Matt Colman, D.C., is a Chiropractor located in San Francisco, California with training in a variety of fields including Chiropractic, Cranial Osteopathy, Physical Therapy, and Nutrition. He strives to bring the best in natural health care to the community.

Specializing in:

• Chiropractic
• Sacro Occipital Technique
• Whole Food Nutrition
• Neuro Emotional Technique

My Journey

I’m often asked by my patients how I got to where I am now. Well, every journey starts somewhere, and mine started when I was a teenager.  When I was 13 my Grandpa passed away, it rocked my world. He was one of the strongest people I knew, he actually did push ups the day he died, he probably also had chocolate cake and and some trans fat laden food, my grandma was a great cook, but not a healthy one.

Something stirred inside me soon after, how could such a strong man be gone. As fate would have it my best friend’s parents were strict Pritikin diet adherents, and so, I went on that diet, thinking, food and health were probably linked. It was at that point that I entered the maze of nutrition.

I read everything I could, and over the years made my way through various nutrition lifestyles, from Pritikin to Vegan, fat free to whole foods, and everything in between. I have personal experience or experience through my patients with a vast amount of different nutritional lifestyles, and it has colored my professional career as much as the thousands of hours I have spent studying the subject.

As I made my way to college, my interest in the human body continued, majoring in physiology, and thinking medical school was my future.  While in school I contracted an infection that was made worse by the treatment, and continued to deepen in my system for years. I found the medical treatment I received not only completely ineffective, but the doctors without any real options. I saw over half a dozen specialists over a 3 year period, they recommended the same drugs, I just got worse, my skin became paper thin, I had a horrible complexion, and my stomach burned constantly, my breath stank, etc.. I was literally sickened from the experience and really wanted nothing to do with medicine. I felt like they were just trying to cover up the symptoms of the infection instead of trying to figure out why I got it in the first place. My dad and brother are MDs, I have nothing but respect for them, but I didn’t see myself surrounded by that philosophy and flourishing.  I graduated but no longer wanted to be a MD, so I moved to Santa Cruz with my dog, Shadow.

It was Shadow who really guided me to where I am today.  When I got to Santa Cruz, I began working in a winery, actually in the tasting room, and Shadow came to work with me everyday, she was a hit, everyone loved her. On a camping trip, Shadow had hurt her leg, and her limp was getting worse. Her Vet recommended a pain med called Rimadyll for the rest of her life. This is a 2 year old dog, here we go again with the covering up symptoms, but not dealing with the cause, not to mention the side effects of such a prescription, such as liver or renal failure, and even death (check the web if you don,’t believe me). I thought I would get a second opinion, I did, they said Rimadyll. Not their fault, they don’t know any better. Regardless, I wasn’t about to subject my pup to a life of horrible side effects. So I started giving her the basics, glucosamine and chondroitin, tried to find her a great dog food, massaged her leg, but she was getting worse. Well, as fate would have it, her answer came walking in to the tasting room, and would forever change my life.

It was a Wednesday, the room was empty except for Shadow and I, when a customer came rolling in. Shadow did her usual, came out to great her, limping on that lame leg, and lied down next to her as the vinophile began to try the wine. We talked a bit about the wine, the beautiful scenery, when finally she mentioned that she had noticed Shadow’s limp and minded if she take a look. She said she was a Chiropractor, and worked exclusively with animals. I had never met a Chiropractor, and I’d heard they were quacks.  I actually said, “I don’t know, I heard you guys are quacks.” Her jaw dropped at my rude statement, I was embarrassed and apologized, thanked her for her generous offer, and said, of course, just “don’t hurt my dog”. She had me come around, and I watched as she examined Shadow who was loving the attention. I watched her treat a few spots on the body with a few “hmm’s and aha’s” along the way,which I took to mean that she was figuring out what was wrong with Shadow. What happened next was nothing short of a miracle as far as I was concerned. She had me walk across the room and call Shadow to me, who came running to me as I squatted down across the room, there was no limp, I was actually almost in tears.  I looked at our hero (The Chiropractor) and said “this is what I am supposed to do with my life.” She told me that there was a school just over the hill in San Jose. I went the next day to check it out, quit my job on Monday, and started school in the Fall.

I’ve never looked back. I often think of that day, of Shadow as my guide, she taught me just as much about nutrition but that is a story for another day. Sadly, Shadow passed last October, she was just about 14, and she lived a full and healthy life. Every one of my patients has her to thank for the treatments they receive from me. I also think how many “Shadows” there are out there, I loved Shadow about as much as anyone could love anyone, still do, and everyone who comes to see me gets that same attention because they are someone’s “Shadow” and that someone will be so happy when their husband’s, wife’s, daughter’s, boyfriend’s, etc’s “limp” is gone.