429- The Topical Analgesic That Goes Beyond Pain Relief

Welcome to the Evidence Based Chiropractor, where each week we deliver the latest chiropractic research and marketing strategies, all in the time it takes to get to your office. Now, here's your host, Dr. Jeff Langmaid.

Hello and welcome to the Evidence Based Chiropractor. I am your host, Dr. Jeff Langmaid. A few weeks ago, I received in the mail one of the best starter kits I have ever received in my career. And it was from Stop Pain Clinical. At that point, I knew I had to have a conversation with Paul Timko all around topical analgesics, what they are up to and why this can impact your practice, why they're a partner and an extension of your practice far beyond any other topical analgesic company I have come across. So without further ado, here's my conversation with Paul Timko.

Thank you, Jeff. Great being here. Appreciate the opportunity.

My pleasure. So for the docs out there where Stop Pain Clinical might be new to them, let's give a little bit of history. What is Stop Pain Clinical in a nutshell?

Yeah. So you might, for those out there, they might hear Troy Healthcare and really that's the manufacturer of Stop Pain Clinical. And Troy Healthcare has been around for about really over 25 years and they're one of the few in the world that specialize in manufacturing topical analgesics. So and really the active ingredient that we're known for is menthol. So you probably know some other brands out there. We've been involved in several over the last couple of decades. But our specialty is our Stop Paint clinical formula which we'll be talking about today. And really the cool thing about it is that a relatively young brand, but the heritage of focusing on working with clinicians and primarily chiropractors goes way back. And that personally, that's what I've been doing for the last 10 plus years and what I enjoy and where my passion is. And when we look at this product, it was formulated specifically for that profession and really that environment to work with not only the chiropractor but also their patients. And we'll talk a little bit about the formula, really what sets it apart from the rest.

I love that. There's a couple things that I want to touch on throughout this episode. Some are what you alluded to, some of the ingredients, how you approach clinical application. I received a starter box in the mail personally, super impressed with the design. We'll talk about that in a few moments. But one of the things, when you and I were speaking a week or two ago, you were discussing how you really view Stop Pain Clinical as an extension of the doctor's practice themselves. And that was really a shift for me in terms of understanding how a part, especially in the topical analgesic space, can really approach working with, let's say, me and my practice in a pretty unique way. So talk about how you view the relationship between the clinician and your company and how that makes Stop Pain Clinical, in my opinion, a lot different from many of the other product and service companies in our space.

Yeah, it starts with one very important thing, is that our Stop Pain Clinical formula is only available through health care professionals. So really, part of what we do as individuals out there look for pain relief, and in particular, Stopping Clinical. We work with chiropractic clinics and other clinics to make sure that we help drive patients or potential patients to those clinics to ultimately get treatment for the underlying costs. You know, Stopping Clinical is all about temp, you know, great, fast, effective, safe, topical pain relief. But the most important thing is that we help really educate and generate awareness for the benefits of chiropractic. And that's really part of what we do. How it extends or how we become an extension of that clinic's team is that really there's a name that many of you probably recognize as Dr. Dana Macken. I've had the great pleasure of working with Dr. Dana for many years. Both of us worked together for a company called Performance Health with. With another brand for many years. And that's where I was first introduced to chiropractors, even though I probably had some. Some work along the way done for my own pain relief even prior to that. But my introduction as far as working every day with chiropractors was actually guidance from Dr. Dana. And so to this day, Dr. Dana has rejoined me at Stop Pain Clinical at Troy Healthcare. And really, our team is wired about helping again. Two things, working with consumers, educating them on the importance of going to chirop, but then also working with chiropractic clinics on providing tools to promote pain relief, obviously in their community, but also their practices. And that's done through samples. But there's other things that we do through marketing materials. And we're basically, we're always on call. We're 24 7, and we really take pride in responding very quickly. So when somebody has a question, they have a running event, a community event, they want to do some work for their local fire department or whatever, whatever it may be to promote their practice and the services they provide. We're ready to jump in and work creatively, but also make sure that we're supporting them with our brand as well.

That's really, really important. I want to highlight two things that you said really briefly for everybody listening and watching. One is the direct working with the practices in terms of the distribution channel. That's really, really important as we've seen things change over time. I love that. And the secondary component that you highlighted that I've never heard of a working with the practices before is, you know, getting the consumer message out there, not only helping the DOC be able to get their own message out to their community, as you highlighted, community events, et cetera, but also really going the consumer route which ultimately can drive demand back to the chiropractic practices. I think that's awesome and everybody listening should take note of that. Now, one of the things you opened up with was talking about menthol and active ingredients. These are things that, you know, I've heard about for years, ever since in school, using topical analgesics in school, et cetera. But I've never really had a great understanding of exactly what's the deal with menthol. You know, what other active ingredients do I need to be on the lookout for? And how does Dot Pain Clinical come to market with these within your product line?

Well, I guess we're going to have to talk about a little bit of science today. Right?

Let's do it.

And this is probably a repeat for, for many of you, but it's, it's, I love it because I've lived it for the last, you know, 10 plus years is that menthol really works with gait control theory. It's a counter irritant. And what's, what's awesome about it is that menthol to this day I believe is the most researched active ingredient when it comes to topical pain relief. And the reason for that is how well menthol attaches to the pain receptors. So for that, that kind of again, it goes back to temporary pain relief, but for that period of time, very effective at interrupting the pain signal. And what it's doing is obviously menthol is a cooling sensation and that, that TRPM8 receptor for that, it's interrupting it for that period of time. And it varies by individual. Let's say it's four hours, six hours. But it can vary. But that's, that's pretty much the average that people will experience that temporary pain relief. But it's very, so it's, anybody can throw menthol in a jar, right? Or in a tube. It's also combining with the right other ingredients to make sure first off that it's a safe and effective product, but also making sure that it penetrates and gets the menthol to where it needs to go to attach to those pain receptors. And then what we've done, really what our formulators have done in Hazelton, Pennsylvania where we're located, is make sure that we put other ingredients, other complementary ingredients that can help provide additional benefits. And we, this is what we, this is what we do, this is what we wake up every day, what we specialize in and have, you know, the decades of experience and it's, it takes a lot of work to get it exactly right. And so they were very particular about selecting things like glucosamine msm. So making sure that there's anti inflammatory and trusted ingredients that people would recognize and it would help with the pain relief process. We also put in things like eucalyptus oil and peppermint oil to make sure that it had a soothing experience. And the really cool part is that as technology evolves, we know that that's inevitable. Right. So with this particular product line and this formula we looked at, how do we make sure we address some of those, those issues that might come with some other products or historically with other products. And what we looked at is we wanted to make sure that it worked with kind of the hands on healthcare professional. So that way if you were able to control it and apply it well, but then not leave any residue, not be tacky, not be greasy and make sure that it does what it needs to do, which is basically it's inside, it's actually working with those pain receptors. So once you, I know you've had a chance to try, but it's, it's really amazing how well the crystal clear gel works. It absorbs and leaves no, no remnants or no greasy or tackiness to it. So it's a, I love it personally, Obviously I'm biased, but that's really how it all came together into what Stop Pain Clinical is today.

That's, that's cool. And it makes me think of so many of the docs listening are, you know, aspiring or accomplished sports chiropract. And many use kinesio tape of various brands day in and day out in their practice. And I know one of the stumbling blocks historically has been, you know, you want to use a topical analgesic, but the kinesio tape now you end up with challenges in terms of stickiness and adherence, et cetera. I think some of what you just described ties into what I've heard at least regarding Stop Paid Clinical where you really are able to use kinesio tape very effectively while using the topical analgesic, which to me takes it to the next level. Am I right on that? Talk a little bit for the sports stocks out there who tape day in and day out, how does topical analgesics and specifically stop pain? How does it work with that kinesio tape and can they be used together?

Yeah, no. Great question and great timing because we were just at a recent chiropractic event, Parker Vegas, and at that event we had some tape there, some kinesio tape. They sent some for us to hand out and educate on using stopping clinical with kinesio tape. So there's really two different approaches. A lot of people will have success with using stop pain clinical prior and that's, that catches a few people off guard. Won't that, you know, affect the adhesion, those types of things. But it goes back to how well our product penetrates and absorbs. And as long as you let it dry, it's not going to negatively impact the adhesion. But my personal favorite and what I always recommend, especially if you're using like you said, sports chiropractic or working with athletes or active individuals, what I always recommend, I love using the kinesio tape and then using the stop pain clinical spray. And so you apply the tape as you normally would. We'll use the knee as example. Use your ideal application for kinesio tape and then spray right over top of it and then around it. And that's going to. Actually most people will experience a little bit of an extended relief because what happens, as we know with kinesiology tape is that it's, it's, it's permeable, it's, it's breathing versus like an athletic tape. So it allows that stop pain clinical to get in over time. And one other thing that makes kind of sets us apart is that our product is sweat resistant. So if you are working with runners or athletes that are going to be sweating, that's going to, even though they're using with kinesiology tape, it's not going to, it's not going to affect sweat is not going to negatively affect the, the product itself and it doesn't actually run into uncomfortable spots. So anybody that's ever used a menthol type product, it can be a little bit uncomfortable. But ours has been optimized to really stay in the area that you want and be sweat resistant.

That's fantastic. That's a, that's a big benefit for sports stocks that have been Just fighting this problem for years and years and years and a massive benefit to the product that you guys have developed. So kudos there. One of the things that I noticed also on the website was migraine and headache formula. We, as you know, Cairo's number one reason people come in to see us the first time. At least we can do far beyond spinal issues, as you well know, but you know, low back pain number one and headache and neck issues are really number two in terms of what draw people to a chiropractor initially. So talk a little bit about your migraine and headache formula and how does that sit in the product line?

Yeah, when I first joined with Troy Healthcare Stop in Clinical, this product I was, was new to me. Like I, even though it's been around for several years, I was not aware of it and I don't suffer from migraine and headaches, so I really didn't have a way to test it out and see what it's all about. But since then, over the last four years, we've had it probably in the hands of thousands through different events and we work a lot with migraine advocacy events and those throughout the year. I've been blown away. Every day we get feedback on how well this product works and how it brings the severity level of migraines down. We just had one yesterday that was, she commented, she got a sample about a week ago, tried it. Unfortunately she had a migraine, but it went from a severity level of 7 to 2. Like so, I mean, and that was, that's the kind of stuff that we love. This is the, it's a gel, you know, it's just a different formula, formula from our stopping clinical and it has different ingredients so it has less menthol. It still has a little bit of scent. Sometimes people are like, oh, if I have migraines, should I have something. This is a very mild scent. We actually tested it out that way to make sure that it was not something that would, you know, cause any adverse reactions from a sensitivity standpoint. But we added homeopathic ingredients like belladonna, iris, versicolor, sanguinar or kinit densis and all, all of those help with different symptoms like light sensitivity, noise sensitivity, nausea and obviously headache. And it's applied. The cool part is that it's, everybody thinks you're going to put it around your face. You really don't want to put a menthol product around your eyes for obvious reasons. It's actually applied sub occipital, so you take one packet of gel, it's one dose. It's what we studied at Thomas Jefferson Headache center several years ago. And you take one packet, apply to the back of the neck, sub occipital and then if symptoms persist 20 to 30 minutes later, apply a second dose, second packet. And it's extremely effective. And it's one of those, it's a hidden gem and it's, we don't want it to be. Certainly it kind of suffers from a too good to be true type situation. So several years ago I really felt like chiropractors, because of the, the education of all the other services that chiropractors provide, you're really in the best position to help educate communities about these alternatives. Chiropractic, but also topicals that are researched and very effective and safe and affordable to be able to help with migraine symptoms. And this is one that's, this is our passion project for us is that because there's over 40 million in the US alone that suffer from migraine and disproportionately affects women. So we're really trying to get this out there. So thank you for bringing it up. And it's really something that we're in a way just getting started, but the last year we've really seen some, some success especially in chiropractic because of the other services that chiropractors provide in our community.

Yeah, yeah, that's. That, that's great information. As far as I didn't, I didn't know about, you know, where to apply. I did not know about the differing ingredients. That makes a lot of sense. And I think that that's fant. Kudos to you guys. And one of the things, you know, as you kind of walk, walking through that, it makes me think there's something we touched on earlier that I want to come back around to and that's the exclusivity of stop Pain clinical through health care providers. You know, it might seem pretty obvious in terms of some of the benefits, but I just love to hear, you know, you guys have made a company decision to really be exclusive through health care providers. I guess. Why is that the case and why does that matter to me as a doc out there?

Yeah, so it really, it's, it's, it's a cool story in that it's kind of the reverse of where I used to work. Biofreeze did so for so long, did so many great things for the healthcare community, especially chiropractic and the, and so many people love biofreeze. Right. And it's doing well with consumers and really the rest of the world. And so Troy Healthcare was involved in that very early on with Biofreeze from a manufacturing standpoint. And when I rejoined Troy Healthcare, we, they were already starting down the path of wanting to focus their efforts. They're stopping taking, developing specifically formula, a specific formula for health care professionals. So I jumped right in and said, sign me up, this is what I love to do. And so we've really built our whole business around making sure that our resources, our investments go into supporting chiropractic clinics and other healthcare professionals and all of our advertising as far as the stop paying clinical product, we make sure that we, our website, we don't sell our product on our website to consumers. We actually have a locator where people can find, put in their zip code and find a clinic in their community and then hopefully they go there to purchase but more importantly, hopefully they become a patient and an ongoing supporter of chiropractic. And it seems like I learned pretty long ago from Dr. Dana Macken that this is like these are rare opportunities to be able to work for a brand, a family business, in this case that loves working with chiropractors and then be able to work every day on doing just that. I mean, we, our team interacts with chiropractic clinics pretty much on a regular basis and our shared goal is that how do we use Stop Pain Clinical, a brand that we're investing in, to educate and drive people to a chiropractic clinic? And that's. You can't get anything better than that. We love it.

I could not agree more. And it ties into, in my opinion, that you guys are made in the United States. You have a money back guarantee. To me, that just tells the tale in terms of really where you stand as a company. Why are those things important? Why are those important to you?

Yeah, it's really because in this, again, it goes back to the family business. We even up until we started, you know, putting in some of our advertisements about, you know, money back, you know, money back guarantees. It's really, it's our, it's always been our philosophy and it's just been, it's been different, it's been less formal in, in the fact or less official because we've, we've always taken the approach if somebody reaches out to us and they're not 100 satisfied, of course we're going to make it right. Like there's no, I mean there's no hesitation with that. That's what we do, you know. But what I love about it is that it's always, it rarely happens, but it's never something like, hey, we don't like the product. It's more about, hey, tell me more. Oh, I didn't know that applied. Like you said, I didn't know you applied. It's. It just gives us the opportunity to engage, have a discussion, educate. They educate us, you know, along the way and we were fine. So that it's really the most important thing is that we can have an ongoing dialogue, discussion, partnership with our clinics that we work with and we get better because of it and hopefully we pass along some best practices along the way.

That's fantastic. I received in my mailbox a really great mail day. I posted about it online. Probably some people listening and watching saw me post about it and it was the starter pack from you guys. And in my opinion, this might not be exact measurements, but with like 8 inches of table space, you can have like this totally professional. It's all in one. I am a design geek, I love it and I very rarely come across and see things. I'm like, this is just really well designed. Like the box opens up, you pop it up. It provides a professional display that you set up in 30 seconds, takes up very little real estate and really highlights the product in a way, in a, in a retailing type way, in a practice that just makes a lot of sense and makes it easy to have that conversation and for a patient to say, great, let me grab one or two on the way out. And I, I love that. So talk to the docs out there because we're also going to drop a link down below. So docs listening, please click the link down below. Head over and pick up your own starter pack so you can see exactly what I'm talking about. But Paul, highlight a little bit of what's included in the starter pack, how docs have been successful utilizing it. Let's paint the picture for everybody listening and watching so when they click that link and pick up their own, they're off to the races.

Yeah. No, perfect. Yeah. So we, this is relatively new. We work, you know, we work primarily through chiropractic equipment suppliers. So the usual suspects. The, the chiral one sources the script, Hascos, Meijerdc and many others. So all across the US we have a great distribution network to make it easier for you to get products at a pretty really consistent price across the board. But as a manufacturer, we help you get started. And so we put together three different bundles ranging from 79 to 199. The only difference with the 199 is that it has migraine in it. But I always recommend, here's the thing I always recommend, start with the 79 one. So because what it does, more importantly than the product you're going to get, we're going to give you kind of a little bit of everything, some samples to help get your patients comfortable with it and familiar with it and obviously your staff and yourself. But that 79 more importantly gets us started, gets us talking about and gets our team engaged with you to figure out what the next best steps are and how to get you on our website so we can drive traffic to you, how to make sure we send you brochures. So patient education brochures and anything else that you might need. You might say, hey, I have perfect timing. I have an event coming up. I'd love to have, you know, 500 of these things ready to go for a marathon. What's the best way to do it? And we would work with you on those types of things. So the, you know, you'll see the link, but we have a short URL, it's s t o p a.inforward/ebc. And that is the best way to get started with us because you're going to hear from me that may be good or bad. Hopefully it's good. But ultimately I'm going to send you an email and say, hey, let's, let's, let's start this journey and I'll answer every question I possibly can and I'll be available 24 7. And that's, that's what we do.

Paul, this has been awesome. I'm going to encourage every doc listening and watching. If you have not used any topical analgesics in the past, now's time to do it. It can obviously create revenue for your practice, but it's most importantly going to help complement the service that you are already delivering. We're going to drop that link down below. So please head over now. If you have been using topical energy but you just haven't used Stop Pain Clinical, I'm going to put my personal stamp of endorsement on the product and service. I received the starter kit. I loved it. I've been using it and sharing with my father who has migraines, who has a variety, variety of challenges and I can say the results have been fantastic. So if you have been using a different brand, pick up the starter kit, put it head to head, reach out to Paul and his team because it is clear, I think after you've heard our conversation over the last 20 minutes that they are here to help you succeed in practice in every way that they can. And not every company can say that. So Paul, thank you so much for taking time out of your day, coming on and chatting doc's, listening and watching. Click that link down below, head over, get started, ask Paul questions and see your practice have better success because of it. Paul, thanks for coming on.

Thank you. Appreciate it. Have a great day.

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