Emily’s Chiropractic Miracle
Here is Emily’s chiropractic success story:
My journey all started when I was a sophomore in high school running cross country. I loved it and was looking forward to making the varsity team next year. However, when the first race of my junior season came, I was disheartened at my performance. I told my parents, “I feel like I can’t move”. I just felt off, wrong, out of wack.
This all led me to visiting my primary care doctor and getting x-rays which revealed scoliosis in my spine. This is what I was told: your spine isn’t bad enough for surgery… yet. All you can do is wait. At sixteen years old, I don’t think I fully understood the weight of a potential spinal surgery looming in the distance where they would cut open my entire spine and stabilize it with metal rods. But with no other options, I waited.
At this point, I just had some left hip pain – so I stopped running. I did see a sports chiropractor, but he never even looked at my x-rays, and I found little to no improvement. I was only given a heel lift for my shoe that didn’t help. So, I quickly gave up on this.
When I was ready for college, I was all signed up to be a preschool teacher. For no reason in particular, my YouTube started recommending chiropractic videos, and I would watch them for hours. It’s funny to say that a YouTube video changed my life, but that’s the truth. It was one specific case study video where a young man was stuck in such a horrible posture, completely bent over at the waist, only able to stare at the ground. At the end of that video, he walked out of that office upright, able to see his dad’s face for the first time in a very long time. That video changed my soul – whatever that chiropractor had in his hands was the most miraculous thing I had ever witnessed. So, I immediately changed all of my college classes. I thought, I’m going to become a chiropractor even if chiropractic can’t help me.
College went by, and slowly but surely, chronic pain began to seep into my life. All of the pain from all of my spine problems rested at the tip top of my neck. My neck muscles were SO tight and painful, it felt like there was a tourniquet wrapped around them forever squeezing tighter and tighter. I had migraine headaches and I took 600mg of Advil all the time – I never left the house without it. And I wouldn’t go see a chiropractor because I thought, chiropractors don’t help me.
By my senior year of college, I didn’t realize how bad things had gotten. I was chronically fatigued – so incredibly exhausted that I had a hard time functioning. I stopped going to the gym. My back hurt while working at my daycare holding the little ones. I could hardly sleep because of my pain, and every day I felt like I was running on zero hours of sleep. I got so tired of life, tired of running from class to job to class to job, and tired of any and everything that came my way. How can I keep going like this? I thought, If today was so bad, then I can’t even do tomorrow, let alone the rest of my life.
I continued to push through one day after another but even with my faith in the Lord, troubles still continued to come my way. I had given up on my chiropractic dream. I was too tired of everything. I couldn’t do it. I got on track to graduate a semester early because I was tired of it all. I was looking for jobs, ready to work a 9-5 with no purpose for the rest of my life. Then, by some miracle, a brand new chiropractic college was randomly started 30 minutes from where I lived. And I was going to graduate in December. And they were taking students in January. For lack of better words, I feel like God physically shoved me to apply – and I got in and started classes two weeks later.
But my pain only got worse. While sitting in class, I’d have to lean my elbows on the table just to hold my head up because the pain was so bad. At the end of the day, I’d have migraines so bad, forcing tears down my face, only to make my migraine worse. I was taking so much Advil and only able to fall asleep if my neck was on a heating pad ALL NIGHT. Additionally, my hip pain returned, feeling like my bone was slowly getting eaten away. And the worst part? I was sitting in class all day in chronic pain learning about the miracle of chiropractic that I thought I would NEVER experience.
But God had me in the right place. After about 9 months of suffering through school, I was in a Gonstead Technique class with my instructor who was none other than Dr. Joel Marley. He knew I had scoliosis at this point and I still remember what he said to me that shifted my entire paradigm. I said “I’m going to get degeneration in my spine,” and he said “Not necessarily, your body is just leaning away from nerve interference.” So simple – just like that.
So, due to his big heart and love for his patients, he would adjust me after class. Not a full-spine work-up, but enough to keep me going another day. Dr. Marley was the first doctor to ever acknowledge that I had a lot going on. I got adjusted by lots of other docs since starting chiropractic college, and I had previously been told: “You’re just stressed out from school,” or “I don’t know why your neck still hurts.” Or the best one: “You’re probably in a healing crisis” – well DUH.
So, God had me in the right place and I started under regular care at Dr. Marley’s office, Family First Chiropractic and I finally got to experience the miracle of chiropractic for me. My body WAS just leaning away from interference. The adjustments took the interference off the nerves, and my body started to heal for the first time in a long time.
Within a couple weeks, my neck pain I had had FOR YEARS resided to a level of comfort I never remember having. I could finally sleep, whereas before I would lay down in pain and wake up in pain. I could sit in class and not have to physically hold my head up. I could check my blind spot in my car without getting a headache just for turning my head. I didn’t realize how
many daily activities I couldn’t do until I could do them again.
I didn’t think I had low back problems until I couldn’t even walk around at an outlet mall without having to stop and lean on benches or counters. Now, I can walk around with my family and enjoy our outings.
My left hip that was bothering me got better, so I was able to move more and workout more which in turn is even better for my joints! I was able to jog again after giving up cross country almost 10 years ago. My husband and I even got a puppy because I finally felt like I’d be able to walk further than a few blocks.
I didn’t think I had digestive problems until my daily stomach aches after eating any food suddenly went away. I didn’t think I had menstrual problems until my period went from seven days to two.
I am now twenty-four years old and no longer in chronic pain. I received my chiropractic miracle and I’m ready to graduate and do the same for others through Gonstead chiropractic care.
Dr. Marley, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
-Emily
If you have a health struggle that you have settled on living with, consider having your spine and nervous system checked to see if chiropractic care could be the answer you have been searching for.
Schedule Your New Patient Appointment today and see what chiropractic can do for you!
