This Shouldn't Hurt a Bit

Your guide to IV therapy, including when you need it, when you don't, what it can do for you, what it can't, what the risks are, where to get it, and what to avoid.

IV therapy is becoming trendy. It's becoming popular. Celebrities swear by it, and athletes preach about its miraculous effects. You've read basic claims from "feeling better" to preposterous notions of curing everything from Diabetes to Fibromyalgia, and might have been told it's the fountain of youth for everyone. Cancer treatment, weight loss, energy boost, and hair regrowth are a few of the ads you've likely seen, and the list goes on and on. Can IV treatments really do all of these things? Can they do ANY of them? That's what we're here to explore. Moreover, it seems these days that you can get an IV on every corner. From your family physician to your chiropractor, every healthcare practitioner is adding IVs as a service. And, it's not just medical professionals offering them. Everyone, up to and including your hair dresser, is making a go at offering you IV therapy. No advertisement, no matter how slick or convincing, means IV therapy is right for you, or that you're getting it at the right place if it is. Nearly anyone can buy the supplies to give you an IV and find a doctor to sign the prescription, but being able to buy the IV catheter and the fluids doesn't mean someone is qualified to administer an IV safely, or that they're giving you what you need. In this book we're going to explore the exploding world of IV therapy, its benefits and risks, find out if it's right for you, discuss what it can and can't do for you, tell you what to seek and what to avoid, and give you some tips on discovering where you can safely receive IV therapy.

Bob Wheeler Jr. is the CEO of, and a Partner in, Rapid Recovery LLC, a chain of IV treatment centers which he and his partner Rachel co-founded in 2016. With 20 years in physician administration, neonatal therapy, direct patient care, and ancillary services, Bob has worked with and for hospital systems, physician groups, and independent physicians on compliance, marketing, policies and procedures, home health, hospice, infusion, and various other projects from inception to implementation. As a former hospice, home medical equipment, and home health owner, Bob has brought physician clinic quality standards and concierge level, service-based, responsible patient care to the realm of IV therapy.