The following is the story of Dr. Alastair McAlees and his quest for health. Since regaining his health in the early 70's, Dr. McAlees has gone on to get his Masters Degree in nutrition and his Doctorate in Chiropractic. Dr. McAlees along with his wife Elysa, (whose father was a famous Chiropractic Physician), have practiced what they preach by raising their four children chiropractically, or as natural as possible. Throughout his professional career, Dr. McAlees has served on numerous boards and committees, and has dedicated his life to helping others find the truth about life and health, in his practice as well as his numerous public presentations.
This is a story that starts from a wheel chair, where day-to-day living represented little more than pain and degeneration, to a successful professional and personal crusade to help cure the ills of his fellow man. Succinctly, this is the striking and humane tale of Dr. Alastair McAlees.
While serving his country in the United States Marine Corps, the young McAlees - nineteen years old and the picture of perfect health - suffered a severe blow to the side of the head and neck during close combat training in preparation for Vietnam. All appeared well and normal until a few months following the incident. A mysterious total body reaction began to develop manifesting itself in the form of swelling in his arms, wrists, elbows, hands, neck, low back, knees and ankles. Immediately hospitalized McAlees saw his condition worsen dramatically over the next 5 months. His body weight dropped from a healthy 165 lbs. Marine who ran 12 miles a day, to a mere 84 lbs. Crippling systemic disease had set in, lessening his overall mobility with each passing day. The doctors ran test and more tests but found nothing specifically linked to the baffling deterioration. They prescribed aspirin for McAlees’ ever increasing pain. This course of treatment resulted in yet another complication – four bleeding peptic ulcers. A full five and a half months after being admitted to the hospital, and with no cure in sight, Alastair McAlees was released from the hospital, officially retired from the Marine Corps and sent home; twenty years old, in a wheelchair, unable to dress himself, walk, or even so much as move his arms, wrists, fingers, legs, and feet due to ever -present, and increasing pain and swelling. There appeared little hope for a normal productive life for this young marine- only the frustration and desperation the prospect of never walking again offered to a young, once vibrant body and soul.
Ironically, the turning point in McAlees’ life came in the form of another yet potential tragedy. Less that five months after his release from the hospital, in April 1972, McAlees suffered severe whiplash resulting from a near fatal car accident in which the car he was riding lost control and flipped over striking another car upside down and head on. Sent to a chiropractor for treatment, he was found to have a severely misaligned bone in his upper neck area. Treatment was focused on the neck and spine. Incredibly, within a month, many of McAlees’ original problems began to dissipate with continued extensive treatment. The swelling vanished, and for the first time, since his hospitalization, McAlees was out of his wheelchair. Within months, McAlees was - by his own description - “in perfect condition, just a little underweight”.
Coincidental chiropractic care had literally saved his life. As “repayment” for this seemingly “miraculous” turn of events, McAlees was encouraged by his chiropractor to “carry the torch”. McAlees applied for admission to college to study chiropractic himself, in the hope of ultimately helping others find true health, and to help further the profession. For Alastair McAlees, the proof was in the pudding. Chiropractic had achieved the results a battery of medical doctors in a hospital environment couldn’t.
Alastair McAlees’ story is absolute fact - not an ounce of fiction to it. It is the personification of the “never say die” philosophy and, even now in his everyday practice, it is the motivation at the forefront. McAlees is articulate of, and thoroughly dedicated to his craft. The “constant challenge” is his passionate quest to help his fellow man. After an accident in 1995 ruined his elbow and his ability to treat patients chiropractically, Dr. McAlees has surrounded himself with the best in the chiropractic field. “My goal is to ensure that patients get the best”. The rewards are many and varied. “Children give you hugs after their adjustments (chiropractic treatments)”, Dr. McAlees relates in describing some of the perks of his profession. He readily remembers his most endearing patients from the earliest days of his practice. One grandmother brought dinners to his back door at days end and farm fresh eggs in lieu of payment. But, “...the greatest moment I ever shared with a patient”, he says, “was a tear”. That tear came from the mother of a young patient that Dr. McAlees helped with a neck problem and her hearing was restored. This was after five surgical procedures called myringotomies (tubes in the ears) had failed to restore the girls hearing.
It is the humanity that separates Dr. Alastair McAlees from others in the profession. As the goal in his office is “to turn on the doctor within” Dr. McAlees never loses sight of his own recovery. Although there is still a segment of the medical society that stands against natural health, McAlees understands. “My job to a great extent, is to build a bridge of understanding. The prejudices against chiropractic and other forms of natural health care started along time ago and still with all the new evidence some still choose to remain in the dark as to just what chiropractic can do for people. But as a primary care physician it’s up to me to ensure that the patient has access to the finest health care possible. No politics.” Simply stated, isn’t that what health care is supposed to be all about?