Introducing Olympia Chiropractor Dr. Peter Redburn

The boy scouts called me a wimp!

On a late afternoon in April 1980, while riding a bicycle in Bellevue, Washington, I was struck by a car which turned out to be a life-changing event. It was a terrible accident. I was flung over 50 feet through the air and landed on my head which caused my back to become hyper extended with a horrible crunch. As a result, I was left with a severe injuries to my neck, the top of head, the left side of my face, and my low back.

Prior to this serious accident, I was a very active scout master. One of my goals was to take my scout troop on strenuous overnight hikes in the Olympics or the Cascade mountains at least once or twice a month. In addition to this, I ran five miles every morning and on the weekends I would run 15 to 20 miles. I also played handball three times a week. In short, I was a very active guy. However, after the accident, all of this activity came to a sudden halt. I could no longer take my scout troop on their hikes. I had to give up running and, of course, handball was out of the question. I was under the care of an orthopedist, multiple physical therapists, massage therapists and a plastic surgeon for over a year. Each day I was on pain medication, muscle relaxants and yes, even a little Southern Comfort to help ease the pain. While I could hardly walk across the street without pain, let alone take my boy scouts on over night hikes in the mountains, those little boys called me a wimp because I could no longer keep up with them. In addition to giving up the hiking and running, I had to give up all my other recreational activities, as well.

Then one fortuitous day while trying to get a drink of water from a public water fountain, a chiropractic noticed that I was having trouble bending forward enough to reach the stream of water. He approached me, put his hand on my shoulder and said, “Pardon me, but I couldn't help noticing how much trouble you're having getting a drink of water, and I think I can help you.” I immediately recoiled not being accustomed to strangers approaching me in that manner. He explained that he was a chiropractor and that he worked with people that had problems such as I was exhibiting and he would love to have the opportunity to work with me. Well, I had heard all those horror stories about chiropractors and so I immediately told him that I was doing just fine, thank you, and that I was under the care of a competent medical doctor as well as a physical therapist and was making progress. He handed me his card and said that if I ever changed my mind to please call him. He felt confident that he could help me and he would look forward to working with me.

I returned to my office and relayed this story to my colleagues in a sarcastic manner. One of my colleagues, a man who had a career with the Philadelphia Phillies as a pitcher, said to me, “You should be ashamed of yourself! Here is a man who thinks he can help you and is offering to help and you are standing here making fun of him. Come on, I know where his office is, let's go over there and see him.” So he drug me over to the chiropractor's office and he was delighted to see us. That very day he worked on me for about an hour giving me a thorough exam and some manipulative treatment. When I left his office I actually felt better, which was unusual for me at this point in time. In the past, when I left the physical therapist's office or the medical doctor's office, I usually felt worse. I continued to treat with him for just over six months receiving gentle specific spinal adjustments. I also followed his directions concerning specific exercises. Finally, he said to me, we're just about finished with your treatment plan and as he pointed his finger at me he said "if you're honest with yourself, you are better off than before the accident." Well, he had me there. I certainly was better off than before my accident. I was back into my running routine, I was a scout master again taking my kids on overnight hikes, and I played handball better than ever. My ranges of motion had improved and I felt great. I said to him, "Doc I can't thank you enough." You have literally given me my life back. I would do anything to be able to do what you do. He said, you can. Let me call a chiropractic college and tell them that you are interested. Having said that, he picked up the telephone called a chiropractic college and requested a catalog be sent to me. After a great deal of soul searching and with my wife giving me her full support, we sold our home, I sold my business to my colleagues and we left for chiropractic college. Four years later, I became a chiropractor and I never looked back. It was the greatest decision I ever made in my life. My only regret is that I hadn't discovered chiropractic care years earlier.

I decided to attend school at the second oldest chiropractic college in the country, Cleveland Chiropractic College. The campus was located in Los Angeles, California. Their curriculum was surprising broad, encompassing all aspects of health care. Courses ranged from physics to inorganic and organic chemistry to physiology and anatomy, to name a few. Each semester led into another level of education that was challenging and life-changing. It is difficult to identify a single course study that was especially valuable because they were all so complete. If I had to pick one, I would say my instructor in clinical nutrition was particularly inspirational. He opened up areas that affected our health concerning nutrition that I had never before considered. The importance of using vitamins, minerals, and enzymes as a major support system for a person's musculoskeletal health was a concept that had never previously occurred to me. Seeing my patients respond to my recommendations for additional nutritional supplements that supports their musculoskeletal health has been particularly rewarding.

My practice philosophy is to find it, fix it and leave it alone. Once a patient has achieved maximum functional capacity and is able to enjoy all their normal routine activities of daily living, I recommend that they transition into a wellness program which consists of one or two visits a month and sometimes less depending upon the patient and their lifestyle.

I am happily married to my lovely wife, Suzy. We have three children and four grandchildren. Our passion is sailing and our lives revolve around boating activities. We usually do an overnight trip somewhere in southern Puget Sound once or twice a month. In the summertime, it's nearly every weekend. Time passes so quickly when we are on our boat that I am always surprised when it's time to bring our boat in her slip and call it another weekend. We really enjoy taking family and friends, and yes, even patients out for afternoon cruises on Puget Sound. In addition to our boat, we are very active in the local community. I am a past Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus and remain active in the local council. My wife, Suzy, is very active in the St. Vincent De Paul Society as a volunteer. In years past, I have been active in the Rotary Club and am a past president of a Kiwanis Club.

I receive chiropractic care on a regular basis. I have two favorite chiropractors that I see at least once a week. In addition, I stay very active physically by running three miles, three to four days a week.

We are a results-oriented clinic. I consider myself an excellent diagnostician and a listener. I would like the opportunity to meet you in person and discuss your specific health challenge. Please call our office to set up an appointment or email me at the link below. I look forward to meeting you in person and helping you take that first step toward better health. Thanks for visiting our site.