Thrive Family Chiropractic helps Prescott families find balance, regulation and joy through neuro-based chiropractic care
By Heather DeSousa
When you walk into Thrive Family Chiropractic, you immediately feel something different. It’s calm yet vibrant: a space where healing feels personal, not clinical. Founded by Dr. Anita Scheer and Dr. Julie Weston, Thrive’s mission is clear: to bring neurologically based chiropractic care to families in Prescott, supporting everything from perinatal prenatal wellness to neurodevelopmental needs through all phases of life.
“Our focus is neurologically based family chiropractic care, especially perinatal and pediatric,” said Dr. Anita Scheer. “Ideally, we love to see women before they become pregnant, so their body is in the right neurological state to thrive during pregnancy. We also help with neurodevelopmental challenges needs such as hyperactivity, autism, depression, anxiety; primarily with children and teens.”
Thrive offers a one-of-a-kind approach in Northern Arizona … one that’s changing lives.
Seeing Through a Neurological Lens
At Thrive, the first visit begins with a deep dive into each person’s story. “We take a full history,” explained Dr. Scheer. “For women and children, we look at what the journey to pregnancy was like, because that experience dictates what happens as a baby comes into the world.”
Each patient receives a series of neurological scans that provide insight into how the nervous system is functioning.
The results of these scans guide the team in creating a custom care plan choosing from more than 11 chiropractic analysis and techniques (most chiropractors use only one or two). “There’s no one-size-fits-all approach,” said Dr. Scheer. “We meet you where you are and help your body reconnect with what it already knows how to do.”
“We live our entire life through our nervous system,” said Dr. Weston. “When there’s pressure or interference in the nervous system, it’s like a roadblock. The brain can’t correctly receive or send information or appropriately process information, which can show up as pain, colic, anxiety, lack of focus, or even movement coordination or balance challenges.”
Children with ADHD, for example, often move constantly as their way of gathering sensory input. “Every joint in our body has proprioceptors. Proprioception is how our nervous system senses position, movement and balance. When joints aren’t moving properly the messages can get fuzzy leading to poor coordination, emotional challenges, behavior challenges and inability to handle stress tells our brain what’s happening,” she said. “If parts of the body aren’t moving well, the brain doesn’t get accurate information.”
A Personal “Why” Behind the Work:
Dr. Scheer’s passion for neuro-based chiropractic care is deeply personal. Early in her career, she and Dr. Weston worked with families in Chino Valley and noticed babies being born with low muscle tone and developmental delays. “I thought, something is happening that I’m not aware of,” she recalled. That curiosity led her to continue her education in neurodevelopmental understanding, eventually shaping the foundation of Thrive’s specialized care.
Her drive also comes from lived experience. “I was raised in a very stressful environment, and my siblings and I had disabilities, dyslexia and ADHD,” she shared. “My brother had ADHD. He became a fireman, a high-stress job, and he passed away from a heart attack. I often wonder if he would still be alive or if his life would have been different if someone had helped him regulate his nervous system earlier.”
That loss inspired her mission to help others heal, especially children, before stress and dysregulation become lifelong struggles. “If we can make these adjustments early, we see success so much faster,” she said. “Kids have the ability to rewire and adapt in ways adults often can’t.”
Together, Dr. Scheer and Dr. Weston formed Thrive with a vision: to be a bright light for their community. “We want to educate and help anyone who’s ready to be helped.”
Removing Interference and Finding Freedom
So what does “removing interference” really mean? Dr. Scheer smiled. “It’s like a traffic jam. If there’s an accident, nothing can move until you clear it or remove the blockage. Once the interference is gone, information flows freely again. The brain knows exactly what to do.”
“You don’t have to tell your body how to heal a cut, it knows.”
That “flow” is what Thrive’s work is all about. Patients often describe feeling lighter, more joyful, or finally able to release emotions they’ve carried for years, and children are calmer, sleep better, digest better, handle emotions better.
“The body keeps score,” sais Dr. Weston. “When you release what’s been locked up, your energy shifts. That higher vibration ripples out into families and the community.”
“Think of your nervous system like a fuse box in a house. When everything is working right the power flows evenly. But when there is too much happening in one or more outlets, it’s too much stress and it overloads the circuits. But instead of the AC or refrigerator, it’s the inability to manage emotions or to properly digest food or challenges with sleeping.”
Most people in that state become dysregulated, which often shows up as an emotional or physical outburst. We live in a world of constant sensory overload, rarely getting the chance to truly rest. When stress builds and balance is lost, our bodies shift into fight-or-flight mode, sending cortisol levels soaring.
Thrive offers family discounts and sees patients from newborns to adults, even expectant mothers throughout pregnancy. “We do ongoing scans to track neurological development from birth,” said Dr. Scheer. “It’s not just about feeling better, it’s about healing better and thriving.”
Thrive’s Brain Blossom Blasting Program combines in-office care with home exercises designed to help the brain integrate movement, reflexes and motor control. “We’re going to the root cause,” said Dr. Scheer. “Our patterns form in response to stress; fight, flight or freeze. The goal is to help the nervous system learn how to regulate again, so we can move from survival to truly thriving.”
Care plans vary based on individual needs, but the process always begins with a consultation, scans and a personalized report of findings. From there, Thrive offers flexible payment plans to make care as accessible as possible.
Prescott’s unique mix of homeschool families, outdoor enthusiasts and health-conscious residents makes it the perfect fit for Thrive’s forward-thinking approach. “Our community really values education and flexibility. People here are open to exploring new ways to support their families’ well-being.”
Dr. Scheer is also quick to dispel common chiropractic myths. “People think it’s not safe for children: but the pressure we use on a baby’s spine is about the same as putting in a contact lens,” she explained. “Another misconception is that if you start chiropractic care, you’ll need it forever. But this isn’t something you have to do – it’s something you’ll want to do to make sure your nervous system is regulated and adaptable. Once you experience how regulated you can feel.”
For expectant mothers, Dr. Scheer’s top advice is to focus on nervous system regulation, not just posture or pain relief. “We talk about health care, not sick care; when your nervous system is balanced, your hormones follow, and your body can do what it’s designed to do.”
And for parents wondering if their child could benefit from care? She encourages watching for signs that something is off; from trouble latching or colic in babies, to speech delays, emotional outbursts, ADHD or constant movement in older kids. “Things that seem normal or common aren’t necessarily optimal, and they can often be fixed.”
Everything, from emotional well-being to immune function, starts with the nervous system. “It’s your operating system. When it’s working well, everything else falls into place.”
At its core, Thrive Family Chiropractic is about empowerment: helping individuals and families find freedom from stress, tension and disconnection.
“Our motto is healing the world one spine at a time,” said Dr. Scheer. “Because when people feel lighter, calmer and more connected, they bring that energy into their homes, their work and their community. That’s how real healing spreads.”
For more information, visit https://www.thrive-az.com.