I began Chiropractic care in February of 2002.
I was having a number of physical problems with my body.
I had suffered two back injuries. One at the base of the neck which was apparently caused at birth. This had resulted in massive headaches and pain. The other back injury was in my lower back, which was caused by a boating accident about 15 years ago, which resulted in lower back pain for 5 or 6 years.
I was also in danger from antibiotic abuse. Over the last 20 years, I had been taking what I now know to be excessive medication prescribed by doctors to treat me for bronchial infections and pneumonia.
As if that wasn’t enough, I was also having pain in my right leg and ankle. My right leg would hurt severely when standing and walking; this had gone on for at least 10 years. The ankle was always swollen and sore.
I had had these problems for years. The neck injury had given me headaches for 20 years, the lower back injury had been very painful for at least 6 years. And the excessive amounts of antibiotics had caused a poor immune system, causing me to be just plain sick all the time.
I had seen many doctors over the years for these problems. For the headaches, I decided that the jaw misalignment the doctor told me about might be causing the problem. So I wore braces for 2 years. Then I also had my eyes checked. I do need glasses for reading, but I do not need them for any other correction. For my right leg and ankle problems, I saw 3 different doctors. My primary care physician dismissed it. A foot specialist treated me for a year and a half with doses of cortisone and whirling water treatments. The last doctor told me to do stretching exercises for my back leg muscles. I saw many doctors who could not, or would not, help me get to the causes of my problems. I realize now that I listened to people who did not know what they were talking about. Besides the doctors, there were a few members of my own family. My husband told me, “You have to know what good feels like in order to know you feel bad.” When you are hurting, this makes absolutely no sense. And my son said to me, “Mom, you are just old.” I believed him.
When I think of how much my normal life has been affected, I am amazed that I could simply learn to tolerate the problems and try to lead the life I have led. I have always been well aware of the fact that I have been blessed in this life. I did not grow up to be an alcoholic; I did not grow up to be a drug addict; I did not grow up to be hooked on pot. And I have not smoked myself to death like my father and my sister did. The only thing I cannot get enough of is chocolate. So, with never having any of these problems, I could never figure out why I always felt so bad.
I worked for many years before retiring in 1995. During that time, I took care of a busy job, a husband, two growing children, a dog, a cat, and I went to school at night. I remember the feeling that was with me each day. It was as if I were walking in the ocean, up to my waist in water, trying to walk very fast, but I was kept at a slow pace no matter how hard I tried. During these years, I put up with the headaches, the stomach pain, and the back pain. I had convinced myself that the problems were due to stress, and believe it or not, I thought I was allergic to my cat. Now that I am much better, it is almost funny. And yes, I still have my cat. Today, she is a healthy and elderly 17-year old lady.
I know that I have had several goals that have been altered due to all these problems. I earned a 2-year Associate of Arts Degree in Accounting by attending evening classes. It took me a long six years to complete. I was only able to handle one course at a time, along with my already busy schedule, and everything seemed to entirely wipe me out. When I completed the A.A., I had no strength to continue my education, even though it was my desire to do so.
Another event in my life that was held down concerned my job. One part of the Wellness Program that I ran was a Walking Program for the employees. I set it up for them to walk at least three times a week, one mile per day. I also installed a large progress chart in their lunch room where I saw that they gathered each morning to see who was outshining the other. They all became quite competitive. I also held an annual awards luncheon at the end of the program year and gave out trophies for the best walkers. That part was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed it. The bad part was that I was probably the least able to physically endure those fast walks. All the employees were very healthy and capable, and I was always the one who brought up the rear. At the end of each walk, I thought I was going to die. Needless to say, I was not the star of the show. How funny it is now, I was the one who was supposed to be their leader.
Another event that was disruptive for me was the birth of my first grandson. This should have been a joyous time for me. My daughter returned to work and asked me to care for him three days a week. I did this for almost four years. I knew this was a precious time for us as I remembered how fast our own children had grown up and were suddenly in school. I wanted to enjoy him as much as I could, but what I felt was extreme exhaustion, This was so important to me, that I gave it all I could, and thank goodness, I was able to spend those years with him. Today he is a beautiful 6-year-old kindergartener. My husband and I now have three grandsons, and they are all special little friends.
Another event in my life that has not been good because of these physical problems was having to stop a hobby I really love. My first love is historical reading, which requires little effort. It is a time to relax and enjoy the moment. The other hobby I really like is pottery. I began taking pottery classes upon retirement. I learned to work with clay and use the electric potters wheel. In the beginning, I made more of a mess than anything, but with time I actually became accomplished on the wheel. But during the entire time, I had pain in my lower back as I bent over the wheel, sometimes for two hours at a time. As time moved on, the pain became greater as I spent time working in the art studio, and I also began to experience terrible soreness on my left hand. The blistering I had begun to notice became much worse. I eventually put my wheel away. Today, I realize that hopefully soon I can be making a big mess in the studio again. I know it won’t be long before I am back in the saddle again.
One event has taken place in all this madness that is actually wonderful. I learned from my chiropractor to lose weight and keep it off. He began treatment that included a special eating program. In about 4-5 months, I lost 25 pounds. I was thrilled. Also not a good dieter is my husband. I never asked him to be on my program, but he began to see my joy at the weight loss, and he decided to try it for himself. He lost 20 pounds in 2-3 months.
I began to see Dr. Bolick for treatment of all these problems. He patiently questioned me about many of the symptoms and was immediately able to find the causes. He began therapy for my spine and within 3-4 weeks the headaches that I had learned to live with began to disappear. The lower back pain, which was severe, has taken about 5-6 months to disappear. My right leg began to correct itself immediately and the leg pain and the swollen ankle began to disappear after about 4-6 weeks. I was totally surprised by the leg correction as I had never mentioned this problem to the doctor. We had so many other things to discuss and testing that needed to be done, that I just never got that far. The testing has been done, and I am now on the road to recovery.
My impression of the Chiropractic health benefits are tremendous. I only wish I had found Chiropractic sooner. I worked for nine years as a personnel specialist. My job consisted mainly of taking care of people, but one of the fun parts of my job was running the company’s Wellness Programs for all the employees. During that time, I spent many hours looking for health care information that I could use in these programs to keep the employees healthy and happy. To my dismay, today, I find very little information regarding the many benefits of Chiropractic care. I see now that the majority of the information I was able to find was all about prescriptions curing every
ailment and doctors to see for these medications. I only wish I had known then what I know now. I could have helped so many more people who might have been experiencing the same problems I had. But today, my life is improving so dramatically, step-by-step, I know I am on the road to recovery, and what a wonderful feeling it is.
Maybe I had these problems just so I could sit down and lay it all out on paper for you to read. Maybe you or someone else may have some of my awful symptoms. Or maybe you just feel something is not quite right, but you cannot put your finger on what the problem is. I want you to know that I finally found someone who knows what he is doing, Dr. Bolick is a great doctor, and the Chiropractic field has changed my life. If you need help, please call the Bolick Clinic. They will take good care of you.
Signed,
D. R.
