Breath of Life: How Chiropractic Changes and Saves Lives

This is my true life story that I wrote for a book........."Chicken Soup for the Chiropractic Soul" perhaps 15 years ago. The purpose is to share the reality that "Pain" is NOT what we treat. We remove the interference to Nerve Flow that causes Dis-Ease and sometimes pain. I hope you enjoy it.

Breath of Life

Given the opportunity to share a positive Chiropractic experience worthy of being published, I was flooded with memories of the past twenty years.?In that time, I’ve had the privilege of personally touching the lives of more than twelve-thousand patients. Choosing just one story from thousands was a challenge. As you read my selection, you’ll smile a knowing smile and understand why this is my hands-down favorite.

?My life was changed forever when I was studying pre-med and running on the track team in college. One day I was sitting in my car at a stoplight when a drunk driver rear-ended me at high speed. I must have lost consciousness for a few moments, because I woke up staring at the ceiling of my car. Gathering my wits, I looked around to find I was in the middle of a busy intersection. I also noticed I was struggling to breathe.

?Paramedics arrived at the scene, put me in a cervical collar, and whisked me away to a nearby emergency room. In the hospital, x-rays were taken, and an exam was performed revealing that nothing was broken. Painkillers and muscle relaxants were prescribed, and I was told to go home. When I asked about my breathing difficulty, the doctor had no reply other than, “You’re fine; just take the pills and you’ll be good as new.” Two weeks later, I was still suffering from severe neck pain and difficulty breathing. This made it impossible for me to compete in the 400-meter events…or even to train at all.

?My father suggested that I visit a chiropractor. Ironically, he was raised getting regular chiropractic care in the 1930’s and 40’s?and would occasionally visit a chiropractor when I was growing up in the 60’s and 70’s. I say ironic because he never took any of his nine children to a chiropractor. I admit I was a bit skeptical about his suggestion.

When I actually did see a chiropractor, he described the connection between the spine and the lungs; he suggested that the accident might have caused misalignment in my neck; and he concluded that this was the probable cause of my difficulty breathing. His explanation was so logical that I agreed to let him “adjust” my spine. He then performed a quick and gentle adjustment to my neck. Much to my amazement – almost instantaneously – I was able to breathe fully again for the first time in two weeks. Not only did this enable me to again focus on my studies, I was also able to resume competition in track. The experience impressed me so much that I decided to change my academic program from medicine to Chiropractic. Fortunately, the pre-med coursework I had completed was the same as that required for the study of Chiropractic.

?Upon graduation from the Parker College of Chiropractic in December 1992, I practiced in Connecticut for eighteen months before moving to Portugal. On September 17th, 1994, Chiropractic dramatically changed my life – once again. It was on a hot September day in Lisbon, Portugal, that my son Christopher was born. My wife and I were preparing and?hoping for a home birth. Due to prolonged labor and the risk of medical complications caused by a previous C-section, our doctor suggested we go to the hospital for another C-section. My wife was emotionally devastated – for nine months, she had looked forward to a home birth and wanted no repetition of the complications of her first institutional delivery.

We rushed to the hospital for the procedure. Although I was asked to wait outside the operating room during the delivery, I was dressed?in a surgical gown?– ready to assist at a moment’s notice. A short time later, my wife had a negative reaction to the anesthesia and her heart nearly stopped. Christopher was delivered, and one of the nurses urgently called me into the operating room. My wife was shivering uncontrollably, and the primary doctor said, “We almost lost her….” Not exactly words of encouragement and confidence.

The nurses were struggling to get Christopher to start breathing while the doctors attended my wife. The nurses?had suctioned Christopher’s mouth and spanked his behind but had the look of panic on their faces when they realized he wasn’t crying or breathing. He looked blue, slimy, and limp; and his barely-open eyes were rolling in his head. Without hesitation, I took Christopher in my hands and did the only thing that came naturally to me. It was as if some mysterious force had taken possession of my body. I held my son’s limp little body in my hands and cradled his tiny head with one hand. I adjusted his atlas – the first bone in the spine that supports the head. I?used a technique?I had learned personally?from the late Dr. Larry L. Webster* just three years earlier. Once again, to my complete amazement, Chiropractic worked in a miraculous way.?Christopher arched his little spine, stretched his arms and legs, and took a huge breath for the first time in his life.

?It was on this day that I became a real Chiropractor. Before then, I had just thought I understood what it was to be a Chiropractor – treating a lot of low back pain, neck pain, auto accident, and other patients on a daily basis. On September 17th, 1994, I was powerfully reminded about why I had chosen to be a chiropractor. It was not pain, but rather the inability to breathe and perform, that originally led me to see a chiropractor. That changed my life completely. On this September day, the power of Chiropractic saved the life of my Christopher. The adjustment reconnected his nervous system to function better, as if by flipping a switch. As B.J. Palmer – the founder of Chiropractic – observed: “The Power that made the Body, Heals the body, from above down, inside, out, and it doesn’t happen any other way.” Chiropractors save lives every day. My son is alive because of Chiropractic. If a Chiropractic adjustment can save a life, just imagine what it can do to keep you and your loved ones?healthy.?

? *Larry L. Webster, DC (1937-1997)

Dr. Larry Webster, the “Grandfather of Chiropractic Pediatrics,” was a 1959 graduate of the Logan College of Chiropractic in Chesterfield, Missouri. In 1975, he founded the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA), a non-profit organization dedicated to providing education, training, and support research on chiropractic care in pregnancy and throughout childhood because “all children need chiropractic care.” Today, the ICPA serves more than 2,000 members worldwide. In addition to his work with the ICPA, Dr. Webster served the Life College of Chiropractic in Marietta, Georgia, as a pediatric instructor for eleven years, a clinic director for eleven years, and an associate professor. He also served on the post-graduate faculties of several chiropractic colleges including the Parker College of Chiropractic in Dallas, Texas, where – in 1991 – Dr. Andrew Hatch was one of his students.

Andrew P. Hatch, DC, MBA, PhD

CEO, Global Wellness

Sacavém, Portugal