Adjusting your Perception

2 Comments June 18, 2013 drworobec

This week’s post is about professional communication, and in this case, a lack thereof, on my part.

Incident 1: I was out for a run with a friend who strained his calf muscle. This friend did not know that I ‘treated running injuries’.

Incident 2: A current patient, whom I was treating for low back pain, twisted his knee and was unaware that I could help.

Incident 3: A friend at the gym hurt his shoulder, but didn’t know that chiropractors ‘did shoulders’.

Sometimes I find myself feeling pigeon-holed by the term chiropractor, as people tend to have a pre-determined opinion about what that entails. Spines, right? ‘Cracking’, right? The thing is, I do much more than ‘spines’ and ‘cracking’. Chiropractors are musculoskeletal (MSK) specialists, and MSK boils down to ‘muscle’ and ‘skeleton’, meaning muscles and joints. That’s our forte, our talent, our strength.

So, I wanted to let you know what I do on a day-to-day basis at the clinic. What I really do– which is perhaps different than your perception of what a chiropractor does. I use various treatment techniques, because patients, injuries, and circumstances cannot be one-size-fits-all:

A.R.T. (Active Release Techniques): a ‘soft-tissue/movement-based massage technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia, and nerves’.
Graston Technique: ‘instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization’ that is used to ‘break down scar tissue and fascial restrictions’.
Acupuncture
Joint mobilization and/or manipulation
Kinesiology Tape/Rock Tape
Physical therapy modalities
Exercise Rehabilitation

I have a special interest in sports injuries, so a large part of my patient base is made up of active people. I’m an athlete, so I ‘speak athlete’. Another special interest of mine lies in paediatrics, so I have many patients in my practice who are children- from squishy lil’ newborns to temperamental toddlers to Bieber-crazed pre-teens. I’m a Mom, so I ‘speak Mom’.

It is my goal to get you out of pain. It is my goal to speed up your body’s healing process. It is my goal to figure out what caused your injury. It is my goal to give you the tools and knowledge to prevent your injury from reoccurring. I want you to feel better, faster. That’s the name of the game. That’s what I do. And I love doing it.

Happy Father’s Day: A Letter to My Husband

2 Comments June 11, 2013 drworobec

Dear Chris,

For the past four-and-a-half years, I’ve seen you grow and learn and thrive as a father. I’ve seen our children grow and learn and thrive with you as their father.

Last Father’s Day, our baby daughter was only three months old, and I found myself reflecting on the father/daughter relationship that I have with my dad. This year, with 15 months of being a father-of-two under your belt, I’ve noticed some amazing things about your relationship with our children from my vantage point:

-You are their hero. They watch everything that you do, learn from everything that you do, and want to do everything that you do. You are, and will continue to be, a big player in their self-esteem. You’re teaching them to be confident, self-assured, and proud.

-Little girls are just as capable as little boys, and little boys are just as capable as little girls. You are teaching our daughter to have strength, and our son to have sensitivity. You are ignoring gender roles and raising our kids as people. You’re teaching them equality.

-They’re watching how you treat me. They’re watching how you never leave or enter our house without kisses and hugs. You’re teaching them how to be a great partner. You’re teaching them about the important treasure that is family.

-The kindness you show to other people rubs off on them. They see you help others and give generously. You’re teaching them compassion and respect, manners and appreciation.

-Your humour is a staple in our lives; how quiet our house would be without laughter! They expect tickles with your hugs and whiskers with your kisses. You’re teaching them to smile, to find joy, and to feel happiness.

-The father/daughter relationship and father/son relationship are both unique. One is not better or worse, more or less, stronger or weaker than the other. But they are different. You are providing both of them with what they need. You’re teaching them to love and to be loved.

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! We love you!

A Female Chiropractor?

6 Comments June 4, 2013 drworobec

I have had some interesting experiences at work lately. As many of you know, I have recently relocated my chiropractic practice, so this means I am meeting many new faces and being introduced regularly.

A couple of these recent introductions have produced some……. disheartening? annoying? disappointing? eye-opening? thought-provoking? results.

On two separate occasions, once in-person and once on the phone, people have asked me if I am the new massage therapist. Now, before I go on, let me make something perfectly clear: I am not the least bit offended about being assumed to be a massage therapist. I love massage therapists. I have many friends who are massage therapists. I think it is a very valuable and important profession. What I am offended about is the fact that I was assumed to be a massage therapist because I am female.

I can’t say that I’ve experienced a glass-ceiling effect or sexual prejudice in my career thus far, at least not overtly, unlike many of my female counterparts in the corporate world. But I have experienced assumptions, differences in behaviour, and innuendoes, which are all ripples beneath the surface of gender discrimination.

This question would not be posed to a male. People would assume that a new male staff member is the new chiropractor, despite the fact that more female students are now enrolling in Chiropractic Colleges than male students. Despite the fact that it is common to see male RMTs, especially in sports-based clinics such as mine. Despite the fact that it says ‘Dr. Worobec’ on my shirt.

Let’s stop under-estimating women in the workforce. I know female truck-drivers, and police officers, and welders. These women excel in their professions not in spite of, or because of, their gender, but because of who they are as individuals.

Let’s teach our girls that their goals and aspirations are not limited by their gender. Let’s teach them to dream of being a firefighter, or an astronaut, or a surgeon. Let’s teach them that they can do it too.

Let’s teach them… and let’s re-learn it ourselves.