” as we had known it, and beginning to learn what is means to be the church.  This new direction for us is one that we are enjoying, though we still have a lot to learn.

If I am not at home or work, I will most likely be in the woods somewhere and loving it.  I have a passion for the outdoors.  I love camping, backpacking, all kinds of hunting, fishing, mountain biking, and anything else that will get me in the pine trees!

If you are still reading this I hope you don’t feel like you just wasted part of your life.  I know this is not the typical “about the doctor” page in a website.  I intentionally wrote it that way.  I think that understanding who your doctor is helps a patient feel more comfortable.  Feel free to ask me any questions you have.  I hope this page will help you feel comfortable with me, should you ever need my help.

Sincerely,

Dr. Kilcup