Active Wellness Chiropractic & Massage

The actually dr. was great, very friendly & attentive during my exam. The front desk personal, not so much. Was very frustrating trying to schedule appointments — I purchased a Groupon, but only found out when I called I had to schedule, appointments on different days for the 4 parts of the Groupon. And they did not disclose that you could not schedule them all at once, had to go in for one before scheduling the rest. Also, when I did manage to schedule my massage, I was told I would not be allowed to reschedule for any reason. Fairly abrupt & rigid, too much so for my taste.

The short version:
Treatment: Precise, Relieving, Expeditious.
Location: Plenty of parking in a quaint neighborhood called Wallingford, Next to Zoka, Tangled, Mighty-​O. Conveniently located between Aurora-​99 and 5-​hwy, just off 50^th Street.
Interior: Neat, Focused, Fun.
The long version:
Doctor Kellogg (like the cereal company!) has gifted hands and a giving-​heart for his patients. Five stars of gratitude for his level of care.
I’ve been going in for treatment here since 2012 for adjustment and massage, so I have had the opportunity to receive treatment from Dr. Mukai, Dr. Kyle, a lady-​Dr. (I don’t remember her name), and now Dr. Kellogg. The benchmark is now set at an all-​time high.
He just makes me feel welcome – Every time. Quite honestly, I would have given a lower rating if not for Dr. Kellogg!!! Oh and there’s more – Shall I continue…
A bit of a curious-​cat, I ask all kinds of questions about this practice of medicine. He’s always enthusiastic and generous to teach me things. When I think of the treatment I have personally received from Kellogg, I think of this Doctor as…
Someone who is knowledgeable.
Someone who thinks of chiropractic medicine as a whole-​lifestyle therapy.
Someone who is benefiting the industry!
Someone who is here for the people!
Someone who keeps me accountable to get the most from my treatment, in a graceful manner. Follows up with me about the «Feldenkrais Method»! =D
Not sure what the low-​raters have experienced outside of groupon issues. It reads like administrative issues; not medicinal treatment complaints. This is indeed a business, and my opinion is that person-​to-​person interactions matter ALLLL the way FROM the front door greeting TO the treatment TO the exiting «see you later!» Thus far, my own experience: courteous and professional.
On a side note, Deanne Duff is my fav fav fav masseuse of the three I’ve met through this office. Deanne has a sixth sense that inspires me to become as good as her ;) (I am in LMP school.)
Another side note, Julia the office assistant has the most pleasant demeanor on the phone, and in person. I would recruit her if I ever had a need for exemplary FOH class. =D Really I would.
Thanks, Active Wellness!!! I took a chance on you three years ago for the first time and today, I am happy you were there to receive me.

I started going to Active Wellness to see Dr. Vevoda. Since she left in 2012, the practice is on its 3^rd chiropractor (Dr. Kyle, Dr. Mukai, Dr. Kyle again, and then Dr. Anderson.) I stopped going a while back.

I called today because I received a groupon as a gift. I was told that in order to come in I would have to be seen three days in a row. One for an exam, the next to review the exam and results (even though x-​rays are not on the goupon), and then I could book my massage because then the LMP would know what to work on.
I have been a massage therapist for 15 years and refer out to chiropractors. And I have never seen an office work like this. I was told to call around to the other offices on the list and maybe they dont require this type of scheduling. Ive seen offices collect money from groupon and make it so difficult to schedule people give up and they sit on the money. FYI, If you are getting a massage this cheap, they are NOT making much money when you show up. However, they are also losing out on a possible repeat client AND someone who would refer full paying and insurance new clients.

Underwhelmed. Seemed scammy. Focused on money and business, not patients.
To be fair: I went here on a Groupon. Should have been my first clue. Either they’re new and trying to build a client base, or in cashflow problems for a reason.
Pros: The staff were helpful, knew a lot about insurance, very friendly, the doctor talked to patients like real people. The Groupon did get me into chiropractic, which has been a big help.
Cons: The Groupon required 3 separate visits for exam, adjustment and massage… a bit excessive. For my «mild-​to-​moderate postural syndrome» Doctor Anderson recommended 3 adjustments per week. which seemed incredibly excessive. I see no reason why this should be, other than her trying to drive up business. My current chiropractor has me seeing him every 2 weeks, which seems more appropriate. Not just a difference of opinion: this practice is a scam who are over-​prescribing to charge patients more.
There are better chiropractors closer to home. Unless you live within walking distance, I don’t see any reason to go here.

Went to this chiropractor last year. Had trouble with insurance & billing; called the office multiple times, but never responded. However, they kept calling asking me to return. They incorrectly billed my insurance on treatments so when I needed emergency care there were none available. Just received a bill 10 months later with a supposed balance. What company takes 10 months to straighten this out?
Also, saw 4 different receptionists while there. It speaks very low to their quality if they are unable to retain staff. One receptionist was amazing, but witnessed the dr acting unprofessional towards her. That was enough for me to stop going. I wasn’t going to write a Unilocal review, but now there is a bill from 10 months ago? I don’t recommend this place at all.

If I can give no star I would do so, they tricked me into getting extra service so they could bill my insurance.
I originally had a Groupon to try out the service here. I had my massage done during the second visit. After that, without mentioning any cost information, the Dr. asked me if I would like to try an adjustment (my bad trusting them so easily, I didn’t question about the charge). I left them my insurance info at the end of this visit b/​c they offered to find out my coverage if I’d like to continue with a treatment plan.
A few weeks later I got a Claim Summary from my insurance — they shamelessly billed my insurance. I was so surprised I had to call and found out it was the cost of one adjustment I accepted during that second visit. I had to explain to the staff no one ever brought up this was not covered by my Groupon (partially my fault not remembering it), and no one ever presented the cost of service. I blindly agreed to receive this service.
I asked her if I have signed any paperwork stating the service charges at their clinic. She said it’s not their usual practice to do that, instead the Dr. would present a treatment plan cost after talking to the patient’s insurance (which they did not do either). She did not offer any remedy to this even though she remembered what have happened during my visits.
Their actual service was okay, but the way they tried to bill more services I will never suggest this place to anyone.

I’ve been to many chiropractors over two decades and find this one to be just OK. I agree with a previous post that the whole beginning x-​ray/​assessment/​treatment plan is a bit scripted. (bordering Vision Quest fitness pressure Even to the point of taking you into a room to discuss his findings. Which wouldn’t be odd if the adjustments weren’t done in an open front room gangbuster style. Appointments last about ten minutes, eight if which is spent on a ‘wobble chair’ alone. There is no real emphasis put on strengthening and how to prevent more injury or limit pain. In fact there is no discussion about how to improve outside the ten minutes spent in Dr. Mukai’s care. Most doctors now take an approach which requires the patient to be an active participant in recovery… I have had no such care here. While I’m sure Dr. Mukai is nice enough and his adjustments seem helpful I have a hard time getting past his absent bedside manner… he will do the adjustment then just kinda walk out or not acknowledge you if another patient is in the room so you’re left to walk past awkwardly since you’re all in the same open room together. Also, I find it rare to not be given stretches, exercises and ways to strengthen my body in order to prevent injury and maintain my back between adjustments. I’m yearning to get back to working out but there he doesn’t ever ask nor recommend activities during treatment. Overall I question why I continue to schedule appointments here. My recommendation is to find a chiropractor who has a physical therapist in staff, advocates education and prevention along with care in which the patient is an active participant.

I love this clinic!!! Dr. Mukai is great, sooooo nice, and patient! I trust him. I’ve been coming to see him at least twice every week when I’m not traveling. Every time I came back from traveling, first thing was to come to see him coz my body knows he’s helped me a lot! My lower back condition is significantly improved, and I don’t feel much pain in my legs and back nowadays, same with my neck (office syndrome). I couldn’t sleep with pillows or on mattress 6 months ago, but now my back and neck hold up pretty good even after sleeping in different hotel beds. Staff here are really nice and helpful, Anna, Jenna, and Natalie are the best! I tried to ask for a short massage from Natalie every time I came in coz she has magic hands, powerful and right on the spots. I’ve had different massage therapists from gym and groupons, but she’s the best! I definitely recommend this clinic!

I had a Groupon and was very excited to start seeing a chiropractor, as I’ve been having neck pain for a few years now. At my first visit (which I was able to schedule for the exact same day), I was taken through an awkward tour of the office and taught the basics of chiropractic care by Dr. Mukai. He took x-​rays and used a machine to determine the pain I was feeling throughout my spine. Though my first visit was slightly scripted, I nevertheless thought the receptionist, Janna, and Dr. Mukai to be courteous and helpful.
Visit 2: Went over x-​rays and found out my neck did not curve the way it was supposed to! Gasp! When the doctor asked if I wanted to start adjustments, I was like yes! yes!, let’s make this better — buuuuut I really wanted to know the cost first (I currently don’t have health insurance). Dr. Mukai did not provide cost info, but referred me to Janna who informed me that the cost of the adjustments would be $ 59-​$ 93.
Let me break this cost thing down…
My care was recommended to be 3x per week for the first month.
Let me spell this out — for 1 month of care: $ 59 per = $ 708; $ 93 per = $ 1116. That’s a pretty big spread.
I went to the massage for my third visit, which was pretty awesome. The massage therapist did a great job working out some of the tightness and tension I was feeling. She did, however, talk the entire time. I was indifferent about it (though I generally prefer quiet), but if you’re the kind of person who doesn’t like the chatting during a massage, you might want to take that into consideration.
Visit 4 was another adjustment and the part where I signed up for automatic payments for $ 100 per month out of my checking. (**note: it would have taken me an entire year just to pay off the first month*) i also received a lot of pressure from Janna about scheduling the remainder of my appointments. I gave some push back and only scheduled the 3 appointments for the following week. Over the weekend, I could not get that interaction out of my head, and decided that I should reconsider and get a second opinion. I hate feeling like I’m being pressured into something. When I called to cancel on Monday, Janna’s first reaction was that I needed to get that particular appointment rescheduled. I said no, and that I wanted to cancel the others. I inquired about the remainder of what I owed, and found out that I was indeed getting charged $ 93 per adjustment.
Overall, I was able to discover I actually had an issue, which was good. +1 over the 1 star. It was really expensive. And unfortunately, I felt like I was just being pushed through an operation where they wanted to bill, bill, bill. It made me uncomfortable.

I was moving to San Francisco from Seattle back in June. While I was packing, I hurt my back and went to see Dr. Kyle. He and the front desk staff went way out of their way to get me in, do an assessment, set up my appointments, and make sure I had x-​rays to bring with me when I moved. I’ve been to several chiropractors in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and then Dr. Kyle in Seattle. He is really caring and sincere and helped realign my hip and SI joint. I wish he was here in California now. But, the real bonus was that I had been trying to get pregnant — after being told I had a 1% chance of getting pregnant — and after 5 trips to Dr. Kyle for my low back work, I was pregnant at 47! So, not only do I recommend Dr. Kyle for your back, but I also really recommend him for all of you going through the trials and tribulations of infertility. Now, I have to call Dr. Kyle to help me find my a new chiropractor out here in California where I live now.

I used to love this place when Dr Vevoda owned it; it was a special business I could refer my clients to undoubtedly. Great philosophy, adjustments, equipment and passion. The new ownership has changed it and made it like every other chiropractic office, caring more for their financial and business well being than it’s clients. None of the original staff remains, in fact in the first few weeks they went through several receptionists.
A «lower» paying diagnosis code was billed to insurance companies in error and instead of accepting their error and taking a smaller cut for each date of service they re billed it over 6 months later. Clients had left and paid their balances in full, then got letters in the mail 6 – 8 months later requesting $ 80 – 200.00 left «unpaid» on their accounts from all the small accumulated charges on each date of service; for us even after using up our benefits and continuing to pay in cash after our account was pd! They double billed clients. Accepting cash for services and then also billing it to their insurance company as well, then not fixing it or accepting they made an error. I’ve had several complaints about the office manager/​part owners wife being very rude, belittling and unprofessional.
The list could go on but there’s not need. This office is part of a chain of offices owned in the PNW area and Seattle. It’s not special, family owned or a place for true healthcare concerns.

This business used to be an awesome locally owned practice with a staff that truly cared and had been there for years. Sadly, it was sold in 2012 and has gone (way) down hill. Not one of the original employees, chiropractors or massage therapists remain after just a few months, which pretty much explains how the business is run now. A place where families and community used to gather is now desolate, cold and unfriendly. There are several, much better options for chiropractic in the neighborhood. I would strongly recommend taking your healthcare needs elsewhere.

I admit it. I was a skeptic. However, after I tore my Achilles two years ago and was having some back/​sciatica issues after I started walking again, I decided to give chiropractic a chance and met Dr. Vevoda.
I questioned if chiropractic care would ever actually CURE a problem as it seemed to me that many chiropractors wanted perpetual business and weren’t necessarily interested in fixing problems. I always thought most chiropractors would get people out of acute pain in the moment but adjust them forever for the exact same problems while never addressing root issues.
Dr. Vevoda was not that doctor for me. From our first appointment where she looked at me and said, «we can fix this,» I had hope for the first time in years that my pain would subside.
Her belief in overall wellness contributing to spinal health is something that I believe in as well, and while she is concerned with getting people immediately out of pain, she is also aware that lifestyle issues contribute to pain and injury. She had the patience to drill into what I could do in my life to help my back, and was willing to give me exercises and a plan I could follow to get all the way better.
I so appreciate her insights and clinical approach. I never feel like she is trying to sell me on treatment — she genuinely wants to help her patients get better and that’s why I choose her. With her treatment plans that include traction and massage, I am out of pain for the first time in months and a believer in her overall wellness message.

Dr. Amy Vevoda took over the Penaluna Chiro Practice and it is now Active Wellness Chiro and Massage. My nine year old, five year old, and I came to Dr. Vevoda five years after we had a car accident. She is absolutely fabulous with the kids, she keeps them interested and can get them to do what she needs (better than I can). Dr. Vevoda is very thorough and wants to make sure we agree with and understand the treatment plan. She answers all questions without being demeaning. She has created a relaxing atmosphere that centers on healing. There is always an upbeat atmosphere by both Dr. Vevoda and Theresa at the front desk.