Kinda sorta like the Regal Beagle Larry. Only not at all.

I don't think I've mentioned Larry yet.

You may or may not know that about two years ago, I got hit by a taxi in Buenos Aires.  Nothing was broken but a lot of my left side was bruised and damaged from the incident.  When I got back to Portland I didn't have a job right away so I spent about $1000 of uninsured cash on acupuncture, and by the time I was insured I was still hurting but I found a wonderful chiropractor who healed me for a few weeks at a time.  At that point I was also suffering tension headaches from staring at a computer screen all day, and from sitting all day.

A few weeks ago my naturopath recommended that I get an appointment with Larry, teller of awful jokes.  Really awful jokes, she insisted.  Really, really awful - because he would hurt me so good, and telling really bad jokes was his way of distracting from the pain.  She alleged that Larry, who did not take my insurance, would fix me in one visit.  She also recommended another coworker of hers who would fix me and might take my insurance, but it would take a few visits. 

I resisted for a week.  I liked my chiropractor a lot, he seemed to get me, he got the issues I was having and he relieved them on a temporary basis.  But when I went back to my naturopath to have my food intolerance and other lab tests done, I'd been having chronic shoulder pain for a few months in addition to all the other back pain.  Larry had an opening the next day.  Which was, apparently, unheard of.  And I'd gotten to the point where I said to myself, "holy *&$% , you're 37, could you just accept a little help on this already?"

So I sucked up the cost and hopped on the chance.  I even went to my appointment prepared with a good bad joke from PIC to share with Larry - "a rabbi, a priest and a penguin go into a bar - the bartender says, 'what is this, a joke?'" ba dum bum.

Within 5 minutes of meeting Larry the next morning, I was dubious.  Whereas my naturopath spent about an hour with me on my first visit, questioning every single issue/habit/ritual/food I put into my body/family history, Larry literally watched me walk into his office and diagnosed me on the spot.  He didn't ask any questions.  ANY.  As far as I know he didn't even read my medical history to know about my taxi incident.  But he immediately knew that my entire left side was damaged, and he got to work.

An hour later I walked out feeling better but still dubious.  Larry had given me a great PT workout, stretching and working parts of me I didn't know needed stretching and working.  But when we were done, I asked about a follow up appointment or stretches or anything I should do to keep on with the healing.  He said, "just move."  Really.  That's all he said. I was seriously thinking I'd wasted my money.

The next day I barely felt any twinges of what had been plaguing me for months.

Three weeks later, after regular but small bouts of running and regularly hiking and walking whenever possible, I basically still feel no pain.

I will never doubt alternative medicine again.  It's not for everyone, and surely you've got to find your groove, but once you do, I doubt you will go back.