I have been a patient of Dr. Michael Peterson’s in Tulsa since November of 2000. The man literally altered my course in life. I had been to chiropractors before but he was the one who made me want to do what I’m doing now. When people ask me when I knew I wanted to be a chiropractor I’m quick to tell the following story… It was my senior year in high school playing for the Union Redskins football team in Tulsa, OK. We were about to enter the playoffs and one day at practice I strained my “groin” muscle very badly. The Illiopsoas muscle complex is the most important muscle for a running athlete so you can imagine how upset I was when I could not lift my knee off the ground, let alone run. I was getting treatment from my athletic trainers, I sought the help of a massage therapist, I sought the help of a physical therapist and my MD. None of their techniques could offer any help whatsoever. The general rule with a groin injury is that you just rest it for several months and it will heal. Here I had missed two games in a row and we were about to enter the playoffs and our team desperately needed my speed at defensive end. So in other words…. I needed to get healthy NOW!!! Well one day after practice, where I pretty much sat around and watched, a man approached me by the bleachers and said something that would change my life forever, “Hi Chris, I’m Dr. Peterson. I’m a chiropractor and I think I can help you with your leg.” I’d been to a few chiropractors over the years and thought to myself how in the world can a back doctor help the muscle in my hip. About five minutes later i got the answer to my question! Active Release Technique was the method in which Dr. Peterson knew he could help me. Dr. Peterson ART on my hip for a painful 5 minutes which seamed like an hour. Upon completion of the treatment which as far as I could tell just caused me more pain, he asked me to lift my knee. Imagine the shock on my face and all of the coaches and trainers in the room when my knee nearly hit my chest. My jaw dropped instantly and so did the coaches. Dr. Peterson told me to go outside and run a few laps. I went outside and to my utter surprise I was able to sprint at 85-90% of my top speed. I started laughing and shouting with excitement at what I took as a miracle! It was at this point in my life that I knew exactly what I wanted to do. Come to find out ART is a big deal in professional sports as it’s the official treatment of the IRONMAN triathlon (the most grueling race in the world). Most major sports teams also have a chiropractor, PT, or athletic trainer who are trained in ART because of it’s ability to get athletes back on the field faster than any other soft tissue treatment out there. Dr. Peterson said he wanted to see me friday before the game and I’d be ready to play. He treated me two days later and I never had another problem with my hip! The next few years Dr. Peterson held me together with ART through my college football career. When I had the chance to do an internship with my undergraduate degree at the University of Tulsa, the choice was easy. I began interning with Dr. Peterson’s office in January of 2006 where he eventually hired me on full time. I worked for him for nearly two years and we decided that I would start my chiropractic career with him. So here I am now just one year from finishing my education at Cleveland Chiropractic College and I’m making preparations to move into Dr. Peterson’s office. It’s a dream come true for me to work for the doctor I have the most admiration for. I was fortunate enough to get to design the new office at Peterson chiropractic (I made my office bigger than Dr. Peterson’s) and will be working on the new website soon. So here are a few pics I took for the launch of the new website. Hope you guys enjoy! -Barnezy-
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