Is a chiropractor a doctor?

A Doctor of Chiropractic holds a doctorate-level professional degree and is a regulated health professional in Ontario, so the title "Doctor" is used correctly. A DC is not a medical doctor. They do not hold an MD, cannot prescribe medication and do not perform surgery. Within their scope they can assess, diagnose, and order and interpret imaging. Both halves of that are true, and any clinic that only tells you one of them is selling rather than explaining.

Are the chiropractors at Essential Health registered?

Yes. All three — Dr. Becky Lancione, Dr. Elyse Black and Dr. Krystle Kreway — are registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario. Registration is a legal requirement to practise as a chiropractor in Ontario, and it means each of them is accountable to a regulator, must meet a standard of practice, and carries continuing-education obligations. The College maintains a public register you can search.

How do I choose between your three chiropractors?

By technique and case type. Dr. Becky Lancione is the CACCP-certified pediatric chiropractor and takes infants, children and pregnancy-related care. Dr. Elyse Black adds Functional Integrated Acupuncture, which suits layered or long-standing presentations. Dr. Krystle Kreway is the soft-tissue specialist, with Graston and Active Release for adhesion and restricted range of motion. If you are unsure, book with any of the three and the examination will settle it.

Do I need a referral to see a chiropractor in Ontario?

No. Chiropractic is a direct-access regulated profession in Ontario, so you can book without a physician's referral. Book online at essentialchirormt.janeapp.com or call 905-856-2299. Some extended health plans ask for a doctor's note before reimbursing even where the clinic does not require one, so check your policy.

Is chiropractic covered by insurance, and do you direct bill?

Most Ontario extended health plans include a chiropractic allowance, usually as an annual dollar maximum rather than a visit count. OHIP does not cover chiropractic. We direct bill most major insurers — bring your benefits card to the first visit and the front desk will confirm your coverage and remaining balance before you commit to a treatment plan. Motor vehicle accident and WSIB claims are handled separately; tell us at booking.

What happens at the first chiropractic visit?

An examination. History and mechanism of injury, red-flag screening, orthopedic and neurological testing, and a movement assessment. Your chiropractor explains what they found and what they propose before anything is done. Whether you are adjusted on the first visit depends on what the exam shows — sometimes the answer is imaging first, or another discipline entirely.

Do chiropractic adjustments hurt?

Most adjustments are not painful, though the audible release surprises people the first time. Some soreness the next day is common, especially after a first visit or after soft-tissue work like Graston. If manual adjusting is not something you want, say so: instrument adjusting and drop-table technique are low-force alternatives that all three chiropractors use, and the technique is a choice, not a fixed part of the treatment.

Can I see a chiropractor for headaches and migraines?

Yes, and all three of our chiropractors treat them. Chiropractic care is appropriate where the headache has a cervical or muscular driver — neck stiffness, postural load, jaw and upper-back tension. It is not a treatment for primary migraine disease, and a headache pattern that is new, severe or changing needs medical assessment first. That distinction is made at your examination.

Is chiropractic safe for children, and who sees pediatric patients?

Pediatric patients are seen by Dr. Becky Lancione, who is certified by the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics. Pediatric technique is not adult technique scaled down: it is low-force, and for infants the pressure used is closer to what you would use to test a ripe tomato. Any presentation outside chiropractic scope is referred to your pediatrician rather than treated.

Meet the Team

Our Chiropractors

Three Doctors of Chiropractic, three different technique stacks. Here is how to pick.

Dr. Becky Lancione is CACCP-certified and takes the pediatric and pregnancy caseload. Dr. Elyse Black practises Functional Integrated Acupuncture alongside adjusting, for layered and complex presentations. Dr. Krystle Kreway is certified in Graston Technique and Active Release Technique, for injury recovery and restricted range of motion. All three are registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario and all three treat headaches and migraines.

4.9· 407 Google reviews

Book Your Appointment See the roster

Doctors of Chiropractic.

All three hold the DC designation and are registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, which is a legal requirement to practise here.

Experience & Credentials

What "Doctor of Chiropractic" actually means.

It is the question patients ask quietly and clinics answer vaguely, so here it is plainly. A Doctor of Chiropractic holds a doctorate-level professional degree and is a regulated health professional in Ontario, registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario. A DC can assess, diagnose within their scope, and order and read imaging. A DC is not a medical doctor, does not hold an MD, cannot prescribe medication, and does not perform surgery. Both halves of that are true at once, and neither is a reason to avoid or to over-claim chiropractic care.

DC: a doctorate-level professional degree, and registration with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario
CACCP: Dr. Becky Lancione's pediatric certification from the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics
Functional Integrated Acupuncture: Dr. Elyse Black, who is also a Functional Medicine and Applied Kinesiology candidate
Graston Technique and Active Release Technique: Dr. Krystle Kreway's soft-tissue certifications

Chiropractic team

Doctors of Chiropractic, all CCO-registered

Pediatric certification

CACCP-certified, Dr. Becky Lancione

Named techniques

adjusting and soft-tissue techniques across the team

Clinic founded

2016

co-founded by a chiropractor and an RMT

How We Work

The way our chiropractors work.

Choosing a chiropractor is mostly a question about technique and temperament, and almost nobody tells you that. Some adjusting is fast and manual. Some is instrument-assisted and barely feels like anything. Some cases need soft-tissue work before a joint will move at all. The three chiropractors here practise differently on purpose, and matching you to the right one is a clinical decision, not a scheduling one.

What does not vary is the standard. All three hold the DC designation, all three are registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, and all three examine before they adjust. If the exam says chiropractic is not the answer, you will be told that rather than sold a plan.

Assess

The exam decides the technique, not the schedule.

A first visit is an examination, not an adjustment with paperwork attached. History, orthopedic and neurological screening, and a look at how you actually move. What that finds determines which technique is used, whether an adjustment is appropriate at all today, and whether imaging or a physician's opinion is needed first.

History, mechanism of injury, and red-flag screening
Orthopedic and neurological testing appropriate to the complaint
Movement and postural assessment, not just a spinal look
Findings explained to you before anything is done

Scope

What our chiropractors treat best.

All three DCs work primarily with mechanical, musculoskeletal presentations. Across the team the casework falls into three tiers.

Mechanical back and neck pain: the core of the caseload, including facet-driven pain, postural load, and stiffness that has stopped resolving on its own.
Headaches and migraines: all three chiropractors treat these, where the driver is cervical or muscular rather than primary.
Sciatica and nerve-referred pain: leg or arm symptoms with a spinal or soft-tissue source, assessed before any adjustment.

Techniques

Eleven named techniques, chosen per case.

Diversified adjusting, Thompson Drop Table, Instrument Adjusting, Graston, Active Release Technique, NIMMO, cupping, PIPS, Applied Kinesiology, Functional Integrated Acupuncture and Kinesiology Taping. This is the practical answer to "which one do I book": the technique stack differs by chiropractor, so the right chiropractor is the one whose stack matches your presentation.

Nervous about a manual adjustment? Instrument adjusting and drop-table technique are low-force alternatives.
Scar tissue, adhesion or a stubborn range-of-motion limit? Graston and Active Release, with Dr. Krystle.
Layered, complex or long-standing presentation? Functional Integrated Acupuncture, with Dr. Elyse.
Pregnancy, infants and children? CACCP-certified pediatric technique, with Dr. Becky.

Coordinate

Chiropractic alongside massage, physiotherapy and osteopathy.

Chiropractic is one discipline in a clinic that staffs five. When the joint keeps giving way because the surrounding tissue is doing the wrong job, or when the case needs graded loading rather than adjustment, the handover happens in-house with your history already on file.

Six RMTs, a physiotherapist and an osteopath practise in the same clinic
Chiropractic and massage are frequently booked on the same day
Your history carries across practitioners without being re-taken
Scheduling across disciplines is coordinated by one front desk

Honest Scope

When a Chiropractor Isn't the Right First Call

Red flags: see a physician first

Suspected fracture, progressive neurological deficit, loss of bladder or bowel control with back pain, unexplained weight loss alongside back pain, or a sudden severe headache unlike any you have had. Any of these needs medical assessment before chiropractic care, and our screening is designed to catch them.

We screen at intake

Every first visit includes red-flag screening and orthopedic and neurological testing before any adjustment. If the exam finds something outside chiropractic scope, your chiropractor will say so directly and refer you rather than treat around it.

When another discipline fits better

Soft-tissue tone and muscular tension often respond better to a registered massage therapist. Graded loading and return-to-sport programming belong with a physiotherapist. Whole-body compensation patterns belong with an osteopath. All three practise here, so the referral is in-house.

The Roster

Three chiropractors, and where each one fits.

All three are registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, and all three treat headaches and migraines. What separates them is the technique stack and the caseload each has built.

Doctor of Chiropractic · Co-Founder

Dr. Becky Lancione, DC, CACCP

Co-founded Essential Health in 2016. Certified by the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics, which makes her the chiropractor to book for infants, children and pregnancy-related care. Also a Rock Tape Doctor and Movement Specialist and a PIPS Technique practitioner, and she treats the full adult spectrum through to chronic pain.

Registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario
CACCP — Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics
Rock Tape Doctor & Movement Specialist
PIPS Technique
Shockwave therapy

Read Dr. Becky’s full bio

Doctor of Chiropractic · Functional Integrated Acupuncture

Dr. Elyse Black, DC

Practises Functional Integrated Acupuncture alongside chiropractic adjusting, which suits layered presentations where the pain has more than one driver. Currently completing candidacies in both Functional Medicine and Applied Kinesiology — in progress, not yet completed.

Registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario
Functional Integrated Acupuncture
Functional Medicine candidate
Applied Kinesiology candidate
Shockwave therapy

Read Dr. Elyse’s full bio

Doctor of Chiropractic · Graston & Active Release

Dr. Krystle Kreway, DC

Certified in Graston Technique, Active Release Technique and cupping. The soft-tissue specialist of the three, and the usual match for injury recovery, adhesion and range-of-motion restriction that has stopped responding to adjustment alone.

Registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario
Graston Technique
Active Release Technique
Cupping
Shockwave therapy

Read Dr. Krystle’s full bio

Pediatric chiropractic is delivered by Dr. Becky Lancione, the only CACCP-certified chiropractor on the team, so infants, children and teens are booked with her.

What They Deliver

Sessions this team performs.

Every service below is delivered by the three chiropractors on this page. Which one you need is settled by the examination at your first visit.

Treating a specific concern? Read how we assess and treat back pain, neck pain, and headaches and migraines.

Browse all chiropractic treatments

What Patients Tell Us

What patients say about our chiropractors

4.9 stars across 407 Google reviews. The chiropractic feedback repeats the same three things: a thorough first examination, an explanation you can follow, and relief that holds.

4.9 average · Read all 407 reviews on Google →

“Had a chiropractic initial visit today with Dr. Kreway and I was thrilled. She was very kind, thorough, and knowledgeable. Best of all she provided me with relief. Would recommend her to anyone looking for a chiropractor.”
samantha N.
Google review · 5 stars

Book With the Chiropractor Who Fits Your Case

Three Doctors of Chiropractic at our Woodbridge clinic on Weston Rd, each with a different technique stack. Your first visit is an examination, and the findings decide the technique. Same-week appointments are typically available. No referral required, and direct billing is available for most major Ontario extended health plans.

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