Today we’d like to introduce you to Gina.
Hi Gina, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve always known I was meant to help people heal. Even in high school, I felt drawn to healthcare. For my senior research project in 1992, I studied women in the medical field and spent time observing in emergency rooms. I remember clearly how few women there were—and when I asked why, many told me the same thing: that it was incredibly difficult to balance that path with being a wife and a mother. Even as a teenager, I knew motherhood mattered deeply to me.
Not long after, I experienced my first glimpse of healing through movement while rehabbing an ACL reconstruction in physical therapy. It seemed meaningful and human. But the trajectory of my life—and my career—was forever changed when I lost my mom at 18.
I was a freshman at the University of Louisville, a cheerleader, living what felt like a dream, when everything collapsed. My mom wasn’t just my mother—she was the heart of our family, the caregiver, the protector, the one who made life feel safe. When she died, I lost not only her, but the version of life I thought I was living.
At 19, I returned home to a world that no longer felt like home. I wasn’t allowed to grieve. Instead, I was expected to step into an adult role overnight, to hold everything together while my father’s life spiraled. I was grieving deeply, scared, and trying to survive emotionally in a space that felt unsafe. Eventually, I realized that if I stayed, I would lose myself. So I left—with no real plan, no financial support, and no idea how I would make it.
I worked in a physical therapy clinic to see if that path was right for me. It wasn’t. And during that time, I found myself researching chiropractic—something I had never been raised with and honestly didn’t believe in. I thought chiropractors were quacks. Still, I observed a few out of curiosity.
Then life intervened.
One night, laughing with my brothers, I suddenly pulled a rib. I went from zero pain to sharp, debilitating pain in seconds. Out of desperation, I went to one of the chiropractors I had observed. Within three visits, I was better. Completely better. That moment shattered my skepticism. I wasn’t just relieved—I was fascinated. I had experienced firsthand how the body could heal when given the right support.
I enrolled at Logan University and worked constantly—three jobs, tutoring, serving as a teaching assistant—doing whatever I could to survive and pay for school. There was no safety net. No one to catch me if I fell. Every step forward mattered.
After graduation, I faced another reality: I knew how to care for patients, but I had no idea how to build a business. I couldn’t find a position that felt ethical or stable, so I did the only thing I knew how to do—I bet on myself. I secured a small personal loan after being dismissed and doubted by banks. I took over a failing practice space and opened my own clinic with no mentors, no roadmap, and a lot of fear.
I made mistakes. I cried. I questioned myself constantly. But I kept going. Slowly, the practice grew. I hired staff. I created stability. I built something real with my own hands.
Motherhood had always been my deepest desire. I became a mom in my 30s and eventually raised four children—while navigating a marriage that mirrored much of the instability I grew up with. I tried to make it work. I believed healing was possible. But eventually, I had to choose safety—for myself and my children.
Leaving meant losing everything I had built again—financially, professionally, emotionally. I was suddenly back in survival mode, trying to protect four young children while rebuilding my life and my career from the ground up.
And I did. Again.
Today, I’m 50 years old and 26 years into a chiropractic career I still love with the same passion I had on day one. I’ve lived multiple lifetimes—the life before my mom, the life after her loss, the life through divorce and rebuilding, and the life I’ve intentionally created now.
Chiropractic has been the one constant thread through all of it. It’s how I help people feel safe in their bodies again. It’s how I honor resilience, adaptation, and healing—not as abstract ideas, but as lived experiences.
My children will not remember a perfect story. They will remember a mother who didn’t quit. A woman who rebuilt, protected, loved fiercely, and kept going. And that, more than anything, is why I do what I do.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
• Losing my mother at age 18 and making her end of life decisions during my first semester of college
• Sudden loss of emotional, financial, and family stability
• Being unable to grieve openly while expected to take on adult responsibilities
• Returning to an emotionally unsafe and toxic home environment
• Leaving home at 19 with no financial support or clear path forward
• Navigating early adulthood without parental guidance or a safety net
• Working multiple jobs to fund professional education
• Entering chiropractic without prior exposure or belief in the profession
• Completing chiropractic school without mentorship or business training
• Graduating without access to structured employment opportunities
• Being dismissed and not taken seriously by banks as a young female entrepreneur
• Starting a private practice with limited capital and no co-signer
• Running a business without mentors or formal business education
• Managing the financial risk of self-employment alone
• Delaying motherhood while building career stability
• Balancing pregnancy, postpartum recovery, and business ownership
• Raising four children while maintaining a healthcare practice
• Having limited co-parenting support during critical caregiving periods
• Experiencing emotional and psychological abuse in marriage
• Enduring infidelity during pregnancy and postpartum
• Living in an environment where personal safety felt threatened
• Navigating a high-conflict divorce and prolonged legal battles
• Experiencing financial abuse during separation and divorce
• Losing the practice I built in an effort to preserve the marriage
• Rebuilding career and financial stability multiple times
• Managing ongoing post-divorce conflict and instability
• Rebuilding trust in relationships
• Reconciling with an estranged parent after decades
• Caring for a terminally ill parent while managing personal and professional demands
• Purchasing and restoring my childhood home following loss
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
My practice is built on the belief that healing happens best when people feel seen, heard, and safe. Patients don’t come to me just with pain—they come with stories, stress, fear, frustration, and often years of feeling dismissed. Creating a space where they feel supported and understood is just as important as the clinical care I provide.
Clinically, I bring over 26 years of experience as a chiropractor with a strong foundation in assessment, biomechanics, and functional movement. I focus on identifying the root cause of dysfunction rather than simply treating symptoms. My care integrates precise chiropractic adjustments, corrective and rehabilitative exercise, movement education, and practical lifestyle strategies that patients can actually implement in real life.
What truly defines my practice, however, is the relationship I build with my patients. I take time to listen. I ask questions. I connect the dots between their physical symptoms and the realities of their lives—work demands, family responsibilities, emotional stress, and past injuries. Many of my patients have been told to “just live with it” or feel they’ve failed their bodies. My role is to remind them that their bodies are adaptable and capable of healing when given the right support.
Empathy is not something I learned in a textbook—it comes from lived experience. I understand what it feels like to carry pain while still having to show up for others. That understanding shapes how I care for patients. I meet them where they are, whether that means helping someone get out of pain, regain confidence in movement, or simply feel hopeful again.
From a clinical standpoint, I pride myself on precision and thoughtful care. I continually refine my skills, stay current with evidence-based approaches, and tailor treatment plans to the individual rather than forcing patients into a one-size-fits-all model. My goal is not dependency, but empowerment—helping patients understand their bodies so they can move, live, and age well.
Ultimately, my practice is about partnership. I walk alongside my patients through their healing process, offering guidance, education, and unwavering support. Many relationships extend over years, even decades, because patients know they are cared for as whole people—not just as a diagnosis.
Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
My life has required a lot of shifting, but my core has never changed—my commitment to my family and to my patients always comes first. I continue to learn, grow, and evolve, and I’m not afraid of change. Change brings clarity, growth, and new opportunity.
I’m a woman of faith, and I trust that my path is already determined by God. I see myself as a vessel—called to do what I do best, which is caring for others with compassion, skill, and presence.
I’m happily remarried to an incredible partner—truly a unicorn—and while I’ve taken risks and experienced significant loss, my blessings far outweigh it all. Every chapter has shaped how I serve, how I love, and how I show up for the people who trust me with their care.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.askdrgina.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr_gina_dc/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ccsrinc
