A chiropractor I've never met posted on Facebook this week: she's done. Not looking for how to fall back in love with the profession — just how to leave it. Over two hundred comments later, it was clear she isn't alone. This episode is about what that post cracked open in me, and what I believe we actually have to do if we want our profession to stop losing good people to burnout.

What you'll hear in this episode:

Why a viral "leaving chiropractic" post told me more about our profession's missing vision than about one person's burnout
The story behind my own license renewal battle, and the blunt advice from a colleague that's stuck with me since: "If you don't like it, join the board"
What my chiropractic college's "global paradigm shift" mission taught me about the gap between the vision a profession preaches and the reality it practices
A model from organizational change theory for how two opposing sides of a profession actually merge into something new
Why acknowledging the current reality, without shame or spin, is the first real step toward change
The limiting belief I'm actively dismantling in my own practice this week, and what it means to stop being the product

Connect / Resources: dralex@rootedpractice.co

CHAPTER SUMMARY

[00:45] The Post That Started This Episode

I read an anonymous "leaving chiropractic" post that drew over 200 comments — and most of them weren't advice. They were other practitioners quietly admitting they're barely surviving too. That's the moment this episode became necessary.

[03:21] What This PhD I'm Working On Is Actually For

I connect my organizational development research directly to our profession's crisis, and name the real problem underneath the burnout: we don't have a shared vision for where we're going.

[05:36] The License Board and the Reprimand That Stuck

A frustrating renewal battle with my state board leads to a comment from a colleague who'd served on the board herself — one that reframed how I think about complaining versus stepping in.

[08:27] Funnel Cakes and the Global Paradigm Shift

I tell the story of my chiropractic college's lofty mission colliding with vending machines and deep-fried candy bars on campus, and what that taught me about the cost of preaching a vision you're not living.

[13:13] Two Things We're Missing: A Vision and the Courage to Face Our Current Reality

I introduce a dialectical model of organizational change, where opposing sides eventually merge into something new, and name why our profession keeps avoiding the mirror instead.

[17:28] Leading Yourself First

I share the limiting belief I'm actively working through this week — "I have to show up to make money" — and what it's looked like to stop being the product in my own business.

[21:09] What Comes Next

I close with an invitation: acknowledge current reality without shame, take radical responsibility instead of blame, and I preview the action research I'm planning as part of my dissertation.