Patient of the Month December 2010 - Kris Derr

I started having some numbness in my left shoulder about one year ago.  After a month or so, my bicep began to feel numb as well and I was having dull pain in my shoulder.  Then a few weeks later, I began getting a sharp, stabbing pain in my elbow.  This pain continued to get worse, to the point that I had lost most of the strength in my left arm and hand.

 I had been taking handfuls of over the counter medicine every day but it did not help.  Nothing I did seemed to make any difference.  I went to my family doctor who was willing to give me prescription strength medicine; but at this point, I was already taking prescription doses without any relief.  The next thing my doctor suggested was a shot.  Now keep in mind this shot can only be given every so many of months, and may or may not work.

 At this point my wife (who has been a patient of Dr. Zabinski's for ten years) tells me "I'm not telling you again, go see Dr .Z."  My first thought was "why should I go see a chiropractor? My arm hurts, not my back."  I decided to go, but I was very skeptical when Dr. Z told me he was going to examine my spine using only his hands.  Amazingly, Dr. Z told me exactly where my pain was.  When I told him about my arm pain, he told me he was pretty sure he could fix it, but didn't want to adjust me until he got x-rays taken. 

 When I came in for my first adjustment, Dr. Z showed me on my x-ray where the problem was that had been causing all the pain.  At this point, I was still skeptical.  But within hours of my first adjustment my arm began feeling better.  For the first time in almost a year, something made my arm feel better. No pills and no shots.

 Three months later and my arm pain is completely gone, and my back feels better too.  I've regained mobility I didn't even know I had lost.  Many thanks to Dr. Zabinski and his staff!

Kris Derr