We were lucky to catch up with Mark Morningstar recently and have shared our conversation below.

Mark, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

Even early in my career, I have always maintained a distinct rehabilitative focus in my chiropractic practice. This involves providing patients with the tools they need to help them manage and resolved their musculoskeletal problems without repeatedly requiring my assistance. This is akin to telling patients to brush and floss their teeth every day so that they don’t have to go back to the dentist every week and have the dentist do it for them.

However, I quickly found early on that patients tended to be very non-compliant with my home exercise recommendations. This rapidly became very frustrating for me, to the point that I almost quit my practice. But along the way, fate provided an alternative. I had patients start bringing in their children to see my who had been very recently diagnosed with scoliosis. Since there are no orthopedic surgeons in my area that see scoliosis patients, my patients brought their children in to see me in the hopes that I could help.

Interestingly, although the parents themselves were very non-compliant, they made sure their children did everything I asked of them at home. Because of this, the results were very eye-opening, and word quickly spread. Within 6 months I had entirely converted my practice over from a general chiropractic practice to a dedicated scoliosis exclusive clinic. I haven’t looked back since.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a founding member of the Society on Scoliosis Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT). This group was officially founded in 2005 in Milan, Italy, and is comprised of top physicians, chiropractors, physical therapists, and orthotists from around the world.

I graduated in 2002 from Palmer College in Davenport. I am an attending chiropractic physician at the Natural Wellness & Pain Relief Center in Grand Blanc, MI, one of the first multidisciplinary clinics in Michigan offering traditional medicine, chiropractic rehabilitation, anti-aging medicine, and functional medicine services. I am triple Board Certified by the American Clinical Board of Nutrition, the American Academy of Spine Physicians, and the American Association of Integrative Medicine. Only a small percentage of chiropractors worldwide hold multiple board certifications.

I have also been published over 60 times in the biomedical peer-reviewed literature, most of which are found in PubMed, the National Library of Medicine’s online research database. I have more research publications on scoliosis treatment than any other chiropractor in the world.

I also host my own podcast, Scoliosis World, on YouTube, SimpleCast, Spotify, or wherever people get their podcasts.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe that the BackGenius approach to scoliosis management is the most comprehensive strategy available. For years we have been teaching patients and other health care providers that scoliosis involves far more than just a curved spine. This condition has far reaching impacts, including hormone impacts, digestive disruptions, and neurological consequences.

I feel that this all-encompassing approach to scoliosis is why patients from all over the planet seek us out. Even from my own little practice in Michigan, I have seen patients from 37 states and 12 countries. If you build a better mousetrap the world will eventually find you.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

I think the single most important ‘success’ factor is having a burning, intrinsic passion for what you do. When your passion drives you, it makes you genuine, and people can see and feel that. Even our BackGenius network of providers have a passion above and beyond what I believe the average doctor has.

With physician burnout becoming much more widely encountered, it is imperative that doctors be passionate about what they do if they want to be successful.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.scoliosispractice.com
• Facebook: Scoliosis Warriors
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-morningstar-dc-phd-a4085415
• Twitter: @mm2DCPhD