Q: I just received your latest catalogue and read the article about "Going Spineless.” I find that very interesting because my office went spineless years ago. I take no X-rays, have no spinal models, and I only discuss wellness and the nerve system with people. Your article is nice, yet so much of the products you sell are spine related. If one truly understands Innate Intelligence, the major thought of chiropractic, then these pamphlets and charts become meaningless. We are Nerve system doctors! The spine is merely our mode of approach to addressing the nerve system.
A: You and I are in total agreement. But here's my challenge. There are not (yet) enough chiropractors who know what you know who can support a chiropractic patient education supply company that would be totally spineless. Most of the profession is still in the bone-out-of-place-putting-pressure-on-a-nerve model of chiropractic. No problem. Even with what I think could be a shortsighted view of chiropractic, they are still adding value to patients by helping them avoid drugs and surgery.
Thus, to have a viable business I must reflect the profession as much as lead it. If I were to remove the mechanistic- and spine-based materials from our catalog, it wouldn't change the profession in the slightest. But I can support those who promote a more tonal model of chiropractic. Or speak out at seminars about this myopic, mechanistic notion of chiropractic. Which I do.
Long ago I determined that my job is not to save the chiropractic profession. I love it and love serving chiropractors, wherever they are on their journey. However, your frustration might be better directed at chiropractic colleges, licensing boards, technique instructors or others who advance a bone-based model and stray from the path so clearly articulated by both the founder and developer of chiropractic.