We were lucky to catch up with Amanda Brown recently and have shared our conversation below.

Amanda, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

In the beginning of 2024, I took a huge risk of leaving my secure and stable hospital job to start my own private practice and online business with the goal of greater work-life balance. I loved working in the hospital setting! The environment, teamwork and integrative care setting is ideal for patients and providers. However, the hours and commute were affecting my ability to be present with my three children and raise them the way I want to. I dreamt of our entire family sitting at the dining table each night to share dinner and stories together. I also wanted to volunteer for school activities. Lastly, I wanted to spend more time with each of my patients. All of these motivations drove me to open my own practice. It has been a difficult year but entirely worth it. I now block my schedule when a volunteer opportunity arises at one of my kids’ schools. I average about 20 minutes per patient and can honestly say I feel like I am providing very high quality care to people suffering with back pain.

Amanda, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

During my sports physical at the age of 12, I discovered I have scoliosis. My mother would take me to a chiropractor as a child to help with spinal alignment and prevent it from worsening. After graduating from GVSU with a Bachelor in Science, I moved to San Jose, California to attend chiropractic school. After completing school, I became one of the first five residents selected into the chiropractic residency program through the Department of Veterans Affairs. I absolutely loved working with Veterans and accepted a position as a full-time staff chiropractor at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center after I completed residency. Life and family caused me to move and I eventually ended up back in my home-state of Michigan where I worked at Henry Ford Health for over three years, prior to opening my own practice and starting my online coaching business. I also became a certified Primary Spine Practitioner which required over 100 hours of training, in 2023.

In my practice, I pride myself on providing high quality, evidence-based care while always taking a patient’s preferences into consideration. I offer a concierge experience. People feel right at home in my office and I spend a lot of time with each patient. I specialize in treating low back pain that is caused by a disc bulge or herniation. And I am seeing so much of this ailment that I started an online coaching program to rehab the disc and help people get back to living the lives they desire.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

For me, the most effective way to grow my clientele is to provide really good care. This, in turn, leads to organic referrals and means less money needing to be spent on marketing. I alway stand by treating people the way I want to be treated. I would rather not work than do it any other way.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Sure. Not many people know this story, but my very first day at Henry Ford Health, one of my friends passed away. I found out on my drive to work. I remember sitting in the parking lot before going into the medical center trying to choke back my tears and wipe away the mascara smeared on my face. I never once told my manager. It was probably the most difficult workday I have ever experienced.

Also, during my residency, I thought about quitting every single day for the first nine months. My residency director was terrible to me. And this is unfortunately, not an uncommon story. I have heard this from MDs and DOs, as well. But I knew that I wouldn’t let a single person ruin the experience and the training that I wanted and was good enough to be selected for. I stuck it out and landed a job that I absolutely loved after that year.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://northvillespinecare.com
• Instagram: @drbackwise
• Other: other website: backwisespineprograms.com

Image Credits

Jessica Snow Photography