The Mason Hulis Story

Mason Hulis, a man in his mid forties, is used to regular physical activity.  He was a regular at the gym several times a week to lift weights, would run four miles four times a week, and owns four dogs whom he walks at least three miles each day.  You’d call Mason an active man. Problems started with a move for Mason and his wife from Maryland to Florida.  He first packed a 17-foot trailer and drove his wife and dogs south.  He drove himself back north and packed an additional 17-foot trailer and made the trip once again, all within a week’s time.  He did all the lifting and hauling himself, feeling self-assured that he was in excellent physical shape.  After the second trip, he began to experience pains deep in his groin and assumed he’d “pulled a little something” he tried to forget about it, sure it would dissipate.  However, the pain not only continued but also got much worse.  He thought perhaps a hernia had developed as a result of his heavy lifting! When the pain was unbearable, he went to his primary care physician who immediately did a CAT scan happily ruling out the existence of a hernia.  The doctor put him on a non-steroidal medication.  With no relief in the first week or two, Mason increased his dose of that medication to 600-800 mg per day, hoping that would reduce what the doctor said was inflammation.  At this point, he was unable to do much of anything.  He completely stopped all physical exercise, including the daily dog walking.  He managed to get to work and sat at his computer for 8+ hours a day drinking several cups of caffeinated coffee – and continued to feel miserable! He found a licensed massage therapist who treated him a couple of times a week, which brought him some relief to his now continuously aching lower back.  With a new house to work on after work and weekends, these treatments did allow him to do a few minor projects but he was never out of pain. A month or so later, he and his wife were at the local airport on their way to a conference.  Mason suddenly broke into a cold sweat and nausea, and complained of severe light-headedness.  “Perhaps,” he thought, “I just didn’t eat enough food.”  As a matter of fact, all he’d had time for that day was a caffeinated diet soda.  Surely that was the main problem.  After prostrating himself for a few minutes on the floor at the airport, he assured his wife that he’d be OK as soon as he ate a little something and off they went. The next day, he had a similar experience at a rest stop on the highway.  Again, it passed. The third day, he and his wife were lunching with their daughter.  Once again, light-headedness overcame him along with nausea and a light sweat.  He excused himself from the lunch table and went to the men’s room.  An immediate bowel movement told him he was in BIG trouble – his stool was black and sticky like tar.  He thought perhaps an old ulcer had reared its ugly self.  A drive to the local emergency room proved that his red blood cell count was indeed dangerously low – half of its normal count and they immediately infused two pints of blood.  A tube into his gut proved that bleeding was occurring and the doctor cauterized the area that had caused the trouble.  It was decided that the non-steroidal medication he had been taking (in doses too large for anyone’s stomach) had been the culprit.  A night in intensive care and five days in the hospital brought Mason to the point of having to face the fact that he had a serious problem to deal with. With low back pain still dogging him and remnants of problems with a bleeding ulcer, Mason agreed to begin seeing Dr. Sandra Bontemps, a chiropractor and a friend of his wife’s.  Unlike most chiropractors, Dr. Bontemps employs a combination of skills such as non-force chiropractic, craniosacral, neuro-emotional technique, acupuncture, and nutrition consultation. Dr. Bontemps prescribed an X-Ray of Mason’s spine to verify what her hands were telling her and indeed there was a curvature, several compressed discs, and two bone spurs.  He felt IMMEDIATE relief from the pain in his back after his first visit and saw Dr. Bontemps twice a week for about a month.  In addition to her hands-on skill, Dr. Bontemps also used Scenar machine treatments that help redirect energy through the patients nervous system, specifically helpful for scar tissue. Dr. Bontemps introduced some dos and don’ts into Mason’s life once the initial crisis had passed.  No heavy lifting and no running topped her list.  However, slowly but surely she did recommend some exercise and he began to walk and bike. Several months later, his exercise regime includes three ten-mile bike rides each week and at least five two-mile walks.  Although he’d like to go back to the gym at some point, he is following the direction of his chiropractor and increasing the complexity of his exercise regime to parallel the healing of his whole body. Nutrition was the answer to his recurrent stomach ulcers.  Dr. Bontemps asked him to cut out wheat and processed sugar, to increase his consumption of organic live food, especially leafy greens and healthful vegetables and prescribed some pro-biotics each day to increase the “good” bacteria in his digestive system.  A year later, Mason has had NO recurrence of his bleeding ulcer and he is medication-free.  Although he admits to he occasional “cheat” in a restaurant, his body tells him quickly when he’s eaten something it doesn’t want to process and it’s become far easier for him to immediately return to good eating practices because of the instantaneous feeling of well-being he receives. He’s a “maintenance” patient of Dr. Bontemps now, seeing her once every month or so to keep his body in alignment, by balancing his nervous system and to discuss what new exercises to his regime. "To be pain free, to have boundless energy, and to feel wonderful is something I never thought could happen,” said Mason.  “Amazingly, I drink many glasses of water each day on her recommendation and am becoming a caffeine-free person.  Dr. Bontemps has added some selected, organic, natural direct-from-the-Amazon herbs to my routine as well.  I like how I feel and I just want to do everything I can to enhance my health and well- being.  I will be forever grateful to Dr. Bontemps’ education and skill for truly turning my life around.”