Those chiropactors who were turned on to chiropractic in the late 60’s took upon themselves the mission of changing the world. At least with regard to an understanding of chiorpactic. Here we are now a generation later. Many of the leaders are gone, many have changed themselves and we still have not changed the world. Some might question whether we have even made an impact. Some authorities seem to feel that the increase in the number of chiropractors is largely regional and that on the whole, the percentage of the public that avails themselves of chiropractic care is no greater than a generation that most people, even those going to chiropactors associate the profession with bad backs and stiff necks. That was not the mission of those trying to change the world.
On an individual personal level the chiropractors who bought into this idea and those still buying into it, find out very early in practice that the majority of people do not appear to change. You go out into practice ready to change your own little world (your community) only to find out that 9 out of 10 people when hearing the philosophy of innate intelligence, the body healing itself and lifetime maintenance care do not get with the program. The D.C. says “what’s the use” gives up trying to change them and gives them what they seem to want, musculoskeletal patch up care. Or the chiropractor says, “I just have to go through 10,000 patients to find the 1.000 regular lifetime patients that I want (or whatever it is that he/she wants). If the straight chiropractor takes that attitude he/she can survive. But there is always that nagging thought in the back of the head, “Is there something wrong with me? Could I b e doing something more to turn around my community to what I know chiropractic to be. Do I need a new lay lecture, somebody’s video tapes, higher fees, lower fees, no fees, a more assertive personality, a less assertive personality? Do I need to get tougher with my patients or be more lenient?”
I recently heard a chiropractic speaker who proposed a generation ago that, “If you are not out to change the world everything else is Mickey Mouse.” On this particular day, speaking to a small cadre of straight chiropractic students he said, “With your philosophy you will always be in the minority.” I was at first a little upset. When did he change, or was he lying to me since 1966? Then as I thought about it a little more I realized the two are not necessarily inconsistent. Eleven disciples of Christ helped change the world. two thousand years later Christianity is a minority religion in the world. but no one can deny that the course of human history has been changed by it. Those statesmen who founded this country did not necessarily represent the majority. There were many Tories and many who could care less. Yet the small group won a War for Independence and this country has surely changed human history. small minority (civil rights activists) within a minority (the black population) drastically changed this country.
Look at what our minority profession has accomplished with support of a minority of the population. We have licensing laws in every state, insurance inclusion and federal government recognition. Whether we think they are positive or not, the fact is we created those changes as a minority.
So we may never be in the majority. Every man, woman and child in the country may never get under regular chiropractic care. I guess that’s what we expected that changing the world was going to result in. Unfortunately we forgot our philosophy. We know that giving an adjustment causes a positive change in the human organism. We also know that it is not our concern as to what the result of the positive change is. We need to apply that thinking to the body of mankind. When people get adjusted, they change for the better. What will be the result of those changes? We don’t know and its not our concern. We do know that every person adjusted and exposed to this philosophy is better off even if he or she is adjusted only once and never becomes a lifetime patient. That person is changed for the better, and has a little more free expression of the innate intelligence of his or her body because of the adjustment and a little clearer perspective of life by virtue of the philosophy he or she heard. That is no small thing. v9n6