I sought help from Mr.Murphy and his associates because I was experiencing unbearable tightness in my trapezius and neck muscles due to complications from a Severe Anxiety Disorder and Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. I had been experiencing this for quite a while, but I had been under strict orders from my GP, and Vascular and Thoracic surgeons to not have anyone massage or jerk my spine as it posed a risk of dislodging the blood clot which could be fatal. After being on blood thinners for 5 months, and my chronic back tightness increasing in severity, my vascular surgeon said that I could go see a massage therapist as the risk of dislodging the blood clot was very low. All the massage offices I called were busy so I went on yelp and searched for chiropractors and found Murphy. I had never seen a chiropractor before, but I saw that he had received good reviews at the time, so I made an appointment and saw him about 3-4. I was desperately looking for relief so at my first appointment I didn't pay much attention to the confusing out-of-pocket/insurance situation, but was reassured in a blatant lie from the receptionist that insurance would "likely cover much of it", as the vast majority of insurance plans do not cover any chiropractors. My first visit he brought me into his office in order to take an evaluation of my situation, but honestly I felt like it was more of an award show than an evaluation as he has every corner of his office adorned with awards and diplomas to make the doubting patient feel like Murphy is a legitimate provider of medical services on-par to that of a true medical doctor. I don't know about you, but it's my experience that those who have to show off every accolade they've ever received, including repeats, are insecure(or at least have tiny hands- hahahaha), and the last thing you want is a healthcare provider insecure in their ability to help you feel better, but that's for another review... After the evaluation he took x rays so that he could observe the situation of my spine and inform his minimum-7-day treatment plan. The next visit he showed me the x rays, stated that I had cervical ribs, and confidently told me that he believed the blood clots in my arm and chest were caused by a kink in my neck connected in some way to the ribs, recommending that I do not go through with the surgery several doctors I consulted deemed medically necessary and that I continue to see him. At the time I was excited, I had been scared of the surgery for quite some time and here he was promising me that I'd feel better in just under a week(or about $1,000 out of pocket). I saw him a few times after he reviewed my x-rays and then finally had to cancel the rest of my appointments because we(my family and I) couldn't afford to keep paying out of pocket for his services and the improvement to my back was minimal in comparison to the cost of treatment. A week later I went to see my Thoracic surgeon before my surgery and I told her about how Murphy had said I had cervical ribs. Her jaw dropped as she combed through my previous x-ray report and found no note of a cervical rib. She immediately sent me to have another x-ray done in the hospital, as having a cervical rib would completely change the severity of and way in which my surgery would be done. A panicked 2 hours later we received a call from her office in which she stated that the new X-ray that had been taken and reviewed in a hospital by specialized nurses and doctors showed absolutely NO EVIDENCE of cervical ribs. At first, I let loose a sigh of relief at the news, but then I became severely disappointed at Murphy. As I see it, one of two possibilities happened as he reviewed my case. The first(and the one that I want to believe in)is that he made an honest mistake several times. That even though he has been heavily trained in looking at spines,ribs, etc... he misread the number of ribs every single time he looked at my x-rays alone and with me in the room, and truly believed that his services, although undeniably burdensome, would prevent me from having to undergo a surgery he deemed unnecessary and invasive. The second(and one I don't want to believe out of hope for human decency) was that he purposefully misread my x-rays, and used those lies to concoct a medically invalid theory that his treating of a crook in my neck would cure my Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. Thus making me believe that he is really helping me when in reality he is sucking money out of me and not truly taking my health and well being into consideration. I will likely never know what truly transpired behind closed doors, but I do know that the actions of Murphy and Suburban Chiropractic could have had severe implications on my health and wellbeing if it hadn't been for my competent surgeons and doctors who truly had my medical wellbeing in mind. I'm not writing this because I'm angry, but rather I wanted to share my truth to better inform you. So you can make the best decision you can. read more
