CHINA GROVE — Grove Hydration, an IV hydration and vitamin therapy service, located at 302 S. Main St. in China Grove, celebrated its first anniversary on April 10 and it’s growing.

Owner Stacy Woodward said she wanted to start this business because there was nothing like it locally. There were some in the Charlotte area and near the lake, but she wanted to offer something closer for her clients, many of which are from Rowan and Cabarrus counties.

Woodward has been a nurse for 27 years, having served most of her career in the hospital as a critical care nurse at the bedside, but COVID, which was just a different time, brought about this change.

“It was really difficult and I saw a lot of people struggling with COVID even after, for longer periods of time,” Woodward said.

A friend had a company that was doing IV therapy and asked her to come join them, which she decided to do.

“I ended up really liking it,” Woodward said. 

It was a mobile company and afforded her the opportunity to go to the people and still do education and focus more on proactive health, helping people stay healthy before they got sick.

“I felt like this was a great opportunity to teach people about proactive health and wellness so hopefully they can keep themselves out of the doctor’s office, out of the hospital,” she said.

Originally from Kannapolis, Woodward said she attended school at UNC-Charlotte and settled in Cabarrus County for a while. Her husband, Jonathan Woodward, is from China Grove, and the couple has made the town their home. A resident of China Grove for about six years now, Woodward said she “loves China Grove, loves being here. I love having this in our community.”

Therefore, when it came to naming her new business, she said, “I wanted to have something personal and local, so Grove Hydration just made sense.”

She has been doing IV therapy for approximately three years now and specializes in customized infusions, vitamin supplementation, heavy metal detox and organically local CBD, offering both in office and mobile infusions, vitamin injections and client education. 

Her clients range in age from 17 to 75, with many coming in just when they don’t feel well or need fluids or a recovery infusion. The other half of her clientele, she said, “like to take a more proactive approach, so they come on a regular basis.”

It is with this second group that she can offer a membership program because she knows they are going to come routinely, and “so I’m able to give them a cheaper price for IV infusions so they can utilize it more frequently and it’s more affordable,” Woodward said.

When someone is a new client and they come for their first visit, she will do a medical history with them including such things as medical conditions they may have, what, if any, medications they take daily or find out if they are allergic to anything. Once that is completed, she will find out what their expectations are for getting IV therapy and discuss additional information about recent illnesses or travel and if they are looking to do preventative care.

Based upon this assessment, Woodward said she can then give recommendations on how they should proceed. Perhaps, she said, they might just need basic hydration or a regular vitamin regimen or a recovery infusion if they have been sick.

Woodward explained that IV therapy is a lot like when you go to the hospital and you’re dehydrated or you need some IV fluids, which go directly into the bloodstream as opposed to taking an oral vitamin. She explained that when taking an oral vitamin, you have to worry about how well the gut absorbs it.

Most don’t have perfect guts, “so we’re only getting a small percentage of what we’re taking orally,” she said. “With IV therapy, you get every bit of it because it bypasses your gut. It goes straight into your circulatory system. So you get better absorption of vitamins and nutrients and hydration that way.”

Some know what they need, having been to their doctor and know they might be low on certain vitamins, or they are planning to travel and need an immune booster, which makes it easier when they come, she said.  Others don’t know what they might need; however, she pointed out, they are all water-soluble vitamins and ones that the body already makes and therefore, people don’t have to worry about allergic reactions or overdosing, she said.

“These are all things that your body already makes and your body will utilize what it needs and what it doesn’t need, it just gets rid of it,” said Woodward.

There are some people, however, that would not make good IV therapy candidates, she said. These would include those whose kidney function is not great or those that may have heart conditions that can’t take a lot of fluids all at one time.

“That’s when it really comes into play for me to do a really good assessment,” she said, making sure those that come in “are a good candidate because not everybody can have IV therapy.”

When the consultation is complete, the next step is to get vital signs and verify that blood pressure and heart rate is all good prior to starting the infusion, which typically takes anywhere from 30-45 minutes. However, if it’s a first time visit, plan on an hour to include the initial medical history consult.

Once the IV is started, Woodward said she adds the nutrients as she doesn’t have anything that is pre-mixed. 

“I use all non-synthetic compounded nutrients, and so I create those cocktails myself,” and once those are started she lets her clients relax in her comfortable chairs with the lights turned down low.

Some, she said, will bring their laptops and work or have headphones in and relax during the therapy.

When they are finished, she gets another set of vital signs and “gives expectations for the rest of the day and all of my clients have my direct contact, so if they have questions or if they need anything, they can contact me after,” she said.

In the summertime, Woodward said lots of people come in that work outside and need fluids. But fall is her busiest time, as she said, “from the time school starts until about the end of March, it’s nonstop.”

She attributes this to everybody being back indoors again as opposed to summer when people are out and enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. 

During fall, “temperature starts to drop, people are outside less. That’s when your sickness starts,” she said.

At Grove Hydration, more than just IV therapy is offered, as Woodward said she has a complete line of oral vitamins, supplementation and organic CBD. Plus, she works with a local woman who has all holistic, organic products to help with allergies, elderberry, immunity and other items.

“I’m constantly looking for things to bring to my clients that would hopefully help their health and wellness,” she said.

Business hours are by appointment, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon.

Grove Hydration is in a good accessible place downtown located in with Main Street Family Practice.

“It’s great here because it’s a family practice. I see people coming and going all the time,” she said. It’s a good fit.”

One thing she wants people to know is, “I’m here. I offer in-office therapy, I do mobile visits. I’ve gone to people’s homes. I’ve gone to their work and done their treatments on their lunch break.”

Plus the fact that if you are ill and need fluids, you can get IV fluids and not have that wait in the emergency room and be exposed to other illnesses.

“It’s just a convenient service to utilize,” she said.

When asked why she would encourage people to check out hydration and vitamin therapy, Woodward said taking this proactive approach, she thought “it would just help you feel better and hopefully get sick less, she said.”

For additional information, go to www.grovehydration.com.