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ALF Evolution
ALF Evolution is a concierge level, immersion-style course based on the authentic principles of ALF Therapy as developed by the creator of the ALF appliances, Dr. Darick Nordstrom. The course is instructed by Dr. Angie Tenholder as she shares her first hand experiences with learning directly from Dr. Nordstrom as well as her practical clinical experiences with patient care of all ages. Only 6 participants are instructed in each course in order to ensure that the extensive amount of material shared is assimilated in a way that each student has maximum access to the instructor.
Even though true principles never change, the application of those principles in clinical practice is an ever-evolving process of combining techniques and technology into an actionable and sustainable way to treat patients of all ages.
Providers that are both new to ALF Therapy as well as those providers with previous training are encouraged to take advantage of this most recent offering through The Synergy Academy.
To introduce the doctor and their team to the concepts and practical aspects of integrating ALF Therapy into the dental practice, there will be a 4 hour online live online course the Thursday prior to the hands on ALF Evolution course. Valuable resources to help the dental team integrate ALF Therapy into the office workflow will be shared and discussed to support optimal patient care as well as office efficiency.
The three-day hands-on course is designed to introduce dental providers and their teams to the aspects of ALF Therapy that will allow them to utilize as they return to their office on Monday morning. With completion of this course, dental teams will be able to begin offering patient care techniques as well as support their communities and families with the many benefits of ALF Therapy.
The ALF Evolution course has been developed by Dr. Angie Tenholder. Dr. Tenholder has been integrating ALF Therapy into her Midwest based clinical practice for over a decade while continuing to learn from Dr. Nordstrom by teaching many ALF courses and hosting the annual ALF InterFACE conference. Her experience as a patient, provider, parent and instructor has allowed her to listen to the needs and requests of the many ALF providers that have been trained by Dr. Nordstrom and others. In her role as the organizer of ALF Therapy resources, she has also heard from the parents and patients that reach out looking for answers to questions or resolution of problems that are related to ALF Therapy that was performed without the benefit of the dental provider benefitting from the most up to date and comprehensive knowledge of ALF Therapy as it has evolved over the years.
With Dr. Tenholder’s experience as a leader in the craniofacial pain and craniofacial dental sleep communities as well as her board certification in craniofacial dental sleep medicine and fellowship status in craniofacial pain and general dentistry, she is very qualified to understand and apply the complex considerations of physiology to the application of dental care in a comprehensive approach to health and wellness. Applying the principles of ALF Therapy to improve the lives of people is her passion. Ensuring that the legacy of Dr. Nordstrom and the authenticity of his creation is her purpose for creating the ALF Evolution course.
The course is composed of several resources that are designed to meet the needs of providers and their teams from all over the world and from different perspectives of dental care. The components include:
The 3-day hands-on course developed to allow the providers to learn how to apply clinical techniques in a clinical setting
A full calendar year of access to the extensive online resources will be included in the course tuition. These online/OnDemand resources were developed to allow the provider to explore aspects of ALF Therapy that go beyond the course material offered through the ALF Evolution course.
In addition, there are additional benefits to taking the course:
Access to the advanced level courses (Genesis, Grow and Guide) designed to allow the practitioner to focus on specific age groups based on their practice style and philosophy
Entryway to the certification pathway through the ALF InterFACE Academy to become a credentialed ALF Therapy provider
Learn More
For customized registration, please contact Jamie at admin@thesynergy.academy.
Tuition: $5200 ACADEMY MEMBER DOCTOR
($1500 for one team member)
TUITION : NON ACADEMY MEMBERS DOCTOR $6000
(2000 for one team member)
**we highly recommend membership as it is cheaper to combine it now than to add it later. It is also required if you want to become a credentialed Provider.**
Included in tuition:
- Entire team access for Live Online portion of course
- 21 hours of AGD PACE approved continued education hours (based on participation)
-access to online library of archived course material through the end of year.
Course Overview and Outline
Day 1 am
Concept overview and introduction to the ALF family of appliances
Introduction to the Starfish, STOP & SWITCH Assessments as a reflection of integrated neural circuits
Day 1 pm
ALF Genesis: The appliances, assessments, documentation and implementation of the appliance designs for ages 0-5 to include:
- Neonatal ALF
- Pedo Double Cribbed (dc) ALF
- Pedo Class III Design
- Lower Wavey wire
- Pediatric Omni designs
- Myofunctional and proprioceptive modifications and auxilaries
Day 2 am
ALF GROW: Guided Reflexive Orofacial Wellness
Instruction on the assessments and appliance designs utilized for the 6-11 population to include:
- ALF for Development
- Omni Designs
- Class III designs
- B4 Habit corrector appliance
- Lower M style wavey wire designs
- Nordic Positioner (for children)
Complex concepts and common compensationsLiterature review and concept discussion on topics the influence patient care of all ages to include
- When the Brain Says No: A presentation on how trauma influences human neurological and structural craniofacial development
- Trigeminal Cardiac Reflex: A literature review of a complex and often misunderstood/misdiagnosed influencer of sleep as well as structural and quality of life implications.
Day 2 pm
Clinical techniques instructed in a clinical setting (Healing the Healers)
Hands-on clinical assessments as well as appliance insertion and adjustments for course participants to include the ALF NLA designs and/or Nordic Positioner.
Each dentist/orthodontist will be provided an appliance that is fabricated for their individual needs as well as given personalized instruction on the patient assessments of Starfish, STOP and SWITCH utilizing the responses of their fellow course participants in an experential learning environment in a clinical setting. Dental assistants and bodyworkers will be offered instruction on the assessments and adjustments as well as the experience of customizing a dental device designed to neuromodulate without the use of a lab-fabricated device.
They will be instructed on the insertion and adjustment of the NLA and/or Nordic Positioner appliances based on the responses of each patients neurological presentation. Objectives of treatment are to support the development of functional neural circuits through neuromodulation while minimizing the impact of the dysfunctional neural circuits that are associated with disease and dysfunction.
Day 3 am
ALF Guide: Guiding the patient back to health by treating the complex compensations associated with suboptimal development as well as instruction on the use of:
- ALF for Development
- ALF for Trauma Release
- ALF NLA
- Nordic Positioner (for adults)
- Assessments, adjustments and appropriate treatment sequencing based on structural and functional metrics
- Review of patient phenotypes in the context of applaince selection
Wire-bending Lab:
- Hands-on instruction on how to insert, adjust and add retention to the ALF family of appliances