Documenting over 30 years of the profession’s evolution and archives.
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In an era where artificial intelligence shapes how knowledge is accessed and understood, the preservation of history takes on profound new meaning. AI systems, trained on vast digital archives of the internet, can recall events, ideas, and individuals with remarkable detail (but only if that information has been shared online). Without…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In the ever-evolving landscape of health and wellness, chiropractic philosophy has long served as a bridge between the esoteric traditions of the past and the cutting-edge discoveries of quantum biology today. As the founder and editor of Planet Chiropractic, I’ve spent decades exploring these intersections, and recent discussions on platforms like…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In the esoteric teachings of Max Heindel’s Ancient and Modern Initiation, the spine and spinal cord emerge as profound symbols within a mystical framework that views the human body as a microcosm of cosmic forces. Published posthumously in 1931 by The Rosicrucian Fellowship, this seminal work compiles the spiritual insights of…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. The Spine as a Conduit of Divine Light: Chiropractic Philosophy & Taoist Inner Alchemy The human spine has long been a focal point in both scientific and spiritual traditions, serving as a bridge between the physical and metaphysical realms. Two distinct yet resonant perspectives on the spine can be seen in…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In the late 19th century, as science and spirituality converged to unravel the mysteries of human vitality, pioneers Jean-Martin Charcot and Daniel David Palmer explored the nervous system’s role in health through the lens of vibration. Charcot, the founder of modern neurology, used tuning forks to probe hysteria and hypnosis at…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In the late 19th century, as the world grappled with the mysteries of the unconscious mind, Daniel David Palmer (1845–1913) founded chiropractic, a discipline that would intertwine the physical and metaphysical in a quest to understand life’s vital forces. This era, marked by intellectual giants like Emil Kraepelin, Sigmund Freud, Carl…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. D.D. Palmer’s inclusion of “auto-suggestion” as a cause of subluxation in The Chiropractor’s Adjuster (1910) was an early nod to the mind’s role in physical ailments like back pain. He suggested that mental states (emotions, thoughts, or beliefs) could subtly manifest in the spine, altering nerve tension. While Palmer rejected much…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. We can’t write enough about D.D. Palmer, the father of Chiropractic, especially his early contributions that in many ways are only today beginning to be recognized by science. D.D. Palmer’s History D.D. Palmer was born on March 7, 1845, in Pickering Township, Canada West (now Ontario, Canada), in a small hamlet…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In a world where medicine clings to its rigid, physicalist dogma (often dismissing miracles as impossibilities), one man’s astonishing historic story shatters doubters and ignites the soul. William Blair Hill, born in 1912 without ears, was condemned by physicians to a life of silence. “Incurable,” they declared, their stethoscopes blind to…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. In the early 20th century, three remarkable figures (B.J. Palmer, Napoleon Hill, and Elbert Hubbard) crossed paths in a confluence of ideas that would ripple through time. Palmer, the chiropractic visionary behind the Palmer School of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, formed unique bonds with Hill, a budding personal development expert, and…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. We are quite literally beings of light. This profound statement resonates deeply with the chiropractic philosophy pioneered by D.D. Palmer in 1895 and expanded by his son, B.J. Palmer, in the early 20th century. It speaks to a vitalistic worldview – one that sees life as more than a mechanical interplay…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. As I sit in a Chicago Marriott hotel room on April 4, 2025, pen hovering over a sheet of corporate stationery emblazoned with “Big Ideas,” a spark of curiosity connects me back a century. The phrase feels familiar, not just as a modern corporate nudge toward creativity, but as an echo…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. “Founded on Tone” opens D.D. Palmer’s 1910 textbook The Chiropractor’s Adjuster, a declaration that chiropractic rests on the principle of vibratory life. Palmer, the founder of chiropractic, saw “tone” as the optimal tension or vitality of the nervous system – particularly the spinal cord – through which “innate intelligence” flows to…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. For over a century, chiropractic care has evolved from a pioneering theory to a scientifically supported practice, connecting the dots between spinal health, brain function, and the body’s innate ability to heal. From D.D. Palmer’s foundational work in 1895 to B.J. Palmer’s advancements in the early 20th century, and now to…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. Like many chiropractors that have been in practice for awhile, I have accumulated boxes of chiropractic books, pamphlets, tapes, videos, photos, and other media. While spring cleaning and sorting through some of those materials I came across a 1970s patient education pamphlet authored by Bob Sottile, D.C. Dr. Bob Sottile practiced chiropractic in…
Make Me Prove It! says the bold text in a chiropractors advertisement that appeared in a Los Angeles newspaper around 1921. The chiropractor, Dr. C.C. Petersen, was one of several downtown Los Angeles area chiropractors placing advertisements in local newspapers. Similar to the You Need Not Be Sick! advertisement by 1919 chiropractor Joseph H. Coleman, Dr….
In honor of Founder’s Day, a.k.a. the Birthday of Chiropractic, I am sharing this newspaper clipping from a chiropractic advertisement placed around 1919 in Los Angeles California. The title reads YOU NEED NOT BE SICK! Chiropractic adjustings release pressure off nerves, the cause of all sickness. Conditions listed in the advertising include… Rheumatism Asthma Bronchitis…
I don’t know the source of the material I’m sharing here today but I certainly thought it was worth sharing (it was worth me re-reading it as well – Guilty). I was in the garage cleaning out some old textbooks and notes from my days in chiropractic school and I came across this on two…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I’ve recently been enjoying reading and studying two different directories I’ve acquired for the city of Los Angeles, published in the years 1915 and 1916. These books were the beginning of what later became known to most of us as the Yellow Pages and I’ve been fascinated with the near century…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I don’t know if chiropractic history is still taught in chiropractic schools, but I would imagine most chiropractors hopefully know that chiropractic was founded by DD Palmer in 1895. The birthplace of chiropractic is Davenport Iowa and the Palmer School of Chiropractic located in that city is commonly referred to as…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I’ve written before about historic chiropractic schools (like Manhattan Chiropractic College), places that existed as long as 100 years ago, but are no longer around today. In cases like the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic (now SCUHS and currently in Whittier, California), I’ve shared advertising from when the school was located…
D.D. Palmer Poster photographed at the Ocean Place Hotel in North Long Branch, NJ. I was in town for a New Beginnings Chiropractic Philosophy Seminar. Along with a drawing of D.D. Palmer are words written by him regarding disease, drugs, God, and the Universe. Disease does not originate OUTSIDE the body. It is not the…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I found this advertisement for the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic (today known as the Southern California University of Health Sciences) in a 1946 chiropractic publication. The College, located in Whittier California, recently announced the appointment of a new college president. The school is going to be celebrating its centennial next…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. If you followed along any of the chiropractic writing I’ve done in the last 12 years or so, chances are you’ve read about mentions I’ve made on numerous historical chiropractic events. While everyday is a day of chiropractic history, some events are better publicized than others, and many don’t receive any…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I was looking for a computer disk in the closet earlier and I found an old piece of paper with a photocopy featuring some text from BJ Palmer, the developer of chiropractic. Some will criticize the information posted, others will say that the words are just as strong and true today…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. This post relates to a chiropractic college that existed during a short period in the state of Colorado. It’s a reminder of the importance in choosing a chiropractic school that has a strong historical background, good accreditation status, and hopefully a solid financial structure, when making the choice of a career…
It was September 18, 1895 (113 years ago today) that a magnetic healer by the name of Daniel David Palmer racked a vertebrae back into position on the neck of a janitor who had gone deaf some 17 years earlier. The man, who became known as the Father of Chiropractic, was practicing the art of…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. Take a walk today down West 72nd Street in New York City (around the cross streets of Amsterdam and Broadway) and you may pass an Urban Outfitters, General Nutrition Center (GNC), Citibank, Sleepy’s Mattress Center, and many other businesses. But in July of 1920 a stroll past 245 W. 72nd St….
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. This morning I was scanning through a 1996 copy of the ICA Review (International Review of Chiropractic) and I noticed there was almost no evidence of anyone claiming to have a website or e-mail address. The publication is nearly 12 years old, but surely there had to be at least somebody…
By Michael Dorausch, D.C. I was browsing through some web pages on Planet Chiropractic today and I came across a half a dozen pages that had links to photos that were taken during chiropractic missions to Panama and Costa Rica from May and October of 2000. All the pages are grouped together and if you…
The world’s oldest man appeared in news articles last week (Monday, June 18, 2007) after he received an official certificate from the Guinness World Records, verifying him as the world’s oldest male. According to report on Yahoo! News, Tomoji Tanabe is currently 111 years old, born on September 18th, 1895. Chiropractors will recognize that date…
The following are excerpts from a talk that Dr. James Sigafoose gave to a group of more than 400, gathered in his daughters community, to hear his story about chiropractic. Click on the audio links below to listen to this magnificent talk. Dr. James SigafooseMy father encouraged me to be a chiropractor from the time…