Introducing Pleasant View Chiropractor Dr. Joshua Carmack
Even as a child, it just made sense to me...
Around 1980, my father was experiencing headaches on a daily basis from the time that he got out of bed until noon. His condition was not improving. Luckily, someone from our church referred my dad to a chiropractor in Green Hills, a 45-minute drive from where we lived at the time. He visited Dr. Lensgraf, followed his instructions faithfully and his chiropractic adjustments allowed him to overcome the headaches that had plagued him for so long. It was a great thing for me (and all of the patients that I have been able to care for) that Dr. Lensgraf explained to my dad the importance of having your children under chiropractic care. June of 1986 I received my first chiropractic adjustment at age 8. My first adjustments were not for back pain or headaches. They were specifically to find and remove spinal subluxations (bony misalignments resulting in nerve pressure that interrupts communication between the brain and tissues in the body) that were preventing me from expressing my total health and vitality. I continued to get periodic chiropractic adjustments for the rest of my life. Chiropractic has helped me with numerous sports injuries, sinus and allergy problems and even a case of pretty severe sciatica resulting from a soccer injury.
After graduating from high school in 1995, I attended the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, thinking that I wanted to become a pediatrician. My inborn desire to help people, my love for children and the influence of my childhood pediatrician (who made an effort to avoid using medications when possible) was the driving force behind my decision. Through my pre-med education and my continued chiropractic experience, I learned more about the body's ability to heal itself and I began to have a philosophical problem with my decision to be a pediatrician. If I believed that the body had the ability to heal from the inside out, without drugs or surgery, then how could I spend my life medicating and vaccinating children?
Chiropractic answered that question for me.
In January of 1998 I began my chiropractic education at Life University in Marietta, Georgia. One of the best decisions of my life! I became totally immersed in my chiropractic education, particularly my adjusting technique classes and my physiology classes. Simply put, I could not spend my life doing anything else!
Our practice focuses on helping every person that seeks care in our office, regardless of age, sex, race, complaint and financial status. At Carmack Chiropractic, we want to put the "health" back in "health care" because the current medical model of health care is nothing more than treating symptoms, and that model is failing - resulting in more cost and less effectiveness. Drugs have serious side effects and are not only dangerous but also expensive. Surgery can never be "undone" and once you have a part of your body removed, you can never experience 100% health again. We focus on TOTAL BODY CARE by looking at your body as a whole and understanding that health is not merely the absence of disease! Health is the expression of life and vitality and we want to help you on your personal journey for health!
When I graduated from chiropractic college, I moved back to Tennessee and started work in Green Hills with Dr. Lensgraf, the physician who was my inspiration and childhood Chiropractor. As fate would have it, this is where I met my wife, Heidi. Heidi is a Wisconsin native with a degree in musical theater (which is what brought her to Nashville), who happens to be the daughter of a Chiropractor. Heidi has a very strong philosophy of health: "God created your body as a self-healing organism, and the body will heal itself, from the inside out, when there is no interference. Chiropractors are the only practitioners in the world who are trained to detect and correct spinal subluxations (interferences in the body's inborn healing mechanism). Chiropractic first, and (if absolutely necessary) drugs second, and surgery as a last resort!"
We have two children, Cillian Patrick Carmack, who was born September 1, 2007, and Clare McTaggert Carmack, who was born at home November 2nd, 2009! We spend as much time with our children as possible. Based on our philosophy and the current statistics on safety, we chose a midwife with Cillian and an unassisted homebirth with Clare! The less interference in the perfect process of nature, the healthier our family will be. Birth can be such a traumatic process for a baby that we checked Cillian for his first chiropractic adjustment when he was a few hours old. I gave the honor of Cillian's first adjustment to my father-in-law, Dr. John Bruns, who is a chiropractor in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. I checked Clare for an adjustment within a few hours of her birth as well. We want our children to start out in this world with the best chance of having a healthy life!
My wife and I are avid golfers. That is definitely our most enjoyable past-time. We love the variety that middle Tennessee offers and play at as many different courses in the area as we possibly can. Unfortunately for me, Heidi is a much more fundamentally sound golfer than I am, and she scores lower than I do frequently!
As a chiropractor I know the importance of regular chiropractic care and I do get regular adjustments myself. Every two weeks I go to the chiropractor and have him check my spine to see if I need an adjustment. If I need an adjustment, then I get one. If I do not need an adjustment, I leave very happy (knowing that my body is working to stay healthy) and I return in two more weeks for another check-up.
Other than chiropractic, my wife and I choose to work out regularly and we work hard to maintain a healthy diet. Our philosophy on diet is pretty straightforward: eat a variety of organically grown foods (that have been minimally processed) and keep our portions to a reasonable size. Garbage In Garbage Out. It is difficult for the body to function in a healthy state when the foods you put into your body harm more than they help you. We often counsel our patients, family and friends on smart eating habits.
Because of our chiropractic lifestyle (getting regular adjustments, having healthy eating habits, exercising, resting and having a positive mental attitude), we very rarely ever experience any illness. If we do have times where we do not feel well, it passes quickly. And we do not use medications (prescription or over the counter). We know that if we do not interfere with the body’s natural healing process that our bodies are strong enough to overcome most disease processes without the use of drugs or surgery. The exception to this is in the case of trauma! If I were to accidentally chop my arm off, rush me to the hospital first and I will swing by the chiropractor for an adjustment after the doctors put my arm back on!
Thanks for visiting our site. I look forward to meeting you in person and learning how we can serve you in our office. Give us a call, or email me using the link below and let's help you take your first step towards better health!
