In 1980 I was living in California and studying business at community college. I didn’t want to study business; I just didn’t know what else to do and I wanted to make a decent living. My roommate had just started seeing a chiropractor. In fact, his clinic was directly across the street from us. I would be sitting in my little study nook, looking out the window, and watching the patients go in and out of Dr. Stizman’s chiropractic clinic. I was always so inspired by how many people he was helping.

Pretty soon my girlfriend at the time started working for him and I started to learn more about his practice. That was my introduction into chiropractic care, and I was fascinated. The importance of observation was apparent from the beginning, and I discovered I had an intuitive sense of knowing what was wrong.

In chiropractic college they talk about how ninety percent of your diagnosis comes from observation, specifically observing how your patient handles stress. Chiropractors are trained to look at the big picture when it comes to our patients’ health. What are the physical, chemical, and emotional stresses in their lives and how are they handling those? Are they relaxed? Are they nervous? What level of pain or discomfort do they have?

What are their limitations? Etc. People often underestimate how much stress affects the healing process, I talk about this more in depth in my earlier blog An Introduction to Stress.

I became deeply interested in how observation worked in health care, specifically how it was used in chiropractic care. My experience working at the pet store had already opened my eyes to the importance of observation, but I hadn’t experienced it on this scale.

Chiropractic was never something I dreamed of when I was little. Instead, it was slowly cultivated through my experiences trying different paths. Who knows what I would be doing now if I hadn’t worked at that pet store, if I hadn’t discovered my love for observation and problem solving, if I hadn’t started business classes, if I hadn’t watched people come in and out of Dr. Stizman’s.

Sometimes our “calling” takes time, and sometimes it needs room to grow and change. However, there is no denying that when we find it, it can push us further than we ever imagined. I hope you take some time today to think about your calling; how has it evolved with you over the years? Did you always recognize it, or did it take some time to develop? I’d love to hear more about your calling and history next time you’re in the office, and I hope you have a happy and healthy day. Be Well.

Contact our El Cerrito CA chiropractic clinic today!