Women We Love: Dolly Garnecki

Dolly Garnecki is a chiropractic physician, CEO of Spinal Health & Wellness, a wife and a mother of a 3-year-old son. She doesn’t wear a leotard and tights to work each day, but as she’s quite a superhero perhaps she should. She has a bachelor’s in psychology and her Doctor of Chiropractic from Palmer College of Chiropractic Florida.

Garnecki’s days are filled with patients, family, friends and herself. In the mornings she’s greeted with breakfast made by her “awesome husband,” where they eat together as a family. “For warmth and health, I savor my cup of white or green tea steeped with fresh ginger root—every morning,” she says. “Usually, I work with patients all morning: in between providing spinal adjustments on patients, I also counsel them for nutrition and workplace ergonomics, and I oversee their exercise and rehabilitation therapies on site. Most work days, I’ll take a breather for lunch to eat in peace and to re-center for the rest of the day. The afternoons are usually fast-paced, but fun. I’m on my feet constantly throughout the day—physically adjusting patients or helping them on various treatment tables or chairs—and I’m laughing and enjoying the great conversation with my awesome assistant, Maggie. Around 6 or 6:30 p.m. I’m out the door and on my drive home. We eat dinner as a family and share about our day. Next, I draw a bath for my son and help him get dressed in his pajamas. My husband reads to our son with a flashlight while he’s snuggled under the covers, and I lie down next to both of them drinking in the joy of our little family and the richness of our blessings.”

Garnecki completed her prerequisites in college toward a career as a pediatric medical doctor, but was drawn to ROTC, which delayed her medical training a little. “Not long after I was on active duty, I was in a serious car accident that derailed my seat. It was a hit-and-run event on an interstate highway that left my neck red, raw, stiff and cramped for days.”

But that didn’t stop her. “Duties of the military superseded how I felt—and military doctors deemed me physically OK and capable of flying and completing the mission. A week later, the bombings of 9-11 occurred that had our Air Force wing working around the clock, non-stop with no days off for months. I had to work a night shift, so sleeping during the day was difficult, and seldom restful.”

Her pain grew worse and she was only 22 years old. “The military doctors told me my condition would only worsen over time. They told me I had the neck of a 60-year-old, and there was nothing they could do to help me.” She tried many things, but then a friend referred her to a chiropractor—Dr. Bill Sparks in Norman, Okla. “He was the first doctor I’d met who had a positive outlook on my condition. He said, ‘We’re going to get you better. You’re going to feel like a 20-year-old again, and you’re going to be able to do all those things you used to be able to do. I’m a doctor of chiropractic today because Dr. Bill believed in me—that I would one day be well, and that I could help others on the road to health.”

Finding balance starts with saying no to things she doesn’t have time to do. “My priorities are in focus, and I keep those foremost. When other opportunities arise, and they’re not worth my time away from my priorities (family, business, ‘me’ time, and current commitments), then I kindly decline,” she says. “I’ve turned down a number of networking groups, meet-ups, and social gatherings because at this season of my life, my family and my business need me. There will be a time when I can spontaneously jump on an invite for a girls’ night out or a networking meeting, but until then, I honor my priorities, and as a result, my life is richly rewarded.”

Garnecki blogs, writes, reads, prays and shares events with close friends as a way to process them. Physically she does what she asks patients to do: avoid sugar and grains and eats a lot of vegetables, grass-fed beef, free-range poultry and fruit. She also takes antioxidants to prevent aging and free-radical damage. As well, “I do my spinal rehabilitation exercises daily, whether I’m at home or traveling—to undo the micro-traumas of poor posture or gravity throughout the day. With my family or friends, I work out strenuously several times a week to keep my joints mobile, my body strong and capable.”

She also finds it important to be spiritual. “I think the spiritual component of human beings is equally essential to health as the mental and physical component—they’re all connected. For spiritual health, I read my Bible to learn, reflect and grow—also, I write and listen to amazing teachers and theologians to help me on my spiritual journey.”

Garnecki recalls the best advice she ever received: “When my son was 5 months old, my husband and I attended a conference in Orlando. Frustrated that I couldn’t sit in on every session, or even all of a single session since I had to nurse, change diapers or calm a crying baby, I kept thinking ahead of the time when I could get back to my career and I wouldn’t be quite so needed by this little one. A man that I met in the conference book store asked me what my husband did (because it was so obvious that I was a mom of a little one, and thus probably didn’t have a career). I told him about my husband’s career and shared about my own that would get launched just as soon as my son was a little older.

“The man smiled at me and my son and said, ‘You’re already doing your primary job, and never forget—it’’ the most important one.’ My chiropractic career or any other type of business can always be there for me, but if I blink, my son is older and has accomplished another milestone. This precious time is fleeting, and I don’t want to miss out because I had my nose to the grindstone. This perfect stranger’s advice was indeed what I needed to hear then and remember always.”

Her advice for other women thinking of pursuing chiropractic care? “Women have an incredibly strong advantage to excel in a health care career field, particularly chiropractic because women tend to be great communicators and listeners—two of the most important skills when developing relationships with patients. Chiropractic is a field that is physically demanding on the doctor’s body—so be mindful to take care of your body and keep it well and strong so that you can serve the people who need you most.”

Though she’s finished college, Garnecki says she never stops learning. “Every day I get the awe-inspiring opportunity to work with wonderful and unique people—each so completely different. Each patient teaches me something new about the human body—something I would never otherwise learn from a text book,” she says. “The biggest reward is when I can somehow be a small vessel in the change that takes place in a patient…whether that’s a change in someone’s mindset, goals, lifestyle or a physical change in a body…and I see that patient jump on to the path toward health, healing, vitality, and wellness—that’s completely humbling and rewarding simultaneously.”

As you might expect, Garnecki’s pet peeves are selfishness and laziness, but she says she recognizes there is a gray area between her own definition of productivity or work ethic. Considering her definition of work ethic and productivity it’s probably not surprising that the biggest challenge she is facing is “there’s so much I want to experience, write, create, enjoy and DO, but there are only so many hours in a week,” Garnecki says.

“I have a wish list of projects, goals, and dreams that I want to do when the opportunities of time and resources intersect to make them realities. Instead of watering down my existing commitments and projects, I limit them to what I can manage—and still honor my precious time with my family. Everything else has to take a back seat for later…it’s hard, but that’s how it must be.”

8 Things You Might Not Know About Dolly Garnecki…

1.  Who is your favorite author and why? Picking one favorite author is like picking a favorite food. Practically impossible. My favorite modern novelist and non-fiction writer is C.S. Lewis, whose thought-provoking and timeless essays make my head hurt. His children’s novels inspire imagination and probe the deepest and darkest of conflicts for both children and adults.

2.  Favorite thing about Charlottesville? I love the community of Charlottesville. No where else in America would I have found the encouragement and support from other women in business when I launched my company during the biggest economic pit of the recession in January 2008. The supportive online community is more than names on a screen, but frequent meet-ups at coffee shops or restaurants makes Charlottesville feel like home. It’s the beautiful people, friends and incredible business community that make Charlottesville such a wonderful place to live.

3.  What is your favorite hobby/pastime? Blogging and writing is a hobby, but it’s also turned into a business. To keep it feeling like a fun outlet, I have to take breaks from deadlines and requirements, but blogging is definitely a passion. I first started blogging in 2004 to chronicle my experiences in chiropractic college. When I became pregnant in 2007, I launched Traveling with Baby. For a few months of 2009, I blogged for Deep South Moms blog. Earlier this year, I launched a health blog on my chiropractic website.

4.  What is one of your hidden talents/skills? No longer polished or practiced, but I was the lead vocalist in a rock band in college and I sang in a jazz singers ensemble. In fact, when I was in the Air Force, I was the national anthem singer at air shows and special events. Now, I just sing silly songs at home with my son.

5.  What is your guilty pleasure? I’ve been known to indulge in homemade popcorn with coconut oil and sea salt while watching episodes of “Glee.“

6.  What is your favorite movie and why? It’s so hard to pick only one. I love the music, romance, cinematography and true story adaptation of “The Sound of Music”—my favorite musical of all time. However, an equal favorite is Jet Li’s “Hero” or “Ying Xiong” that tells the story of pre-unified China with varying accounts and flashbacks of how the main hero defeats three would-be assassins. The cinematography in some of the most breathtaking landscapes of China as a back drop for the poetic and ballet-like martial arts sequences was incredible. The bold use of color to shape each version of the hero’s tale, emotions and philosophy—all of these elements created such a visually beautiful work of art in this memorable and thought-provoking motion picture.

7.  Where did you grow up? I was born in Clarkston, Wash., (a twin city to Lewiston, Idaho, in the Hell’s Canyon area), but at age 4, we relocated to Fort Worth, Texas. I spent most of my childhood and adolescence in Cedar Hill, Texas—a suburb of Dallas. But truly, I’ve been uprooted and relocated more than 57 times in my life. Cedar Hill is where I spent the longest amount of time.

8.  What is the greatest invention of your lifetime and why? Social media (I’m not going to name one specific company) has connected people across the globe and changed the way we communicate and do business. It’s a blessing and a curse in how we’re able to connect and share information at the speed of an Internet connection. It’s also made us (as a social media-using culture) impatient for responses and it’s reduced our non-working time—creeping in to our personal lives—making us more busy. But, we’re also more informed and more capable of responding with our talents and resources when there’s a need, and growing friendships and connections that may have otherwise never happened.

—Photo by Elisa B Photography