Meet Maggie Pezeshkian and John McHaney of Duarte Family Chiropractic

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maggie Pezeshkian and John McHaney.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born in Iran to Armenian parents. Both myself and my brother spend our childhood in Tehran, Iran’s capital. After Iran’s Islamic revolution, way of life started changing drastically. The threat of war was always looming until it happened between Iran and Iraq in the early to mid 1980’s. At the time my brother was about 10-11 years old and we were very afraid that he would be snatched and taken to war.

My parents were looking for a way out of that country. Finally, we were able to escape and with the help of friends, go to Europe then make our way to USA. We arrived in Los Angeles in June of 1985. At that time, I did not speak any English, only basic Hello, good bye and thank you. I found myself in high school with no friends, and no English language skills. While I was adjusting to a new environment, language and culture my parents were working extremely hard to make ends meet so my brother and I can have a decent life and future.

On my end, I was determined to succeed. I started taking extra classes in high school to catch up since I had skipped 10th grade while we were transitioning from Europe to US. I was in school from 7 am to 4 pm every day. I also started working at a dry cleaner to make extra income so I can help my family. I went from English as Second Language(ESL) classes to regular classes. I was terrified I would fail but my determination and hard work paid off. I graduated on time with my class. After High school I enrolled in the local Community College to take my general education courses. After a few years I applied and got accepted to University of Southern California (USC) Dental School, Dental Hygiene program. I graduated from that program with a Bachelor of Science degree. Due to my success in completing the program, I was asked to come back and teach the dental students in their Dental Hygiene rotation. I worked as a Licensed Dental Hygienist for 8 years after graduation, until I got injured playing volleyball. That injury changed the course of my life.

I had always been athletic and had played a number of sports such as tennis, basketball and volleyball. My passion was volleyball and dancing. I had a severe ankle injury while playing volleyball and was taken to a Doctor of Chiropractic and he was able to help me with my injuries. I walked in with crutches and walked out without them. He got me back to playing shape in less time that was the norm for such an injury. What he was able to do surprised and amazed me to a point where I thought, that is what I want to do, Chiropractic. I have always wanted to help people, but I felt limited in what I could do being a hygienist. I decided to change careers I applied and was accepted to Chiropractic school, I made the Dean’s List every quarter and I graduated Magna Cum Laude in my graduating class. I received my Doctor of Chiropractic License in 2004 and proceeded to work at various clinics. My ultimate goal was to open my own office. Meanwhile my boyfriend at the time, now my husband, Dr. John McHaney, had also graduated and working.

In 2005, I opened a very small office in Duarte, Ca. Slowly I expanded to a larger office and my husband joined me at that time. During my time in Duarte, I was a big part of the business community, I was a board member of the Duarte Chamber of Commerce and ultimately the Chair. We now have 10-year-old twin boys and we are owner/operators of our family practice office going on 12 years. Recently we have expanded our office to a second location in Glendale, Ca. We anticipate commencement of operations in that office in January of 2018. My husband specializes in sports injuries and rehab, and I specialize in TMJ related issues as well as head and neck. We still treat the whole body and we are both using biomechanically safe and effective method of Gonstead to help our patients.

For fun, I teach Zumba Fitness classes at 24 Hour Fitness in my area, going on 7 years and I just started teaching Strong by Zumba classes as well. I try to stay active and I am hoping to start playing volleyball again.

Has it been a smooth road?
It has definitely not been a smooth road to get where I am. Many obstacles presented themselves but I had a goal and I was set out to achieve them. Initially I struggled with language and trying to fit in a society that was completely foreign to me. Emotionally I was 14 years old, a teenager in a foreign land with no friends, trying to adjust to a brand new environment. I remember clearly how depressed I was. I missed my friends back home. While my peers were at the movies or in sports after school I had to take extra classes to catch up and then go to work to make some money to help my family. My family could not afford college but I wanted to make something of my life and so I took out student loans to pay for my education. It was a definite struggle.

My personal journey has been full of adventures, and bumps in the road. However, I would not change a thing because my experiences have made me who I am. I hope to help and inspire people who may not have had an easy go of things, but every experience shapes us and our decisions. I hope the readers of this article realize that the can do and achieve whatever they set their minds to. It may not be easy but it is possible.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Our company, Duarte Family Chiropractic was initially started by me in 2005. I had leased a small 500 sq/ft space and had 2 small rooms where I would see patients in one room and I had a massage therapist working in the other room. Eventually my husband joined the practice and we expanded to a larger office. Still employing massage therapists and we were able to see more patients. A few years later we added more room to our office to accommodate sports training and rehab. My husband is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician (CCSP). He trained with Olympic doctors, and did a stint at the Olympic center in Colorado Springs. He is great at what he does. He has worked on Pro football, pro baseball players, high school kids and small athletes in peewee football and T-Ball leagues.

I specialize in TMJ dysfunctions, my background in dental education is instrumental in my decision to use both set of skills to help people get better, by eliminating jaw pain, and headaches and any related ailments. I am also a Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioner (CKTP) and instructor.

Recently, we have expanded to a second location in Glendale Ca. We will start seeing patients in our second location starting in January 2018.

I am very proud of our achievements, running a business in California definitely has its challenges, but we have managed to expand, albeit slowly yet consistently from a shoe box to, now, two locations. This enables us to serve more people in need of chiropractic care.

Many things make us unique. We are a husband and wife team. We really listen to our patients, we are diligent and we practice sound technique, Gonstead technique, that helps people get better effectively. Every patient gets thorough examination and treatment. All our patients are shown and receive functional rehabilitative exercises and follow up. We consider the source of the issue and don’t just put a band aid on the presenting symptoms. We address not only the spine but all joints and muscles involved in the areas of injury, and their surrounding area. We work with other health care professionals to optimize our patients’ care. Lastly, we are certified in sports injuries, Kinesio Taping and Rock Tape. Also, we are uniquely qualified to treat and rehab TMJ issues.

In addition, I am a fitness instructor and I teach Zumba Fitness and Strong by Zumba classes. That make me a super fun doctor to be around. One can say I am the dancing doctor!

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Duarte is a great place to have a business. It is located along the historic Route 66. It was voted the most business-friendly city a few years ago. This along with the fact that it is considered the city of health because City of Hope is also located in Duarte. Any health-related business will do great. The community needs and seeks it and we are more than happy to provide our services in Duarte. Duarte is improving steadily; more businesses are coming to town. I believe in the next few years Duarte will be much better known for its business community.

Contact Info:

• Address: 924 Buena Vista Street Suite 103 Duarte, Ca, 91010
  201 North Brand Blvd. Suite 246 Glendale, Ca. 91203
• Website: www.duartechiropractic.com
• Phone: 626-359-3956
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @duartefamilychiropractic & @maggilicious9
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DUARTE-FAMILY-CHIROPRACTIC-71982905429/?ref=br_rs
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrMaggie9
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/duarte-family-chiropractic-duarte

Image Credit:
Adriana Anorve
ZBest Foto

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