Dr. Aryn Thomas is a chiropractor at Inspire Life Chiropractic Center in Mendota Heights, Minnesota.
Originally from Rainier, a charming small town in rural Washington, at a young age Thomas learned just how impactful a strong community can be.
“Rainier is unique in that a lot of people who grow up there stay there for generations,” says Thomas, whose high school graduating class consisted of only 64 people.
Despite the school’s modest enrollment, Thomas developed a bevy of social skills, namely the ability to connect on a deeper level with all types of personalities.
“I was friends with the entire school,” Thomas beams, her radiant smile evident as she recalls her upbringing.
“I wasn’t part of any clique, but our school was also so small that we didn’t have any cliques.”
After high school, Thomas opted to leave the majestic mountainsides of Rainier and attend college at Oregon State University, an institution approximately three hours away from her hometown.
As an undergraduate, Thomas pursued a degree in Bio Health Sciences, with a focus on pharmacy.
Eventually she did earn her B.S. from Oregon State, but the Rainier native also decided that she didn’t want her future to be confined to working behind a counter at a Walgreens or CVS.
In fact, Thomas completely reversed the trajectory of her career and embarked on a journey into chiropractic work because of the impact that industry had on her own life.
“Growing up and being an athlete, I struggled with scoliosis and the pain that was associated with that, and a lot of that was because I didn’t have good body awareness,” shares Thomas, who is a big proponent of holistic medicine in circumstances that don’t require conventional medicine to be implemented.
For context, when Thomas was a teenager, she used to take ibuprofen to relieve her pain, but once she made a concerted effort to alter her diet, consume more water, and exercise more frequently, some of her ailments naturally subsided.
“As a pharmacist, I initially thought I could educate people how to change their lifestyle, and ultimately feel better, instead of just suppressing symptoms that arose,” Thomas explains.
“It’s not to say that medication doesn’t have a place because the technology we have developed is amazing, but my mission is to help people in a way that most are reticent to adopt because they just don’t feel confident exploring the benefits of an alternative approach.”
Which then begs the question:
What makes chiropractic work unique in its own right?
“With chiropractic work, we are looking at your nervous system, and there are a lot of elements to that, and those don’t always get addressed in traditional medicine,” Thomas emphasizes.
For the record, Thomas is not anti-traditional medicine, and she has noticed a disconnect between how western medicine and less conventional methodologies like chiropractic work synchronize, a schism that she hopes will one day change.
“Although some of our societal systems are broken, I don’t believe that medical doctors or chiropractors are bad people and have ill intention behind the lack of understanding for what either profession truly does. The philosophies behind these two professions are very different, and at the end of the day, we are striving to help people within our own capacity,” she says.
And for the foreseeable future, Thomas will continue to help patients at Inspire Life Chiropractic Center, a Mendota Heights-based practice that helps patients of all ages who are suffering from chronic health challenges.
“I actually had every intention of leaving Minnesota in March once I got my degree, and then heading down to Tennessee to start my own practice,” Thomas notes, but she fell in love with the community Inspire Life has created and vision/mission of the Inspire team, and now she simply doesn’t want to leave the Twin Cities.
“I put this on myself, but there is this idea that when you become a doctor, you have to prove yourself because of the title you have,” Thomas says.
“Through my own inner healing work, I recognized that there was a lot of baggage I was carrying, and that I had a need for control that wasn’t actually serving me appropriately.”
That introspection enabled Thomas to recognize that there was a lot she could do for herself and her community right here in Minnesota, and that she didn’t have to start her own business or go to Tennessee to prove to herself and others of the value she could bring to the marketplace.
“I realized that I didn’t have to do everything on my own,” Thomas remarks.
This self-analysis was made possible through receiving the same kind of chiropractic work she practices, NetworkSpinal, which involves gentle and specific contacts with the body, as opposed to much of the thrusting and traditional adjustments other chiropractors utilize.
“A lot of chiropractors look at where bones are misaligned and adjust them back into place, and while that’s great for some people, other people’s nervous systems are in a protective state, and just putting a bone back in place isn’t going to allow for sustainable change for that individual,” Thomas explains.
“Everything I do is gentle. My practice members [patients] are typically lying face down, and the reason we use the term practice members is because it’s not just me making adjustments to your body. What we do instead is a partnership where we work together to achieve balance within your nervous system.”
Many clients have benefited from this technique, which is why they continue to return for care.
“We’re unique in that there is no cracking and popping to what we do,” she says.
“People are intimidated by that prospect, so by us being able to take a more gentle, holistic approach and even understand the role that their emotional and mental traumas have had on their health, we find that people feel supported and start to get their life back.”
Additionally, as part of getting to the root of any issues, Dr. Aryn & Dr. Mel at Inspire Life Chiropractic Center also do nervous system scans.
“It’s a great way to see how the nervous system is actually functioning outside of my conversations with clients and the symptoms that they experience,” Thomas mentions.
Looking ahead, Thomas will continue to help clients who walk through the doors of the practice’s Mendota Heights office, as well as organize national and international retreats for people looking to go further, both literally and figuratively, with their healing journey.
“I’m probably not going back to Washington anytime soon, and I have no ambitions to go to Tennessee now,” Thomas reiterates.
“I like Minnesota. I want to stay here and continue organizing retreats and building out my practice within Inspire Life Chiropractic Center.” QS
**
Today’s post is sponsored by realtor Caleb Carlson!
If you’re a Twin Cities homeowner or property owner who is looking to buy/sell, I personally endorse Caleb Carlson.
A staple of the Twin Cities real estate market, Caleb has helped countless homeowners buy and sell properties.
Whether you’re a first-time buyer or this is your fourth time moving, Caleb’s expertise spans all corners of the real estate market.
To get in touch with Caleb, call or text the number 701-520-8569 to speak with him directly!
quentinsuper.com 
Leave a comment