Review sent 27 Oct., 2009 to “Non-Profit Reviews” on their webpage. Awakenings Health Institute (AHI), a spinal cord and neurological rehabilitation center in Solana Beach, Calif, was founded by Laura Karch, with the help of Heather Newcomb, in August 2004, and achieved "Non-Profit" status, November, 2006. Look it up on the i-net at awakeningshealthinstitute.org. You will be impressed. The average person viewing Laura today (2009) couldn't notice any of the residual effects of the auto-truck crash she endured 15 years ago. Specialists, however, would easily notice her altered gait, her altered dexterity, the almost complete absence of tactile sensation, esp. heat and cold, and some other difficulties I'd rather not discuss here without her permission. Laura has certainly learned to compensate for these deficiencies in a number of interesting and novel ways, hence making her daily living quite tolerable, even enjoyable. She is not one to complain nor dwell on these types of problems, but would rather re-direct these "wasted energies" as she would call them, to other, more important things, events, activities, people, in her new life. Thus, pooling all their resources, and borrowing some additional start-up money, these two young ladies gambled that they would be able to become successful in less than one year. Their "aces" were that their expertise, determination, unfettered drive for perfection and success, sincere interest in patient needs, sincerely kind personalities, and simple hope and naiveté, would propel them towards success. It was indeed those characteristics that lured so many people to their facility originally, eventually followed by word-of-mouth and curiosity. At first Laura and Heather traveled to clients’ homes. They then traveled around the country teaching the trainers of Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) patients about their techniques, which, while not yet formally established scientifically, do indeed have some research support. Currently many clients make long-term journeys to San Diego for the personal attention the specialized, knowledgeable, friendly, compassionate staff at AHI. Many of them and their families "permanently" move to the SD area. Many also send their trainers to Awakenings to learn the newer ideas used at The Institiute. Awakenings Health Institute now offers an intensive exercise and wellness program for individuals with various neurological disorders, primarily for Spinal Cord Injury, Stroke, Parkinson's Disease, and Multiple Sclerosis. This non-traditional program focuses on a physiological, athletic and holistic approach to recovery through various treatments such as specialized weight & strength training, massage, acupuncture, nutrition, chiropractic, herbal medicine, homeopathy, and naturopathy. Their goal is to improve quality of life by providing exceptional facilities, modern equipment, specialized & experienced personnel, and most of all, personalized and friendly care. In short, AHI helps people discover their abilities amidst their overwhelming and obvious disabilities. In addition to making you aware of "Awakenings", a consequence of Laura's personal brush with death and potential permanent immobility, and all that it is doing to help people with SC injuries, my point is to make you aware of how Laura has re-directed her particular tragedy towards helping others in similar situations as she once was. In addition to using the best available knowledge and equipment to accomplish her goals, her personal experience in a similar tragedy as her clients, and her personal drive to recover herself, no matter what odds she had to work against, the "techniques" she used on herself, her superb personality, her ability to make others WANT to do as she does...all this is eventually translates into every move, every smile, every kind word, every directive...effectively, every action, of this superb young lady, as she engages her clients in the greatest challenge they will ever face in their lives...their drive to help themselves recover. Although I have heard nothing but great things about the fantastic work taking place at Awakenings, and although I would like to be able to speak objectively, being the father of Laura, gives me an intrinsic bias. To lessen this bias, therefore, I strongly invite you to contact her website so you can make your own judgment. Even better, contact her personally. I'm sure she would love to give you more information about what she is doing, what her goals are, her time schedule for achieving these goals, the current problems with this start-up facility, etc. Peter Karch, the proud father of Laura.
After a few weeks of worsening numbness and neurological symptoms, I contacted Awakenings for guidance and advice. I had done some non-profit work for them in the past. It was Awakenings that pointed me in the right direction.
Within a week, I saw a spinal chord orthopedic surgeon. 2 days later, I had a near emergency spinal disectomy and fusion at C3/C4. The next day, 4 of the Awakenings Staff showed up in my hospital recovery room . . . totally unexpected. What a sight!
I spent the next few months in PT (partially at AHI and partially outside) and had months of Acupuncture treatment at AHI. To this day, I continue to receive "maintenance" acupuncture.
Had it not been for AHI's initial recommendation to immediately see a specialist, my doctor said that more permanent damage would have occurred each passing day.
Thank you Awakenings!!!