Community Highlights: Meet Eric Pinto of Illuminate Chiropractic

Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Pinto.

Hi Eric, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Since an emergency appendectomy at eight years old, I knew I wanted to work in healthcare to save and change lives. Over the years, the specific role I would play in that had changed many times. At 19 years old, while doing volunteer Kinesiology hours, I watched a chiropractor help a limping, injured athlete run out for the second half and save the day. Since then, I have been hooked and know precisely where I am going. 

Over a decade after that experience, I dreamed of having a chiropractic office. I always envisioned people from all over the world and all walks of life coming to get adjusted and leaving like a new person. For me, the power and potential of that ripple effect of positivity and vibrance was limitless. 

One week into opening my clinic in West Hills, I realize every single twist and turn of the chiropractic & healing journey I have been on has been an integral piece in manifesting the vision that is Illuminate Chiropractic. From practicing in West Los Angeles & Houston to traveling to Fiji, Mexico, and El Salvador to provide chiropractic care, I know I was put on this path to open this clinic to restore hope, connect people to themselves, and help people be the most illuminated version of themselves. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Doing 7.5 years of education and graduating from a pandemic was all but a smooth road. Chiropractic school was a pressure cooker of challenges that stressed my health (and mental health) to its limits but ultimately made me a better human. Balancing over 20 units a quarter, board exams, attending weekend seminars, and the extensive outpatient paperwork had me caffeine-dependent and counting the days until I was done with school and focused on helping patients. 

Upon graduating in 2019, I was the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed new chiropractor willing to do multiple weekly and weekend events to get my hands on more people and change lives. After less than half a year in practice, I and the rest of the world had to put their life on hold while we battled through the global pandemic. Chiropractors can’t necessarily adjust through Zoom calls, so it was a long and challenging process to get back to serving people like in the pre-pandemic times. Like most things, these obstacles paved the path I needed to walk. 

We’ve been impressed with Illuminate Chiropractic, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Illuminate Chiropractic is an office where people are seen and heard in a way they may not have experienced in other avenues of healthcare. The mission is to restore hope and help every patient accomplish their goals while achieving new levels of vitality and wholeness. The methods are: 

– Extensive, holistic consultations. 

– Advanced diagnostic testing. 

– Thorough hands-on assessments. 

– Present, vitalistic chiropractic care. 

When patients heal, feel, move, and function better, they can live life as the most illuminated version of themselves. 

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
To me, listening is the most important quality to success in my office. Most people are surprised when I sit down and ask about their history and goals. Too often, patients are rushed through office visits and go from office to office without any results or answers. In this situation, many people tend to lose hope; all it takes is listening to their whole story to understand better how to help them. 

Listening with the hands is also very important. Being face down and having someone have their hands on your spine is very vulnerable. Being present and listening to how someone responds to each step is very important to make them feel as comfortable as possible during the whole process. 

Contact Info:

• Website: illuminatechiropractic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.ericpinto/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IlluminatechiropracticLA/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC11KGQn-M6yUYV38W27s3dA

Image Credits
Cambria Shelley