FEATURE in Timmins. I positioned myself as a “family-based” practice. You can ad-vertise and market to parents and go where the parents are. Or, you can market your practice to the adults through the children. Parents will usu-ally come in by themselves and are unlikely to bring their children with them, but I made my marketing about the children, so of course the kids came along too, giving me the opportunity to educate both groups. In Timmins, I organized a “sports injury symposium” in conjunction with the parks and rec department (and got on the news, plus the front page of the paper the following Monday). I was sure to attend great events, and stayed up to date with research. I would write news releases and articles for the news-paper. I started writing books, and developed a book gifting script to get the community engaged with health and wellbeing. CC: You’ve mentioned before that “chiro-practic saved your life.” Can you tell me a bit about what you mean when you say that? Dr. LaMarche: I’m alive today be-cause of chiropractic. In 2003 I was diagnosed with primary pulmonary hypertension, a terminal disease where the prognosis is death in 24 months or less. I saw cardiologists, respiratory specialists, went to the Firestone Insti-tute, and they all told me the same thing – I needed a double lung and heart transplant. April 14, 2004 was the last day of practicing privately. Half hourly doses of Ventolin allowed me to get through my appointments, but it was awful. I felt like I wanted to rip my skin off after pumping that stuff into my body. Thirty days later, I realized there must be something wrong with my spine and nervous system. But it couldn’t be – I saw a chiropractor once or twice a week. And then it dawned on me: I’m not a practice member in any practice. I’m never with the same chiro. There was nobody that charted my progress or lack thereof; I hadn’t had an X-ray of my spine in probably 20 years. So off I went to the chiropractor as a new patient. After a thorough consultation and examination, including X-rays, we determined that my spine looked good except from C7 to T4. Well, the nerves 16 Canadian Chiropractor October 2018 Honesty, integrity and service are at the top of my hierarchy of values, and I strive to live these continuously. that control heart and lung function exit the spine from T1 to T4. After continued care with the same practi-tioner, the pressure had improved by more than 50 per cent dropping from 57 to 27(mmHg), based on the cardi-ologist’s objective tests. Normal is 15, so it was still high but with a significant improvement. Within two years I was 100 per cent normalized. In addition to the primary pulmonary hypertension, I was diagnosed with an enlarged heart, we all know as cardiomegaly. Within two years of regular chiropractic care, my body adapted again and my heart returned to normal. From being unable to walk more than 100 or so feet un-aided in 2004, I now regularly run 5k races. CC: Luckily your improved health meant you could get back to work. After building up the Parker Seminars, you’re now with Life University. Planning successful events is no easy task. What’s your secret? Dr. LaMarche: I built up my reputa-tion by getting involved in my commu-nity and our profession. Because of my successful practice I was invited to speak at multiple conferences around the globe very early in my career, and this has continued. By doing so I de-veloped phenomenal relationships that I continuously foster, and make sure to always deliver on my promises. Hon-esty, integrity and service are at the top of my hierarchy of values, and I strive to live these continuously. Beyond seminars, I served on the College of Chiropractors of Ontario for a total of 12 years – as president for the last two. I was also a member of the Canadian Chiropractic Guideline Initiative Task Force. Part of what I have accom-plished is reputation-based, but most importantly, it’s relationship-based. Because I am known to deliver on my promises, people trust me – a gift that I will never betray. I don’t put out tons of advertising until I’ve actually done my grassroots work with individuals who have con-tacts and have people they can talk to. I go directly to the influencers, describe to them what I’m building, and ask them to participate. And as it turns out, I’ve rarely gotten a “no” from anybody. CC: What can we expect from this year’s Life Vision Canada? Dr. LaMarche: I think chiropractors should know that we bring a different energy to this event – it’s not all aca-demic. We’re a health-focused event that generally covers five “buckets” of thought. One of them is the fact that chiropractic is founded on neovitalism. In the second “bucket,” we always have speakers that speak on the traditional principles of chiropractic, talking about the neurologically centered definition of subluxation: how you apply it in your practice and your communication, and providing evidence rooted in research. We have some speakers that are life-style oriented, in the way that they discuss how you will apply chiropractic to your daily life, and will also involve how to teach your patients and your community about the chiropractic lifestyle. The 5th bucket involves a chiropractor or someone involved in the chiropractic profession, giving way to the calling of being a servant – how you learn to serve: Our speakers will share how to serve from your heart, with kindness, passion and knowledge, and lead the healthcare revolution that is desperately needed. We will kick off the event talking about Life Vision principles and the philosophy of neovitalism. Two inter-national speakers will speak about the traditional principles of chiropractic. A cardiologist by the name of Dr. Jack Wolfson will talk about natural cardiac health, how to apply it within the chi-ropractic practice, how to teach it to your patients, then we’ll share video and written testimonials, ending Friday www.canadianchiropractor.ca
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