What I’m about to share changed the course of my life. It’s also a BIG reason why I’m so committed to helping more families.
I am a dad of a kiddo with sensory challenges. This is where the events that shaped my life began.
This all started when my son was in 4th and 5th grade. During this time, I received countless calls form school on his behavior. He was having melt downs, frustrations, and even a fight with another student. I also saw it at home with his homework. His inability to focus lead to frustrations from both him and I. He would get frustrated when I tried to help him, and I would get frustrated that he didn’t pay attention.
It was a massive cycle that was getting worse, one that I thought would never go away!!
I want to introduce to you my son Jacob, who is now almost 15 years old. The pregnancy with Jacob was difficult and filled with stress. His birth was even more of a struggle, ending up in a C-Section. His early years were filled with colic, 💩 constipation, 👂 ear infections, difficulty 💤 sleeping and many other challenges. At the time, I thought it was all normal and that every baby went through it. He continued to develop, but much slower than most. He was super smart but behind in speech. At the age of two, his pediatrician wanted to diagnosis him on the Autism Spectrum. At the time, I didn’t know much about it. But I knew that I didn’t want a child being labeled if he truly was not autistic. At the age of 4, we knew no different so we trusted and did what the conventional medical doctors told us to do. He was placed on 💊💊 medication that changed who he was….he became a zombie and was completely disconnected! I could not stand to see him that way so I took him off the meds immediately. At the age of 7, his mother and I went through a divorce. Unfortunately, having a sensory needs child put a strain on our marriage that we could not get through.
As a parent, it 💔 broke my heart to watch him suffer and be so unhappy. I remember feeling so weak and hopeless when I would 😭😭 cry because I did not know what to do. I was a grown man crying because I had no answers, but just wanted to help my son. It was a struggle to watch him not be able to express himself in a manner that he or I understood. My frustrations came out as yelling at him, getting mad, saying things I didn’t mean. Spanking when it was not the correct time and giving punishments that were not warranted. For so many years we went the medical model as that was all we ever knew…
When he was two years old we moved to Texas so I could start chiropractic school. I got into chiropractic to help people with low back pain and neck pain like myself….OR….at least that is what I thought at the time!!! Unfortunately, all of my training in school taught me how to manage and treat neck and back pain. Never did it talk about caring for a kiddo like my son!!! I loved working with my 🙌 hands and wanted to help people, and I knew that chiropractic would be a great avenue to do so!! After graduating from chiropractic college, I went to work for a Personal Injury clinic that just continued to train me in the same pain-based model that I was taught at school. It wasn’t until I was ready to leave the profession due to the stress of dealing with insurance companies and lawyers over car accident victims. I did not want to practice in that model anymore, so I took the risk to start my own private practice. At first, I still thought it was all about neck and back pain until a friend introduced me to the science, research and techniques for helping babies and kids get well. I started to train with some of the best scientists, clinicians and colleagues in the world. I trained under mentors while traveling all over the country, spending hours studying, collaborating and learning. I had my eyes opened to a whole NEW world about chiropractic and what it does for kiddos just like MY SON JACOB!!!
After applying everything that I was learning to my own son I saw the miracles with my own eyes. Jacob is now thriving and crushing his own goals. His grades and focus in school are off the charts, and best thing yet is that I don’t have to help with his homework everyday!! He has won numerous awards in band and school over that past four years. Why is this a big deal? Because he is healing!
As a father that has his son living with him for the last 4 years, it has been a joy and a blessing to see the changes in him. To see his and my frustrations decrease. I no longer cry or feel weak, because NOW I know what to do and how to help him!! We now get to enjoy life!!
What changed? My understanding, training and chiropractic technique that can detect and address the underlying causes of problems that my son and many other kids just like him suffer from. What I realized is that Jacob’s entire life, even while he was in-utero, he was experiencing a neuro storm that were contributing to his behavior challenges, attention deficits, meltdowns, and frustrations. All the early signs were there…I just didn’t know how to interpret them. I have always had a drive to help people through struggles, yet it wasn’t until I went through everything with my own son that I figured out who that God-given drive was meant for. It was meant for you, mom and dad. It was meant to explain what is happening in your child’s brain, not just give you a label, a stack of resources, and a wish that you will get well. I’m Dr. Justin and we created Expressing Life to find your family answers. You’re not alone.
