Meet Dr. Fujii, D.C.

About a year before graduating high school, I began seriously thinking about my future — whether I should go to college or start working. One day, while casually walking past the career counseling room, I noticed a table filled with brochures about different career paths.

 

I was never really a fan of studying, but I had always been interested in the human body. At the time, I was thinking that becoming a massage therapist or acupuncturist might be a good path for me. Then, one brochure with unfamiliar words suddenly caught my eye: “Become a Chiropractor.”

 

It advertised something along the lines of, “Help heal people using only your hands and manual techniques.” At first, I thought, “Well, they’re probably only writing the good parts.” But as I casually flipped through the pages, I became more and more interested.

 

That was the moment I started thinking:

 

“If my body isn’t getting better no matter how much treatment I receive, then maybe I should become the person who treats others instead. Besides, I want to understand what is really happening inside my own body too.”

I knew absolutely nothing about chiropractic at the time, but I was interested in learning about the human body. Because of that, I decided to enroll in a chiropractic school in Osaka in 2004.

The academic experience at this school was challenging but priceless.

A few months before graduation, I had an opportunity to come to the United States and receive practice and clinical training. I studied at a chiropractic college in Texas and, for the first time in my life, participated in dissection of human cadavers.

Although I had studied human anatomy, seeing it with my eyes and actually touching body parts were an amazing experience.
I was truly amazed by the complexity and detail of the human body.

After returning to Japan, I asked my mentor what I should do next.
His advice was simple. “Go to the United States and study”

He was so enthusiastic about his profession, and talking to him about chiropractic future strengthened my desire to pursue a career in this field.

My mentor encouraged me and gave me the push I needed to move forward.
As a result, I decided to go to a chiropractic school in the United States and start studying all over again - without being able to speak or write English at all.

Before leave in Japan, I feel ready to take on a challenge of studying at chiropractic school in the United States.

Story in the United States:

In 2006, enrolled language school and later attended a community college, where I worked hard to complete the required courses to transfer into Cleveland Chiropractic College in Los Angeles - the same school my mentor had graduated from.

Six months after I applied to that chiropractic college, it suddenly closed down—possibly because the business was not doing well. Fortunately, there was another chiropractic school in the Los Angeles area, so I was able to transfer there.

 

The school was very enjoyable. I made many friends and had a great time overall, but as about a year passed, I started to feel that something about the classes wasn’t quite right.

 

I began to wonder, “Maybe the curriculum is just different from school to school.” Eventually, I decided to transfer to Life Chiropractic College West in Hayward.

And in 2016, I graduated from Life Chiropractic College West.

 

My treatment is simple. Find subluxation, fix it, and leave it.

One case that left a strong impression on me was a condition called "frozen shoulder". It is a condition in which adhesions develop in the shoulder joint due to daily posture, desk work, and other factors, leading to restricted movement.

 

Surgery and injections are not necessarily bad, but the patient's request was to relieve the pain without undergoing either and her goal was simply to be able to reach and grab something above her head. Her shoulder could only be raised to about 60-70 degrees and was extremely stiff.

 

Treatment in this area is very sensitive and can be quite painful, so it must be performed with great care. It's also essential to obtain the patient's consent. I explained to her, "The treatment I'm about to perform may be a bit painful." She agreed, and we began.

 

At times, she would hold a towel and clench her teeth to endure the discomfort.

 

As the treatments progressed, her shoulder mobility gradually improved. Along with that, her stress decreased, and she was eventually able to sleep comfortably at night.

 

One thing she said left a lasting impression on me: "I thought surgery or injections were the only way to get better, but being healed through manual treatment feels like I've finally come out of a dark tunnel".

 

I didn't love chiropractic from the beginning, but hearing those words like this has made me appreciate and love this work more and more.

The clinic was high volume, and I was performing treatments for 30-40 patients daily, and it was fun time, however, my ideal clinic is one where I can dedicate time to treating each patient individually, so the number of patients I can see in a day is limited.

Taking advantage of that experience, I opened a clinic in Los Angeles in 2022.