Roy Hammond, DC

My path into chiropractic began with years of searching for more lasting answers to recurring problems.

I played American football throughout high school and continued into college. By then I weighed around 140 kilos and was surrounded by people who were even bigger, stronger and faster. The training became relentless, the collisions became harder, and eventually I was falling asleep during both lectures and practice.

Stopping football helped, but not nearly as much as I expected. I was no longer constantly bruised and exhausted, but I still could not sit or stand comfortably for more than about ten minutes. I spent much of that semester lying in bed because every other position became unbearable.

My mother eventually found a chiropractor near my university and called him for me.

I agreed to make the appointment, although I had already seen several chiropractors. The treatments had usually felt pleasant, but my symptoms often returned before I finished driving home. I assumed that was simply the limit of what chiropractic could do.

This chiropractor told me his approach was different. I noticed that his office had none of the traction tables, electrical stimulation machines or other equipment I had come to associate with chiropractic care.

The experience changed more than how I felt. It changed what I thought was possible. Problems I had accepted as permanent began to change, and for the first time I felt that someone had offered me a coherent explanation for what was happening.

Six months later, I enrolled in chiropractic school.

That had never been the plan. I had simply reached a point where I wanted to understand the work well enough to do it myself.

Many people in healthcare describe the human body as a miracle, and with good reason. It does countless remarkable things. But I find more wonder in asking a different question: what does the body not do? It cannot overcome every force or adapt without limit.

Once those limits are understood, problems with the body become easier to explain. The list of places that deserve therapeutic attention narrows, and correction becomes more efficient.

Standwell was founded on educating people about those limits and on the empowerment that comes from learning to honor them. We’re honored to be part of the Amsterdam Noord community and look forward to serving you.