Our methodology · The Saffron Method®
The Saffron Method®: root-cause care for mind, body and spirit
For more than five years, members have used The Saffron Method® to work toward lasting change, including with complex conditions such as autoimmune disease and serious illness.
It brings together your story, your health history, ancient diagnostics and advanced testing, then puts a collaborative care team behind one personalized plan.
- Thoughts, toxicity and trauma, treated together
- Tongue and pulse diagnosis plus advanced lab testing
- A collaborative care team of 3+ providers
- A 30+ page Holistic Health Plan every 90 days
- Progress benchmarked with labs, GAD-7, PHQ-9 and PROMIS
- HSA, FSA and LSA welcome, always gratuity-free
Where we begin
Your story is as important as your health history
Most care starts with a symptom and stops there. The Saffron Method® starts with you.
We believe illness rarely has a single cause. Symptoms are often the visible end of something deeper, shaped by what is happening in your mind, your body and your inner life, and by how those pieces affect one another. That is why we ask about your life as carefully as we review your labs. Where you grew up, what you have lived through, how you sleep, what you eat, what you are carrying: all of it is information.
Our work is to find the root causes, understand how they connect, and address the root and the symptoms at the same time.
Our diagnostic framework
The three roots we look for
Our framework draws on the science of epigenetics, the study of how our environment, experiences and beliefs influence which genes are expressed, and on the work of Dr. Bruce Lipton, author of The Biology of Belief. We look for root causes in three places, and we never look at one without the others.
01 · The mind
Thoughts
Your thoughts are not only in your head. Thoughts and beliefs send chemical messages through the body and can influence how your cells behave. Long-held patterns of stress, fear or self-criticism can show up physically over time.
We help you notice those patterns and change them.
02 · The body
Toxicity
Mold, parasites, foods that don't agree with you, ingredients in everyday cosmetics and environmental toxins can all disrupt how your body's systems and organs work.
We identify what is affecting you, help clear it, and support your body's natural detoxification pathways.
Diagnostic TestingNaturopathic MedicineNutritional TherapyIV TherapyAcupunctureHerbal Pharmacy
03 · The spirit
Trauma
The piece we believe is still missing from most of modern medicine. Being bullied as a child, moving to a new country, losing someone you love, abuse, and the quieter experiences that never felt big enough to talk about are stored in the brain and body, in our tissues and our subconscious. Clinicians such as Dr. Gabor Maté and Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, author of The Body Keeps the Score, have written widely about this.
We gently access these memories through the subconscious and integrate them through somatic therapies, including Acupuncture, Breathwork and Hypnotherapy. From there, we open a bridge to your interior world: silence, meaning and spirituality.
Somatic TherapiesBreathworkTrauma TherapySpiritual Direction
If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911.
The real work is in the connections. Thoughts, toxicity and trauma rarely act alone. When we identify all three and treat them at the same time, we give your body its best chance to heal.
How we see the whole picture
Ancient diagnostics, modern testing
We pair time-tested tools from Traditional Chinese Medicine, like tongue and pulse diagnosis, with advanced testing of blood, urine, stool and hair. Together they give us a fuller, more personal picture than either could alone.
It's about bio-individuality: your plan is built from your results and your story, not a template.
How it works
Your first year, season by season
No two people have the same story, so no two plans are the same. Every service we offer supports at least one of the three roots, and many support all three. Here is how The Saffron Method® unfolds.
Listen
First Appointment + Consultation
We start with your story: your goals, your history, what you have tried and what you are carrying. Then you receive your first treatment.
Welcome
Member Onboarding
We introduce your care team, set up your schedule and walk you through what the first season will ask of you.
Uncover
Integrative Physical, Blood Draw + Diagnostic Testing
A full exam and advanced testing, chosen for you, set your baseline. We also measure how you feel with the GAD-7 (anxiety), PHQ-9 (mood) and PROMIS Global 10 (overall health).
Begin
Your initial recommended appointments
While your results come in, you start the treatments your care team recommends for your mind, body and spirit.
Integrate
Lab Interpretation + Integration Session
Your Naturopathic Doctor reviews every finding with you, then you meet with your Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine to connect the results to your story. You leave with your Holistic Health Plan for the next 90 days, typically 30+ pages.
Benchmark
Re-test at 3 months
We repeat your key labs and your GAD-7, PHQ-9 and PROMIS Global 10 scores and compare them with your baseline, so progress is measured, not guessed.
Evolve
A new plan every season
Every 90 days, once per season, we benchmark again and refine your plan. At 12 months, we review your full year together and plan your final season.
Steps 05 to 07 repeat every 90 days, once per season.
Collaborative care
Your team works together
Members addressing a serious health condition typically work with three or more providers and receive three or more treatments a week. Your Doctors and practitioners talk with each other before you step into the treatment room and after you leave.
That coordination lets us fine-tune your care based on how you respond after each session. Every visit gives us new information, and that information helps us unlock the next dimension of your healing.
Meet our teamWhat to expect
This is real work
The Saffron Method® is for people who are ready for real change. The beginning of care is the most intensive. You will spend more time at the clinic and more time making changes at home. As your body responds, your plan evolves with you.
It may be a fit if you:
- Have tried symptom-by-symptom care and want to understand the root cause
- Are living with a complex or chronic condition, such as an autoimmune condition
- Are facing a serious diagnosis and want integrative support coordinated with your other Doctors
- Want one coordinated team instead of disconnected providers
- Are ready to invest time and energy in your health
Keep exploring
Where The Saffron Method® meets your care
Traditional Chinese Medicine · Diagnostic Testing · Integrative Medicine · Somatic Therapies · Autoimmune · Integrative Oncology · End-of-Life Care · Personalized Wellness: The Saffron Method (blog)
How to access The Saffron Method®
Ready for real results?
The Saffron Method® is used for every member, and each journey is customized. Doctor-Directed Care gives you the full method: your Doctor leads your plan and coordinates your care team so you can put it into practice.
Or see Medical Memberships · Call (619) 933-2340
Individual results vary. The Saffron Method® does not cure any disease and does not replace care from your oncologist, specialist or primary care provider; we coordinate with them as part of your integrative care plan. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911. Medical services are provided by Kasawa Medical APC; wellness services by Saffron & Sage LLC.
