Keith Custer
Practice
Member of the Strauss Chiropractic Center since September 1973
This month we are pleased to feature in our continuing series of
extraordinary practice members of the Strauss Chiropractic Center,
Keith Custer. Keith’s chiropractic story is filled with the
kinds of things that make good Hollywood movies— fright, hopelessness,
close calls and ultimate triumph. We are grateful for his openness
and honesty as well as his willingness to share his story with all
of us.
Keith recalls a day at age 12 or 13 when he was outside playing football
in the yard by himself--a young boy kicking the ball around, throwing
it, catching it and even occasionally falling on it--when all of a
sudden something just “twanged” (as he describes it) in
his back. He couldn’t move. In fact, today he can’t even
remember how long he was stuck out there or how he made his way back
into the house but in that moment something in him changed. He recalls
hurting all the time for the next several years, sometimes missing
up to a week of school at a time. His father thought him a hypochondriac
or even worse just a lazy kid, while his mother took him to every
doctor and specialist around trying any number of prescriptions and
modalities all to no avail. It wasn’t until his Aunt suggested
to them that they try Dr. Joe that they ever even heard of chiropractic.
He vividly recalls his first few adjustments and describes his transformation
over those first two weeks as “nothing short of a miracle.”
He recalls continuing to see Dr. Joe throughout the rest of high school,
as he was involved in various athletics including soccer, gymnastics
and track. He was so jazzed about chiropractic at that time that he
did a school project on it both in high school and college. (Note
to students: All English classes have a public speaking requirement
and chiropractic makes an excellent topic. Rarely, will any of your
fellow students select it as a topic and your chiropractor will be
happy to help you prepare!) But that’s just the beginning of
the story!
He left the area to attend college and later returned but because
he was feeling fine, did not think about seeing a chiropractor until
his health was seriously threatened. As a grown man, Keith developed
severe groin pain that lasted several weeks. Again, he did the medical
rounds from doctor to doctor receiving numerous diagnostic tests and
several strong prescriptions for pain. At one point, his pain was
so severe and he was so heavily medicated that it confined him to
his couch for nearly a month and a half. Finally, in one last ditch
effort prior to amputation of a testicle, a urologist suggested that
Keith see a chiropractor. Of course, when these are your options all
of a sudden chiropractic would sound pretty good to anyone. Again,
within two weeks, he was back to work, with virtually no pain and
absolutely no medication. It was at this point that he came to a major
realization. “I had to stop stopping care. I mean I can’t
believe how close I came to letting them do the amputation.”
As if that were not enough, Keith experienced yet another major assault
to his health. His work as a general contractor required that he assist
in tearing off a roof on a job, after which he quickly and increasingly
grew intolerable to scents. Again, medical doctors gave him everything
under the sun until the top of his microwave was literally covered
with medicine bottles. He was reduced to continually wearing a respirator
whenever he left his home. In fact, his house eventually became the
only safe place for him and that was with air cleaners that were strategically
placed throughout the house. This is when he realized that chiropractic
was not a miracle cure. It does just one thing--it removes an interference
from the nerve system. At this time he began to utilize holistic measures
in conjunction with chiropractic to allow his body to overcome the
allergic reactions, which it eventually did.
Try, if you can, to imagine any of the following: 1. being a boy
unable to play, to go to school regularly or to earn the respect of
your Dad; 2. being a man with groin pain so bad that you would consider
allowing the amputation of one of your testicles; 3. being an adult
so reactive to scents--candles, perfumes, antiperspirants or otherwise--that
you become a prisoner of you own home. This is the desperation that
brought Keith to chiropractic but it’s also the reason he will
never again stop his chiropractic care. “Nothing would stop
me from having my spine checked regularly for the rest of my life.
If I couldn’t drive, I’d have someone drive me. And if
I couldn’t do that, I’d call you guys up and see if you’d
come to me.” Today he makes chiropractic part of his weekly
ritual because if he doesn’t he knows interference in his nerve
system could be damaging something. If I don’t come regularly,
I can’t work. It’s a priority so it doesn’t matter
if I have insurance, or if I have to drive a way or how much time
it takes. People do what they want to do and if they really want something
they find a way to get it or make it happen. Chiropractic means that
much to me.”
© Strauss Chiropractic Center
2003
