Mike Michalowicz, a threepeat guest and incredible author, is here today. Mike joins us to discuss his new book “Get Different,” marketing that can’t be ignored, and boosting your clinic’s profile post-COVID. He takes us through the necessity of marketing in unique ways and why it is your responsibility as a service provider to market yourself. With the pandemic continuing to rage, many people are stuck in a fear state. As a chiropractor, you can help them – you just have to let them know you are there.   Key Takeaways: A brief overview of Mike’s previous books and new release. [0:48] How the Mastermind sessions help to bring about and refine Mike’s ideas. [1:35] Where the initial idea for book topics come from. [2:25] How Mike crowdsources ideas from the community. [2:45] Understanding that we are at the whim of the customers. [3:20] Why you have a responsibility to market. [4:40] Getting different with your marketing. [6:10] Differentiating your services from the white noise. [6:45] Why you don’t need to be complicated to be impactful. [9:10] Understanding your target community. [10:28] Examples of standout marketing from Mike’s career. [10.50] Creating online buzz for virtually no cost. [13:15] Experiment, measure, amplify, and repeat. [15:00] Why we are fear based and how to get around it. [15:15] Presenting yourself as a service and offering kindness. [16:50] The disadvantage advantage. [17:44] Exercises for creative thinking. [19:04] Why you should grow, but not grow up. [21:50] About the new book, Get Different. [23:00] Words of wisdom and inspiration. [24:20]   Get Different: https://www.gogetdifferent.com For more information on the Vitality Shift program visit: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

The Vitality Shift for Chiropractors

Chiropractic Marketing That Can’t Be Ignored with Mike Michalowicz

Today, Dr. Don is joined by Dr. Stephen Porges, Ph.D. He is a distinguished university scientist at the Kinsey Institute, Founding Director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium at Indiana University, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and proponent of the polyvagal theory. Dr. Porges is with us to discuss the polyvagal theory in detail and how it relates to chiropractic. Dr. Porges takes us through the beginnings of polyvagal theory and how it can influence bodily function. It’s important to create safety for patients in order to create that vagal response to bring them out of a defensive state.  Dr. Don and Dr. Porges discover some of the many similarities between the benefits of Chiropractic care and the Vagal break as described by the polyvagal theory.    Key Takeaways: How Dr. Porges describes the polyvagal theory. [5:03] What drew Dr. Porges to commit his academic life to this theory. [6:35] Descriptions of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems. [8:31] The dorsal vagas and its role as the ‘old vagas’. [9:36] How and why the body exits dorsal collapse. [12:02] Why we don’t remember trauma. [14:00] Navigating defensive states by using vagal activity. [14:53] The Safe and Sound Protocol. [17:46] The long road to creating a theory of neural modulation. [20:58] Returning autonomy to patients through polyvagal manipulation. [22:00] How our society keeps us locked in states of defense. [25:00] Creating a state of ease through awareness. [27:10] Activating the ventral vagal process through neural exercises. [28:00] Explaining co-regulation and how it works. [30:16] Proprioception through Chiropractic care and improving safety. [34:02] Understanding the mind/body relationship and feedback loops. [36:20] Why client interaction is key to creating safe spaces. [39:50] Alleviating the burden of responsibility and creating bodily awareness in patients. [43:10] How Dr. Porges conducts his research. [43:55] Case studies of long hauler COVID sufferers and how vagal stimulation can help them. [47:28] The importance of self-compassion and self-care for Chiropractors out there. [50:51]   The Polyvagal Institute: https://www.polyvagalinstitue.org For more info on the Vitality Shift visit  https://www.thevitalityshift.com/ 

Polyvagal Theory and Chiropractic, How It Can Influence Bodily Function With Dr. Stephen Porges

On today’s show, Dr. Don is joined by Jake Steiner, a retired stockbroker who has dedicated himself to improving his own and others eyesight through natural methods. Some topics Jake will discuss are how he became interested in natural eyesight improvement and what pseudo-myopia is. Jake takes us through how he arrived at improving his eyesight through natural methods. Being told he needed to change his eyeglass prescription for the first time since he was a teenager due to genetics didn’t sit right with him. Jake took it upon himself to begin research into the reasons for his vision decline. With our screen time forever on the increase and eye strain commonplace, more people than ever are experiencing some kind of myopia. During his research, Jake discovered that the answer to reversing myopia could be simple.   Key Takeaways: How Jake came to be interested in natural eyesight improvement. [2:15] Why Google Scholar is an amazing resource and how to utilize it. [4:29] What is pseudo-myopia? [5:19] What can you do to ease your ocular muscle strain? [07:09] Addressing the causality of the muscle strain. [8:30] About lens-induced myopia. [9:25] How Jake honed his research and methods. [10:55] How Jake’s method grew and spread. [13:00] Steps to start the process of ocular muscle improvement. [14:30] The timeline to improvement. [19:25] How posture can impact your eyesight and vice versa. [21:00] How Jake’s body has changed since his vision has improved. [25:07] Words of wisdom. [28:40]   Find out more: https://www.endmyopia.com To get more information on our products visit. https://www.thevitalityshift.com/ 

How to Naturally Reverse Myopia with Jake Steiner

Dr. Don is joined once again by his wife Brandi MacDonald, with whom he co-owns South Side Chiropractic in Edmonton. Brandi is here to discuss 3 frameworks of care, what they are, and how they can be used by Chiropractors in the vitality model. Brandi takes us through the 3 different frameworks of care, their differences, and their similarities. Trauma-informed care was born out of the Vietnam war to help people with PTSD, and the Polyvagal theory looks at how the nervous system interacts with the environment and salutogenesis. Looking to the future, Brandi hopes that Chiropractic across the board will adapt a more trauma-conscious way of working with patients. If we looked at a patient as more than just an issue or condition, think of the healing we could accomplish.   Key Takeaways: About the 3 different frameworks of care. [1:59] Trauma informed care. [3:27] The evolution of trauma informed care. [5:50] Being a trauma informed practitioner. [10:00] The polyvagal theory. [11:23] What is the science of safety? [14:20] Involuntary responses to trauma. [15:55] Creating a state of ease for clients through chiropractic. [16:40] How these theories work and benefit chiropractic practice. [18:50] Making sense of your body and inhabiting yourself and your body. [20:00] Why the future of healthcare hinges on an understanding of humans as a whole being instead of just tissue. [21:10] Working to truly understand your clients. [23:30] Staying curious to overcome the inflexibility of chiro. [25:30] Salutogenesis: Health promotion and drawing on internal strengths. [27:40] How the 3 frameworks work together in chiropractic medicine. [31:09] 

The 3 Frameworks of Care with Brandi MacDonald

On today’s show Dr. Don is joined by Dr. Kelly Holt, a returning guest joining us from New Zealand. If you would like to know more about Dr. Kelly, you can listen back to the last time he joined the show in May 2018. Today, Dr. Kelly joins us to discuss how the pandemic has affected him out in New Zealand, what research he has been conducting over the last few years, and where his research is taking him next. Dr. Kelly takes us through how New Zealand has dealt with the pandemic and how it has impacted both the New Zealand College of Chiropractic and chiropractors at large. Now, Dr. Kelly is looking to the future and planning how practice-based research can help practices in real time. Key Takeaways: An update on how New Zealand is dealing with the pandemic. [2:00] How the school has dealt with adapting to the lockdowns. [4:35] The silver lining of the pandemic for chiropractic practices. [7:00] About the research Dr. Kelly has been conducting in the last few years. [8:18] How the research he has been conducting has been helping people. [12:50] What research has Dr. Kelly had published since his last visit? [14:45] Why Dr. Kelly couldn’t do what he does without funding and how he attained it. [19:35] Why Dr. Kelly is excited about creating practice-based research. [25:00] The benefits of conducting practice-based research. [29:00] What needs to be in place before commencing practice-based studies. [30:40] How chiropractors in the field can help support the research centre. [36:30] Final words of wisdom. [42:00]   Find out more about the New Zealand Centre for Chiropractic Research: http://research.chiropractic.ac.nz/ Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

Conducting Practice-based Research with Dr. Kelly Holt

On today’s show, Dr. Don is joined by Dr. John Osborne, co-owner of Osborne Chiropractic with his wife Marie in Tipperary, Ireland. He joins us to discuss the breakthroughs he has been making in his vitality shift and the 3 main internal obstacles he has been able to overcome. When he began his vitality shift 4 years ago, John was very much a pain-focused Chiropractor. Since he began the program, John has continued his journey for self, and practice, improvement. There’s always more to learn and more ways to improve. Dr. John takes us through his initial vitality shift and how he has progressed in the 4 years since he started his journey. Since then, he has still felt stuck; like his practice wasn’t growing as it should. John decided to work one on one with Dr. Don and Brandi MacDonald in their 90-day accelerator intensive.  John discusses the work he did, most importantly realizing he was his practice’s biggest problem. He Learned to tune into his own feelings and how his body was responding.  The results of doing this work have been record-breaking milestone after milestone, he said he felt like he finally took the hand break off his potential.  Once you know yourself, you can truly know your practice.   Key Takeaways: Looking for help without knowing what you need. [2:38] How John has progressed from his initial vitality shift. [3:43] The process of realizing you need help. [6:20] Understanding and having realistic expectations for patient progression. [7:15] Learning to pick up on the subtleties of individual cases. [10:45] Becoming more aware of your own feelings and your own body’s responses. [12:36] Overcoming the self-sabotage mindset. [14:00] Understanding how your mental state affects how you show up in practice. [17:01] Learning to be comfortable with your physiological responses. [19:05] Attaching meaning to your goals. [26:52] Creating separate identities with a singular purpose in a joint practice. [33:00] Advice for identifying your own internal obstacles. [36:13]   Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

Overcoming Your Internal Obstacles with Dr. John Osbourne

On today’s show, we are welcoming Dr. Don Clum. He is a chiropractor, nutritionist, and speaker. He is here to discuss nutrition, how the body processes hormones, and insulin friendly diet and lifestyle. For Dr. Clum, being healthy has become proactive by necessity. After spending several years abroad, he and his family returned to America to find an obesity epidemic. That was the starting point of his mission to bring nutrition to the forefront. He goes on to take us through his experiences working abroad and what led him and his family to return to America. Dr. Clum goes on to take us through how insulin and adrenals affect our bodies differently and how they interact. It’s about creating lifestyle changes. We then hear about common fasting misconceptions and what fasting truly is. It’s important to remember that the body adapts - it’s about changing insulin responses and getting rid of toxic behaviors and habits. Dr. Clum reminds us that there is no one size fits all approach. Key Takeaways: Coming from a family of doctors. [2:38] Clum’s time and experience working in Costa Rica and Spain. [6:03] How Dr. Clum began operating a virtual practice. [8:35] Creating programs for a population health company. [10:00] Adapting language to work in a conservative space. [10:50] Nutrition for chiropractors. [12:00] How insulin and adrenals affect our bodies. [13:20] Creating lifestyle programs for individual patients. [16:10] What is fasting and how does it work? [18:00] Tackling metabolic issues. [27:30] Insulin-friendly diet and lifestyle. [34:00] What to consider when starting a program. [38:29] Do amino acids work as a post-workout strategy? [46:20]   Find Dr. Don Clum on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/don.clum.10 Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

How Insulin Affects our Bodies with Dr. Don Clum

On today’s show, Dr. Don is once again joined by his wife Brandi MacDonald, who is also co-owner of South Side Chiropractic in Edmonton. Today, Dr. Don and Brandi discuss adapting to your environment, what’s changed in their office since lockdown, and the 3 keys to bouncing back after COVID. It’s been a year since lockdown began, and now with restrictions lifting, Dr. Don and Brandi agree that it’s a great time to look at what’s next. How are you going to position yourself and your practice to bounce back? It takes adaptability, self-awareness, self-regulation, and keeping distractions at bay to be able to adapt and continue to grow. Brandi begins by discussing state management and how you can utilize it to adapt to the new way of doing things after lockdown. She goes on to discuss why we get distracted and how to maintain focus, also talking about deliberate practice and how it improves your skills. To end the episode, Dr. Don and Brandi discuss how the people they have been working with over the last year have been implementing the 3 keys and constantly striving for improvement. Key Takeaways: Reflecting on a year since lockdown. [1:45] How Brandi has been managing the change of flow in the office. [3:45] State management: What is it and how can you utilize it? [9:50] Using adversity as your rocket fuel. [20:10] The mechanics of focus. [21:49] The art of employing deliberate practice. [30:09] Words of wisdom and inspiration. [42:22]   Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

Bouncing Back After COVID with Brandi MacDonald

In this episode, Dr. Don is joined by Brandi MacDonald, and today they are discussing how they help chiropractors get unstuck by overcoming trauma.- both for themselves and the people they care for. Trauma is widely misunderstood, but by becoming more trauma-informed, you can better understand the influence you have (and don’t have) in helping people deal with it. Brandi and Dr. Don talk about state seeking, validation, trauma in chiropractors, and the role of  “safety is the treatment” in the polyvagal theory. Key Takeaways: Upcoming dates for Mastermind Rewire. [2:26] What trauma is and what it’s really about. [3:55] Brandi’s experience as a trauma-informed practitioner. [6:11] Who or what determines if a person is traumatized. [7:26] How a chiropractic adjustment influences the trauma response. [8:46] Why it’s especially important to acknowledge the trauma of this past year. [10:05] What happens when we are left in the sympathetic system for too long. [11:20] Story-seeking versus state-seeking in your practice. [13:00] What the “window of tolerance” is and why it’s important. [16:00] What the research says about trauma in the nervous system. [20:25] How to use tools like triggers, glimmers, and glows to help with trauma. [23:10] How breathwork can help support the nervous system. [29:47] The environment they create in their mastermind group and how it relates to the topic of trauma. [31:47] Brandi’s words of wisdom going into 2021. [35:41] Why you need to get into a state of regulation before making decisions. [38:56]   Find out more about The Vitality Shift: www.thevitalityshift.com

Helping Chiropractors with Trauma with Brandi MacDonald

In this episode Dr. Matthew Bortolussi joins Dr. Don to discuss the evolution of his career, including how and why he joined The Vitality Shift. Dr. Bortolussi graduated from the New York Chiropractic College in 2004 and now practices in Vaughn, Ontario. Interestingly enough, Dr. Bortolussi had never himself experienced chiropractic care before pursuing it as a career. Now, he runs his own practice. He is sharing why he chose to become a chiropractor, how his practice has evolved and changed, and everything he’s learned along the way. Key Takeaways: Why Dr. Bortolussi decided to become chiropractor. [2:10] His experience with chiropractic care before it became his career. [5:10] Why he decided on New York Chiropractic College. [6:16] The amount of vitalism Dr. Bortolussi was exposed to during college. [10:57] How he prepared himself to start his own practice during school. [12:45] The evolution of Dr. Bortolussi’s career, and how this related to the changes in his marriage. [15:29] How his practice has changed in its new iteration. [22:18] Creating his own definition of chiropractic care. [23:35] When Dr. Bortolussi joined The Vitality Shift, and how he found out about it. [26:53] Tips for increasing an online presence, which is especially important during lockdown. [31:50] The importance of experience, authority, and trust on your webpage. [43:31] Integrating your site with online booking platforms, and discovering the new tools available. [49:10] How Dr. Bortolussi encourages customer reviews for his business. [50:10] Words of wisdom from Dr. Bortolussi for the listeners. [53:50]   Find out more about The Vitality Shift: www.thevitalityshift.com

Experience, Authority, and Trust with Chiropractor Dr. Matthew Bortolussi

In this episode, Dr. Don is joined by Dr. Pip Penrose, a passionate chiropractor from Stratford, Ontario. As a teen, Dr. Penrose was sick with mono more than once when a friend suggested she visit a chiropractor to see how they might be able to help. Her experience was life-changing. It was soon after this that she decided she wanted to become a chiropractor herself. More recently, she wanted to branch out and open her own practice. On this new path, she would discover what that would entail, as well as face the limiting thoughts and beliefs she had about herself. She shares that journey with us today. Key Takeaways: Dr. Penrose’s story on how she discovered chiropractic care. [1:50] How and when she decided to become a chiropractor herself. [3:22] Dr. Penrose’s school experience in pursuing her career. [4:53] Her career path following school. [7:36] When she started doing The Vitality Shift, as well as the impact this has had on her business. [10:14] How understanding personality differences has improved her business. [13:43] What Dr. Penrose has learned so far through The Vitality Shift. [19:59] The two personalities Dr. Pip Penrose identifies with, and how she uses them to navigate difficult situations. [23:05] What Dr. Penrose hopes to show her kids through this journey. [26:09] The beliefs Dr. Penrose had to adjust to being successful in going out on her own. [26:50] What it took for Dr. Penrose to feel firmer in her decision. [30:50] Dr. Penrose shares how her new business is going so far. [35:01] What she would go back and tell herself at 18-years-old if she could. [36:42] Words of inspiration for anyone listening. [37:08] Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com

Facing Your Own Limiting Beliefs With Chiropractor Dr. Pip Penrose

In this episode, Dr. Don is joined by Nancy Dent, an advocate for change in legislation for chiropractic care. Nancy’s daughter came into the world with compromised abilities and neurological issues, which led to challenges with her care. Nancy decided to look beyond what the conventional medical field had to offer. At age 4, her daughter began seeing a chiropractor. Exploring Chiropractic care led her daughter to transform in incredible ways. After a short amount of time, she was able to walk independently, increase her spatial awareness, and enjoy her life more. This is why Nancy is passionate about seeing chiropractors be able to share what they can do with the world. Nancy has become an advocate for chiropractors by working to change the current legislation that restricts chiropractic care.   Key Takeaways: Nancy’s story about how and why her daughter’s journey with chiropractic care began. [5:25] The progression of her daughter’s care and how it has improved her quality of life. [9:55] Why Nancy is passionate about advocating for chiropractic care. [12:00] How Nancy became an advocate to change legislation for chiropractors. [13:55] Clinical trials versus lived experience. [16:15] An update on how Nancy’s daughter is doing now, and why she has to continue advocating for change moving forward. [20:38] How the current regulations impact a parent’s ability to care for their child. [27:02] The best way to connect with Nancy. [31:10] Final thoughts on making change and advocacy. [33:00] Parting words of inspiration from Nancy. [35:38] You can find Nancy on Facebook here.  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100005178015921  Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com/fb-popup-group

Advocating for Chiropractic Legislature Change with Nancy Dent

On today’s show, Dr. Don is joined by Brandi MacDonald, who, in addition to being Dr. Dons’ wife, is co-owner of South Side Chiropractic in Edmonton. Brandi joins us to discuss the main obstacles chiropractors find they come up against when trying to shift to the salutogenic model and how to overcome them. The most common obstacle that chiropractors find themselves up against is the pain conversation. Brandi explains that you can’t ever get away from the question fully. Pain is an important data point, and you should be looking at it as a starting point. Help your patients reframe pain in their mind as a symptom of a wider issue. Brandi goes on to discuss effectiveness in communication and how effectiveness is subjective. Brandi brings up the importance of patient education and understanding of your chiropractic approach. Brandi also discusses being an emotionally healthy practitioner and what mindset works in creating patient relationships. To end the episode, Brandi tells us about the pop-up Facebook group she and Dr. Don have set up, and reminds us that everything we experience is data and can be learned from. Key Takeaways: Why you can’t ever get away from the pain conversation. [2:55] Reframing the patient’s perspective of pain. [8:20] Becoming more effective in communication; What is effectiveness? [12:20] Maintaining a healthy mindset to maintain healthy patient relationships. [22:00] About the Vitality Shift pop-up Facebook group. [26:35] Words of wisdom. [29:20]   To get more information on how to join the free Facebook Pop up group, called "The Salutogenic Practice" click here: https://www.thevitalityshift.com/fb-popup-group

Shifting to the Salutogenic Model with Brandi MacDonald

On today’s show Dr. Don is joined by Dr. Tiffany Johnson, who runs Healing Touch Chiropractic in West Fargo and hosts The Aligned Life Podcast. A returning guest, Dr. Tiffany joins us today to update us on how things have changed since the beginning of the pandemic and finding and working in your genius. When the pandemic hit, Dr. Tiffany was out of state. Before returning to her practice, she had to isolate for 3 weeks. She tells us how that time off allowed her mind to clear and realize that she needed to make her business more sustainable. With new regulations, the physical flow of the practice had to change. This affected everything. You need to have enough strong support in your team to cope with such drastic changes. Dr. Tiffany goes on to discuss how she has utilized the pandemic to become better at time blocking. It has led to less hours in office, but the same volume of patients. Going forward, Dr. Tiffany reminds us that while times are tough right now and we need to do our jobs, we need to be human too. Key Takeaways: How Dr. Tiffany’s experience in lockdown has changed her practice. [2:48] Realizing the need for the right support in your team and how to achieve it. [5:30] Cancelling the bells and whistles and focusing on what is truly important. [8:26] How Dr. Tiffany has maintained patient volume while cutting hours. [12:58] Utilizing lockdown to create more time efficiency. [23:08] Being available for your team. [24:28] Advice for those struggling to delegate and give up control. [27:10] Inspiration for those who need it. [31:00]   Find out more about The Vitality Shift: https://www.thevitalityshift.com/fb-popup-group

Forging a Sustainable Practice in a Pandemic with Dr. Tiffany Johnson

Dr. Dara Tyrrell is joining us in this episode. She practices in Scotland and has grown her chiropractic business very quickly, having graduated from chiropractic school in Wales in 2013. After getting through chiropractic school, Dr. Dara first thought she did not want to run her own business. We hear how she chose her first associateship and the success that she had. Eventually, Dr. Dara did make the decision to open her own practice. She explains what made her come to this decision. Her practice has experienced rapid growth, so Dr. Dara takes us through the things she did right in the early days to lay a successful foundation. Part of her success has come through her extreme work ethic, but this has also caused her to burn out before. She provides advice for other chiropractors on what she has learned about preventing burnout. Key Takeaways: How Dr. Dara first heard about chiropractic. [1:43] What the experience of going through chiropractic school was like for Dr. Dara. [5:09] The process of picking her first associateship position. [6:31] Leaving the stability of her full-time job. [10:41] Aspects that attributed to the quick growth of Dr. Dara’s practice. [13:49] Where the first patients came from. [16:24] A time when Dr. Dara got burnt out and how she overcame it. [19:14] Dara’s experience at the Shift Re-Wire Mastermind. [22:43] What the COVID-19 situation looks like in Scotland. [25:32] Advice that Dr. Dara would give her younger self. [27:56] for more information on the Vitality Shift visit https://www.thevitalityshift.com/ 

Preventing Burnout While Your Chiropractic Practice Grows with Dr. Dara Tyrrell

Welcome to The Vitality Shift Podcast for chiropractors, hosted by Dr. Don MacDonald. On this podcast, you will find a mix of interviews with thought leaders, best selling authors, and Chiropractors from around the world. All designed to inspire you, challenge you and help you get the most out of practice and life.

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The Vitality Shift for Chiropractors

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