Leah's Journal

03 February 2003

Last week, I went to a chiropractor - this is the first time, since Daddy died, that I decided to try one. I had been referred to a Palmer graduate by my massage therapist.
He was pretty expensive - $625.00 for the initial, diagnostic appointment and for the initial adjustment at the follow-up appointment after expertly diagnosing my problem with the assistance of radiographs. Of course, I announced that I am both the daughter and the grand-daughter of Palmer chiropractors and inquired about the possibility of professional courtesy. The result was a 50% discount for the initial two visits. That worked for me and was, I thought, extremely generous.
The adjustment, at my second visit, was totally different from my memories of Daddy's adjustments...........no thrust - just a series of gentle squeezes. I thought, "This isn't so bad."
I was feeling enthusiastic about fully recovering nerve energy through my entire body. I was not feeling enthusiastic about the cost. The doctor presented a Rx plan that required two visits a week for eight weeks, followed by one visit a week for eight weeks, followed by one visit a month.......for the rest of my life. If the visit indicated that an adjustment was needed, the fee would be $59.00. If no adjustment was indicated, the fee would be $39.00. After doing the math, I discovered that the committed monthly amount would equal a car payment! I felt my enthusiasm waining.
Then, I found sites on the Internet that were so critical of chiropractic. I diligently read and read on Friday night past....didn't leave work for home until after 2000. The reading made me more cautious, a bit leery and much less enthusiastic.
I thought the fees to be excessive and I was concerned about one particular aspect of the doctor's technique. It involved x-rays to determine if an adjustment was indicated and then follow-up x-rays to confirm a successful adjustment. I have determined that I do not choose to bear the radiation load and canceled today's appointment. I will write a very nice letter that shares my concern about radiation and the level of indebtedness that a commitment to his proposed treatment plan would require.
In the meantime, my neck hurts.

I was supposed to study diligently for this week's test in Legal Aspects of Healthcare. When I awoke at 0820 on Saturday morning and flipped on the television, I learned about the tragic loss of the shuttle Columbia.........at the time, it had simply failed to land in Florida as scheduled. I spent much of the day glued to the set absorbing the regurgitated banners. I feel very sad.

My study materials are ready.............I am preparing tonight and tomorrow.
I like the subject matter but think the instructor to be an idiot. She actually told the class that double jeopardy does not apply if new evidence is discovered. As an example, she sited Beckwithe (sp), the KKK person who killed Medgar Evers. Beckwithe was tried twice in the sixties; both trials ended in mistrials.
Double jeopardy means that a defendant cannot be tried for the same crime by the same jurisdiction if a jury's verdict of "not guilty" is rendered and entered. Beckwithe COULD be retried in the 90's because of two previous MIStrials.....no verdict rendered or entered. She is an idiot. She also told us that Susan Smith is free because she couldn't be tried due to mental deficit...............she is the woman who drowned her two, little boys in a lake when she drove her car into it. Susan Smith is presently serving 30 years and will be eligible for parole when she is 54 years old.

It is 1814 - time to go home. I figure I'll do an entry here on a weekly basis.

Posted by leah at February 3, 2003 05:52 PM