Spinal decompression worked for me

One-sided view of spinal decompression on CBC

X-rays showed zero disc space between two vertebrae in the lower back. My dear family chiropractor couldn’t help me any more, my family doctor scheduled CT scans and an MRI, then I was scheduled for a visit to the neurosurgeon to go under the knife. This apparently was the only answer to the multiple disc herniations and degenerative disc disease that were causing the five years of agonizing and debilitating pain I had been experiencing.

It was so bad that I couldn’t stand, sit, lie down or sneeze without bringing myself to tears. Slow walking was all I could manage. Driving was painful, sex was out of the question. I gained 12lbs. Life was hell. No amount of exercise, yoga, painkillers or positive thinking helped.

While waiting for my surgical appointment time to arrive, I visited Dr. Richard Liem at the Low Back Clinic to see if he had anything to offer me. We started with a review of X-rays and scans, a thorough physical examination, and a long consultation discussing the pros and cons of his treatment offer. He believed I would be a good candidate for spinal decompression therapy, with the proviso that I understood that the success rate was less than 90%. It was my decision to proceed.

Five years in agony. Five days on the DRX9000. Pain gone.

The full treatment course lasts five weeks, and at no time did I experience pain or discomfort … just blissful relief. Within 12 weeks of starting treatment, I was doing everything I had missed out on for the previous five years. I started exercising, doing core strengthening to to ensure I retained my new-found, pain-free state. That was four years ago, and I have not looked back.

Tonight’s CBC Marketplace report told a tiny – and slanted – part of the story. I was shocked. This sounded like it was reporting on a parallel universe, clearly not this one with which I am familiar, first hand. Regardless of whomever is running other spinal decompression centres, Dr. Liem was nothing but thorough, caring, open and honest. Everyone is different, of course: at least 10% of people do not respond to the treatment; and there was never any claim that he could diagnose cancer – he’s a chiropractor! I was surprised by the one-sidedness of it all. Only one successful patient was interviewed, and even then it was suggested that his weight loss and exercise had played the larger part in his success.

If I hadn’t experienced great care for myself, I’d have been completely swayed by this report. And I’d have lost out on the fabulous quality of life I now can claim. I have never regressed, not in over four years. I do not feel swindled.

Read our report in the Living section.

(4 votes, average: 4.75 out of 5)

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