Full Circle: Will’s Journey from Recovery to Renewal

Will currently works for a non profit recovery program in Floyd, Virginia called Eagles Nest Regeneration. This organization supports both men and women who are working towards recovery from drug and alcohol abuse.  When the facility first opened, they housed 13 men and currently they can hold up to 90.  They have also added a second facility for women and there they can currently house up to 12. In addition to the Floyd facility, they are working to open one in Lynchburg.  With this recovery program, participants receive in-depth counseling as well as job training for at least eight months so they will be able to successfully transition into the workforce once they have completed the program. This is looking at recovery from a long-term sustainable approach.Will helps participants by leading counseling sessions as well as managing the landscaping training operations.

A Personal Connection

Will’s connection to this facility is near and dear to his heart and very personal.  In 2010, he was  a participant in the program. He is originally from Knoxville, Tennessee where he worked many years in the landscape design business.  During his time in the business, he suffered an injury severe enough that he was prescribed pain medications, which included oxycontin. With time, Will says he became addicted to the medications he was prescribed. He described himself as a functional member of society with a secretive drug addiction. His addiction only exasperated the injury and he found himself at the point where he knew something had to change.  Will successfully completed the eight month recovery program and wanted to give back in a way to help others do the same. As a result, Willbecame employed by Eagle’s Nest.

Fast forward to 2023. 

Will was experiencing neck and shoulder pain that would not subside.  Due to his past experiences, pain medications were not an option for Will.  Will’s friend recommended that he come see us!.  Will had never been to a chiropractor, and like many others, he was skeptical.  However, we are fortunate that Will has a lot of friends who are also patients of ours - they encouraged him to give it a try and helped him know what to expect. Will told us that after his initial evaluation and first adjustment he was immediately thankful he decided to see Dr. Brooke! That is exactly what he hoped to hear.

A Team-Based Approach

In addition to working with Dr. Brooke, Will also had to consult with an orthopedic doctor and get an MRI. It is very common for us to have patients with multiple professionals on their healthcare team and we are always happy to collaborate with others toward the best solution. With his results in hand, Will consulted with Dr. Brooke about his physical therapy plan, exercises that he could do on his own time, and how to best treat the injury without medications in order to properly heal. We LOVE when we get to be part of a comprehensive care plan like Will’s! He was very grateful for Dr. Brooke’s guidance and also appreciated the clarity it provided as he was trying to consider all the feedback and test results.  Are you ready for the best news of all? The injury is now healed and Will is back to living his best life, helping others along their recovery journey, and working within landscaping again. 

Motivated to Support Others 

Will is an inspiration to us for many reasons. One reason is that we love seeing how he is using his own journey to help others live in sustainable recovery. When asked what motivates him to help others live their best life, Will couldn’t help but speak of those who helped him when he was in need. He aims to give that same support back to others. As he reflected on pursuing better health he talked a lot about finding what “self care” approaches work best for you – chiropractic care, exercise, going for a walk, counseling. His advice is to do whatever you need to do to keep your physical health in check so that you can also keep your mental health in check. Will emphasized the connection between mental health and physical health and how you have to work at both to ensure you’re taking care of yourself day in and day out.

The “Best” Part

When asked what his favorite part of Adjust NRV was, he of course raved about how much Dr. Brooke helped him, our kind and caring staff, but also how we have the best bottled Fiji water and Kind bars in the NRV. You know that made us laugh because - well - our snacks are pretty fantastic and so is Dr. Brooke!

For us the best part is knowing that we get to support Will as he embraces self-care, service to others and sustainable recovery.