Have you ever felt this way? Where you went into a physician’s office because you felt like something was wrong, only to be told that you were “fine” – with very little conversation about additional workups or alternatives?
I OFTEN hear this in practice. I had a patient yesterday who was in a car accident in 2018 and several weeks later had another car accident. She DID go in and she did get care, and she did do PT, and she did have some improvements. However, she reports that she never made it back to pre-accident status. She is not the same and she is not fine. She recently visited her Primary Care Physician who told her that although she was having challenges that hindered her work, she was “fine”.
When I put up the x- rays and SHOWED her where she was NOT fine, she burst into tears. Twice. Once because she saw the TRUTH and the second time because someone validated what she knew deep down in her gut. Knowledge is powerful – just KNOWING she is not crazy, is priceless – for her, but Knowledge with action is the KEY to a new kingdom.
Knowledge with Action, coupled with the right healthcare practitioner/coach is Life Changing.
Put yourself in this picture: you are in a room with a new practitioner, someone you have only just met so you have not had the opportunity to learn to trust. You are sitting in front of a computer with a slew of black and white images on the screen which might as well be hieroglyphs. Together you are reviewing your films and where the challenges are … all of them, the ones you knew about and the ones you didn’t.
Now you have the knowledge. At this point I give almost every new patient the same analogy: the decisions and actions you have been taking to this point, have gotten you to this point right here, right now. You have done the best that you can with the information you had and if you continue on that “train track” making those same decisions, you will get more of the same results. You do NOT need me for that.
If more of the same is NOT what you want, if you want to choose a different “train track” with a different *destination, then I am the right choice. I will coach you on how to use a different decision-making algorithm than the one you have been, I will prescribe you the right stretches and strengthening exercises for your body and spine, I will adjust you so that you have your most highly functional nervous system capable of healing itself and my staff and I will support you while you stutter and sputter along the path to becoming the new you.
Important reference point: *destination: refers to whatever goal or “mark” you set. That could be running your first ever 5k because you thought your pudgy short little legs were not capable of it, ever. It could be getting up off of the floor from playing with your grandchildren because they used to think you were broken because you needed help getting up. It could be that you want to have the capability of riding your Harley Davidson for the next couple of decades and right now you are already riding far less than you would like because of the discomfort. It could be that you would like to be able to go out to dinner with friends and not be in agonizing neck pain that makes you fidget and prevents you from remembering the 2nd half of the dinner because you were so uncomfortable that you were just trying to hang on.
Each of these examples represents a REAL person in my practice. Would you like to hear the “rest of the story”? Pudgy legs is in training for her 5k and getting faster with no hip pain. Grandma got better and could get off the floor and so much more. Harley rider is riding the heck out of his Harley and has made several cross country rides. And “Neck Pain at Dinner” regularly goes out to dinner now and enjoys the whole dinner and conversation AND hiked the Grand Canyon and beat her hubby to the top, with no neck pain.
I want to clarify one thing: I am NOT beating up the Medical Profession, and I say that with capital letters. We are all, every single physician, limited to looking at you through the scope of our training and our experiences. We are Experts in what we’ve seen and studied, and we will ALWAYS look at you through that view finder.
If looking through that view finder with us does not give You the answers or the outcome that you are after, find another practitioner, maybe another specialist, maybe someone with skills and education outside the traditional, keep looking, trust your gut.
Know that the medical professionals are the greatest health interventionists of our time. When you are in a crisis, they are the Angels you need. However, if you are not fine, but also not in crisis… they will give you the best that they have to offer. I truly believe that the vast majority of the medical providers got into their professions to help people but that does not mean they have every answer. None of us do.
Each of us should guard our health like it is our Most Valuable Asset, because it is. Most likely you have never been cautioned to take care of your health and your body like it is the most delicate and valuable jewel in your crown. Of all of the jewels in your crown, a well-functioning nervous system is the one that will make all your other jewels shine the brightest. If you are brilliantly smart, or you are artistically gifted or you are a prolific musician or you are ridiculously strong and coordinated athlete, to achieve your best and highest contribution, you must have a fully functioning nervous system and the ONLY PRACTITIONER that can help you achieve those goals are Chiropractors. If you do not have a Chiropractor on your health care team, you will always know you are not fine… you just won’ t knows where to go from there. I will tell you: go find a Chiropractor that you connect with. A physician/coach/cheerleader/addition to your family, who you feel adds years to your life. You owe it to your future self.
You may not know where to start. Ask your friends. Ask your church group. Search “chiropractor near me” and read the reviews. If you are an athlete, find a doctor who is an active athlete. If you are a parent, find a doctor with kids. And if all else fails, call us! (602-712-9444) We will either help you or help you find the person that I would go see if I were in your shoes. Really. If you need help, we will help you.
