If you have been sick for years without explanation, you are not alone — and you are not imagining it.

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Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS) is a disorder of the innate immune system most commonly caused by exposure to water-damaged buildings. About 25% of the population has a direct genetic vulnerability to biotoxins from these environments — meaning their bodies cannot clear the toxins on their own. Without the right treatment, they stay sick. Even after leaving the building, the immune system remains activated and the symptoms persist.

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CIRS is not a diagnosis most physicians know how to make. Patients are often told their labs are normal, that it's stress, or that nothing more can be done. Finding a doctor who understands this illness — and knows how to treat it — can feel impossible. That's why this practice exists.

Developed by Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker, the Shoemaker Protocol is a step-by-step treatment approach for biotoxin illness. It is the only therapy for CIRS in which each step is supported by peer-reviewed research. Diagnosis and monitoring may include symptom review, visual contrast sensitivity testing (VCS), bloodwork, NeuroQuant MRI analysis, and genomic testing (GENIE) — which can reveal changes in genetic expression caused by CIRS and guide truly individualized treatment.

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Working with Dr. Vukelic

Dr. Vukelic is certified in the Shoemaker Protocol and is a founding member of the CIRS Academy. She contributed to Nutrition and Integrative Medicine for Clinicians, published by Routledge Press — the largest textbook publisher in the world — authoring the chapter on mechanisms of potential central nervous system injury in CIRS, and co-authoring seven others alongside Dr. Shoemaker and other leading researchers. The volume devotes 16 of its 29 chapters to CIRS and water-damaged buildings.

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The initial consultation is typically two hours, covering your health history, environmental exposures, symptoms, and medical records. The depth of each appointment depends on the complexity of your case. The first follow-up, usually one hour, reviews your laboratory results and begins mapping out your treatment plan. From there, appointments are tailored to how your body responds.

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Most patients who find Dr. Vukelic have already spent years looking for answers. They have seen multiple doctors, tried multiple treatments, and been told there is nothing wrong. If that sounds familiar, you have found the right place.