What differentiates us from other health care professionals or traditional Western medicine? This is the question you must answer Doing so will help you not only be able to describe what you do, or craft your "elevator speech"; it will also be the foundation for the management of your practice and your patient care. What's more, it will help guide you through raising a healthy and happy, naturally empowered family. I know this because it has done this for me. So, what is the answer? What differentiates how we practice? What is it that sets us apart?
Support vs. Suppression
System support is touted in many aspects of health care, but is it really system support, a good-intentioned symptom- / disease-based approach, or a sales tool? These days, we more commonly hear, "We are going to focus on the problem" in health care. However, the problem-based approach is usually guided by the symptoms; the target is a diagnosis or disease. What separates us as chiropractors? Our philosophy separates us.
Disease based care is a philosophy, too; a science-based approach that sees the body as a bunch of parts functioning together and inherently vulnerable to sickness and disease. Disease-based care is always looking for a diagnosis, whether it be failure of a part, the body being infected with a pathogen, or more recently, a genetic weakness. The treatment approach is to attack the weakness, sickness or disease with any and all means possible: chemotherapy, from aspirin to methotrexate; surgery, to repair or remove weakened, broken or genetically inferior parts; or symptom suppression to allow the patient to tolerate their failing health.
The power that made the body heals the body – it's not just a cool poster in my office; it is a philosophy that the body has an inherent wisdom and that we should never interfere with the bodies healing processes, never force a change, and only support and respect the bodies healing potential. Nature is greater than science; your healing potential is greater than you've been allowed to believe. And the symptoms? The symptoms are part of that process.
Teaching System Support: Focus on the Basics
The problem is the lack of health, that's it. To be at optimum health, you must support the systems of the body, since they all work together. But as with any good team, you need a leader. What is the leader of the systems of the body? The nervous system. All the systems of the body need support, first and foremost the nervous system (chiropractic). But the body also requires air, food, water, exercise, sleep and many other requirements that are often overlooked.
How can you teach your patients to embrace your support-based care and the philosophy of system support? Rather than focusing on a specific organ, for example, the kidneys, supply the basic tenets of health to the body. Let's start with nervous system function and quality, chlorine- and fluoride free water! If you can get a patient to comply with that, then maybe a check of their toxic intake is the next step: diet soda, medication use including any and all synthetic vitamins and inorganic minerals (especially calcium carbonate), etc. Next, assess and recommend changes to what they're eating: for example, unsweetened cranberry juice rather than Red Bull.
Fresh air is also important for the kidneys (smokers can have kidney effects), as is sleep and moderate exercise. Assess your patients' lifestyle behaviors with regard to these necessities, and suggest changes as necessary.
Never underestimate the healing power of the body. If you get these basics in order and allow the body at least six weeks to heal, your patient will be amazed at the results! If they still have impaired kidney function, you can try a kidney-specific protocol (for example, studies have shown kidney beans support the kidneys).
Intelligence at work is the foundation of our philosophy; working to support and never interfere with that intelligence is paramount to a successful chiropractor. After all, even RICE (rest, ice, compression and elevation) is symptom based. After all, what is inflammation? White blood cells, congregating in the affected or injured area to repair the damage, that's what it is. Should we interfere? I love the look on a patient's face when they come in with a swollen ankle that's been sprained and I tell them, "Great, your body is working perfectly!"
System support with chiropractic philosophy is easily accomplished by supporting the four basic requirements for life, and subsequently health: nervous system function (chiropractic); air (non-invasive air filtration, HEPA, UV, charcoal, water-based systems; water (no chlorine, fluoride, and definitely no vitamin-fortified water); and food (real food ... period).
The Power of Real Food
Real food is easy to recognize; real food is a living thing. You can't synthetically make a blade of grass, let alone any living thing. We are part of a food chain, and that chain is a chain of living things. So much of today's sickness and disease can and has been attributed to this synthetic lifestyle. Real food has intelligence, just like every living cell. Support the assimilation system by providing real food, which is what nature has always intended and provided.
This is the philosophy of system support: supporting the innate potential and intelligence of all the cells, organs and the body as a whole; supplying the necessary foundations of life and health, and fully embracing the power of nature. It is also the chiropractic philosophy; what separates us from the status quo. This is what separates us as chiropractors, and it is the wave of the future. I call on all chiropractors to join me as leaders in the health care revolution we are witnessing.
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
