Inspiring Conversations with Sandy Martin of All Star Family Chiropractic

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandy Martin. 

Hi Sandy, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
When I was 19 years old, I was working for my chiropractor, who I had been receiving care from since I was 4 years old. I opened a conversation about how I didn’t want to be a Marine Biologist anymore; I had wanted to be one since the third grade. I didn’t know what I wanted to be. I just knew I wanted to help people. My chiropractor, Dr. James Thompson, said, “Why not be a chiropractor?” It was like a V8 moment when you hit your forehead, “I should be a chiropractor!” I exclaimed. I made it happen and had some amazing support, and met some amazing people on that journey. 

Going through college at Southwestern Michigan College, I also worked 3 part-time jobs. One of those jobs led me to meet my husband, Joe. I was bartending his sister’s wedding the summer of 2007 and had to cut Joe off from the bar. His response was to ask me out to the after-party, and I went. We hit it off pretty well and continued to see each other. We were married September 2009, spent a week in Costa Rica, and then moved to Spartanburg, South Carolina where I started school at Sherman College of Chiropractic. 

Three long years later, I graduated early, Joe and I decided to move back up to Southwest Michigan because of the amazing family support we have here. I worked in a local chiropractic office for about 6 months, shadowing and helping out while getting my licensure and insurance credentials in order. In October of 2013, I opened my own office on Main Street in Benton Harbor, MI. I found amazing support in my landlord and in the local networking groups. 

Over the next five years, All-Star Family Chiropractic continued to grow. My family was also growing. I gave birth to our first daughter, Aurora, in January 2017 and our second daughter, Lyra, in April 2018. Both were born at home. Both would come to work with me for their first 6-8 months of life. Patient’s loved helping with the babies. 

All-Star Family Chiropractic outgrew our small parking lot, so I started to seek other locations. I found a Chiropractic office in St. Joseph, MI, listed for sale, and I inquired about it. We negotiated a deal, and in October 2018, I merged the two offices together to what we currently are. 

I am very grateful to all the family and people of this amazing community that have had a hand in helping me become who I am today. I love to serve people and help them function better, which leads to healthier, happier people and community. I often thank my patients for letting me serve them. Because of this, we often look for ways to support our patients and the community. We give, sponsor, donate and have patient appreciation events often. We believe that education is key in helping people make lasting changes to their lifestyle, and because of that, we host workshops with various topics to help people integrate what they have learned in our office. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Part of my character, and why I believe I am successful today, is that if someone tells me “No,” I’ll ask, “why not?” When I learn of what obstacles might be in my way, I usually am willing to jump that hurdle to make it happen if I know that is the right thing to do. I know I have had struggles and failures along this journey. And I don’t dwell on them; I learn from them and move on. Which would have been hard to do on my own, but I’m not alone. I have an amazing group of chiropractors that I call my chosen family and have for the last 8 years. The group is called TLC (Team and Life Conditioning). They teach healthy relationship building. Relationships like doctor and patient, boss and employee, doctor to doctor, doctor and community, parent and children, and how to stay married through it all. TLC brings the conversation to a higher level, so when faced with adversity, we can better respond in a way that also raises up the person causing adversity in a positive manner. 

We’ve been impressed with All-Star Family Chiropractic, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
All-Star Family Chiropractic was named so because I believe everyone has the potential and should play, work and live like an All-Star. Caring for families who are growing and busy is definitely our niche. In fact, I specialize in prenatal and pediatric care. People often ask when they should bring their babies in, and the answer is always as soon as possible. Both my kids were adjusted at 30 seconds old, and they will continue to be checked once a week for as long as possible. Spinal checks in our office are always done at our expense to see if we can help you before we charge for anything. And it is very rare to find kids that don’t need care. Our vertebrae are constantly moving and can get stuck misaligned because of the stress we are under. “What stress does a baby have?” you might ask. Stress isn’t just mental. Stress is also physical and chemical. Uterine contractions during the birth process cause stress on the spine, or even if a baby is delivered via C-section, the doctors’ pulling can cause stress. Then as children learn to crawl and then walk there is new stress on the body, and they fall numerous times, causing stress on the spine. Chemical stress is only newly getting some light shed on it in the media. Fast food, processed foods, sugars, caffeine, herbicides, pesticides, glyphosate, parabens, sulfates, some things that we can’t even avoid ingesting or putting on our skin, all cause our bodies to react at a cellular level and can cause dysfunction in the body. Chiropractic care is the act of getting your brain and body to connect better so that your body can heal and function better from the inside out. 

This also helps athletes. The majority of all professional athletes use chiropractic to help keep them functioning better, so why shouldn’t the everyday athlete or weekend warrior? Even after injury, chiropractic care can help a joint function better so that it heals more correctly. 

Our office is proud to offer Acoustic Compression Therapy with the PiezoWave. A bit like ultrasound therapy but uses electro-hydraulic technology, the PiezoWave is able to be more specific in treating inflammation and scar tissue. It helps the body bring blood flow into the treated area so the rejuvenation process is activated and the body can heal itself better. With the PiezoWave, I am able to treat acute or chronic injuries like failed surgeries, low back pain, plantar fasciitis, tennis/golfer’s elbow, muscle adhesions, knee pain, frozen shoulder, and more. 

What matters most to you? Why?
What matters most to me is providing quality service and education that unlocks a person’s potential so they can become a better version of themselves. I believe that there are no ordinary moments. That every person I come in contact with, I have something, I can learn from them and in turn, offer them something as well. It is the human purpose to be engaged with each other, and in doing so, we create a rich community. Community is very important to me. 

Contact Info:

• Website: allstarfamilychiropractic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allstarfamilychiropractic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/allstarfamilychiropractic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6e6dCg7LeSLGi1cg-TEIFA

Image Credits
Ashley E. Nelson Photography