You know that sound when every vertebra in your spine pops? It’s the sound – and feeling – of a new lease on life. Every once in a while someone in a WeChat group asks for a chiropractor recommendation and invariably, I think to myself, “Oooh, I should really go to one!” But somehow, someway, for the last eight years, I’ve never actually bothered to take the initiative and make the trip. That is, until recently.

During my daughter’s last check-up, I stepped onto the scale out of curiosity and found that my height had decreased by 1cm. WTF!? It could have been inaccurate or it could have been that I was slouching, but either way, it got me worried that carrying my daughter through pregnancy, not to mention all over Beijing, had perhaps actually compressed my spine.

All of which left me determined to visit a chiropractor once and for all. Unfortunately, there was another problem. I just needed to get my neck and back cracked, however, that kind of visit to a chiropractor in my native California would be around USD 60 to 100 for a visit. And the recommendations I was getting on WeChat for international hospitals averaged out to pretty much the same, around RMB 600 a visit.

There’s a part of me that finds paying international prices for a simple service locals get at a fraction of the cost terribly irritating. More often than not, there is an equally good, but cheaper alternative!

Between WeChat group recommendations, coupled with translation apps, and a search on Dianping, I was able to find Zhou Le Spine Health Management. In short, they’re a local chiropractor that speaks no English but has been around for decades and offers the exact services that I was seeking for about half the price.

Dr. Zhou Lei has been a chiropractor for over 20 years and within minutes, had cracked my neck and back, and adjusted my legs so they’re now the same length. It felt unbelievable! It was like all those ten months of pregnancy back pain and breastfeeding back pain suddenly never existed. This was better than a massage!

Of course, the clinic has clients of all heights, sizes, and ages, including children as young as 12. One thing they did stress, however, is that they will not perform adjustments on pregnant women.

Like every chiropractor I’ve ever been to, Dr. Zhou told me that sitting in front of a computer every day has damaged my spine and that carrying my newborn around hasn’t made it any better. But what was different was that in China, he told me, chiropractic adjustments are always followed by a massage. In the US you get cracked and you’re done. But here, a masseuse comes in and gives you a quick rub down.

Apparently, the idea is that if your muscles are still tense, they’ll pull your bones back into the stress positions. But if you get your adjustment followed by a massage that effectively relaxes your muscles, you’re still probably going to go back to your stress positions, but not as quickly. Makes sense…

Before paying, the receptionist advised me to purchase vouchers on Dianping. My entire visit came out to RMB 448.

Zhou Le Spine Health Management is located on the 2nd floor of Chaowai SOHO Building B. 0217.

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Images: Mina Yan