Besides pilates, there has been a weekly constant in my Mama Makeover experience… that is visiting every Tuesday with Dr. Amy Watson of Whole Mama~Whole Child for chiropractic care. Now, let me start by saying I have never been to a chiropractor before, so I was a little nervous. I’ve had friends and family say they couldn’t live without their ‘adjustments’, but I was a quiet skeptic and quite frankly, thought it was just about working on a bad back and hearing things ‘pop’. I never knew it could be gentle chiropractic care that incorporates deep healing tissue work and rehabilitation exercises! After talking with Amy on the phone – & before my first appointment – I knew she was unique. She was so enthusiastic yet really calmed my nerves as a ‘newbie’ to chiropractic care by emphasizing how the therapy would help open me up, become more mobile, and alleviate pain in certain parts of my body. I couldn’t wait to start the process!
Spinal and cranial restrictions interfere with the body’s natural ability to function properly. Freeing these restrictions minimizing any torsion, tension, or imbalance in the system and allows the body to function at 100% of its given potential. – from http://mamababychiro.com/
An expert in a very specialized field, Amy has a real passion for kids and women’s health, especially postpartum mamas – and it turns out she has a beautiful heart for the broken-hearted too… me! 
She has one of the most innate & tuned-in abilities to work with grieving mamas I’ve yet experienced in my healing journey. To help us stabilize and regain confidence and mobility in our bodies, bodies that have been wreaked by havoc and the suffocating aches of loss, is a tough job… one I knew might take several weeks to break into, so I decided to sit back and watch the five weeks unfold with her before ‘documenting’ my results. Well, Mamas… I am just shocked at the difference in my body!
She has one of the most innate & tuned-in abilities to work with grieving mamas I’ve yet experienced in my healing journey. To help us stabilize and regain confidence and mobility in our bodies, bodies that have been wreaked by havoc and the suffocating aches of loss, is a tough job… one I knew might take several weeks to break into, so I decided to sit back and watch the five weeks unfold with her before ‘documenting’ my results. Well, Mamas… I am just shocked at the difference in my body!Let me paint a picture of pre-MM Andrea, in term of my body & it’s aches, pains, flexibility, mobility. TENSE! TIGHT! That is how my body has felt for the past five years. Tightness in every limb, but especially my neck and shoulders. For the past three years, I’ve also had pretty consistent lower back pain. I suffered with migraine headaches for over 12 years, then they subsided in 2005, but often, headaches remained a constant. I had a rough time carrying my babies… although I carried very small, I overcompensated (like we all do!) and spent 18 months in strange positions & postures, which added to my tension & stiffness. For well over a decade, my right hip has been about 30% mobile and flexible. I suffered a stress facture in my right groin during my running days – and instead of addressing it, I just let scar tissue pile up in the area and there it stuck. The pain that would shoot down my neck, through my shoulders, down my back and even the backs of my legs could be horrible at times, but I just pooh-poohed it & would load up on Advil. Now that’s not a recipe for healing!
Soooo… I meet Amy and I’m thinking ‘wow, it’d be really cool if my back felt a little better’. Ohhhh, there is so much that is feeling better, it’s AMAZING! But it’s taken some dedication to visit these places in my body each week – meaning, once is great, but really, you need to be committed to the process early on with weekly adjustments. From what I understand, your body has a memory and likes to settle back into the ‘old way’. But as your body gets more and more used to its new stability & form, it’s less likely to go back to that old way. Amy can comment on the clinical side here and the differences she’s witnessed, but honestly, I am just in awe that I can turn my head when I’m driving again. Like, to see if there is a car coming up on my left and my head makes a huge rotation. That wasn’t happening… I was straining and having to move my entire body to look over my shoulder. Maddy is fascinated because I can now see her so much more quickly if she’s acting up in the backseat - haha! Before, I could barely move my eyes to the right… I’m not kidding. I really didn’t realize how little range of motion I had in my neck. Wow – it’s like night and day! As for my back and hip and shoulders, they have loosened and restabilized by leaps and bounds. The motion & strength I’ve gained in my right hip is wild. I know that by visiting Amy and opening up and adjusting my hip each week, in addition to pilates and Gyrotonic, I’ve literally created a NEW HIP! Her services compliment any exercise program, so ask her about what combo would be best for your problem areas.
My favorite thing was the other day at our visit, she said ‘wow, Andrea, I’m having a hard time finding things that need adjusting!’. Can you believe it? And after only five sessions? I didn’t know what I was missing out on, but today, I do. What a blessing to pave the way now for a better feeling body tomorrow! Thank you, Amy… you are a shining light in my week and I’m so grateful for your care and the difference you’re making in my body. Bless you!
