While attending The League basketball game in Los Angeles, I watched Dr. Casey Woods work through a line of players and attendees seeking relief. The basketball league brings together teams from brands like Sweet Sweat, LRG, and Cookies, creating an atmosphere where competition and community come together for an epic night of fun. When I noticed the adjustment table with no line, I seized the opportunity—my body was lighting up like a Christmas tree that day, the familiar pattern of tension that typically precedes my migraines.

After getting off Dr. Casey’s table, the relief was immediate. My pain had vanished. I needed to understand more about what he’d done and how he approached care, so I made the trip down to Wood Chiropractic in Redondo Beach.

My Experience at Wood Chiropractic

Walking into Wood Chiropractic, the space immediately stood out. The clinic is gorgeous, thoughtfully designed, with a holistic care team on-site offering a wide range of services. But what really mattered was the hour I spent with Dr. Casey, who approached my chronic issues with a level of care and understanding that made me feel valid and seen in my journey with chronic pain. 

He began with massage-style soft-tissue work that helped my body relax and prepare for the adjustment. Despite much of my tension living in my hip complex—stemming from a sports-related coccyx injury in high school that left my tailbone out of place for over a decade—Dr. Casey operated in a highly professional manner, and  I never felt an ounce of discomfort, even when working around sensitive areas affected by that old injury.

Following the soft-tissue work, he performed an adjustment, then moved into muscle testing in the on-site gym. This is where things got interesting. He identified which muscles were over-firing and which were underperforming, essentially mapping out the compensatory patterns my body had developed over years of working around that misaligned tailbone. Rather than just treating symptoms, he put together a comprehensive plan for strengthening and mobilizing different parts of my body to address the root cause of my chronic pain.

Dr. Caseys’ Path to Opening a Practice

Dr. Casey’s journey to opening his own practice led him to a position where he could support athletes and everyday people in need of relief and help. He bounced around in high school, always playing volleyball but never settling long enough to commit fully. After getting an opportunity to play collegiately, his freshman year took an unexpected turn when his 15-year-old sister got pregnant, and Casey dropped out of college to help raise his niece.

“I dropped out of college, helped my sister raise my niece for a little bit, and then once she was kind of on her feet and ready to take on that role after a few years, I just kind of was in the workforce,” he explained. But volleyball had stayed with him as a side pursuit—coaching at different high schools and clubs, even starting his own club at 23.

His coaching eventually led him to work with one of the nation’s best clubs. The owner also served as head coach for USC’s men’s volleyball program, and Casey asked if he could observe and learn. “Anytime I had an afternoon off, I would just go sit in the Galen Center. I would just soak up as much information as I could. And I was like, you guys get paid to do this? This is amazing.”

That realization prompted him to return to school at 28, earning his bachelor’s in kinesiology while playing collegiately. But his NCAA mentors warned him off pursuing college coaching, saying things like “You do not want this life. You’ve got to move all over the country. You’re not going to make any money.” He pivoted to a contract playing professionally in Sweden, but tore his patellar tendon at nationals his senior year. At 31, facing the reality that his body might not want to compete at that level anymore, he found himself back at the drawing board.

His aunt, a chiropractor in Westwood, suggested he pursue his doctorate. Casey knew almost nothing about chiropractic care—she’d adjusted him once or twice when he was 13. But he went to an interview at the Los Angeles Chiropractic College anyway. “The woman who I interviewed with, it was her 40th year of instruction. I was the last interview of her 40-year career, and she was incredibly intelligent, and I loved what she was about as a medical practitioner.”

That conversation sold him on the program. What sealed the deal was learning that LACC runs the most evidence-based chiropractic program in the nation, which aligned perfectly with his kinesiology background and years working as a trainer and coach. He finished at 35 and opened Wood Chiropractic six months later.

“I’m not gonna go be an associate somewhere,” he said. “I kind of looked at medicine as if I was going to the doctor, what would I want them to provide for me. And so for me, I want this to basically be a one-stop shop, right? Unless you need surgery or prescription medication, I want to be able to provide you with  whatever you need.”

He built his practice by drawing on practitioners he’d worked with over the years—PT concepts for injury prevention and rehab, soft-tissue techniques from various therapists, and the chiropractic focus on the nervous system and joints. “I don’t want my patients to have to go to three different people to accomplish one goal,” he explained.

His advice for anyone trying to build a career helping others? “Surrounding yourself by a lot of different practitioners and just trying to take as much as you can from each individual. Not everything is going to be quality, but at least you’re gaining a lot of perspective.” He also emphasized learning from people outside the medical field—real estate professionals, investors, and tech professionals—to understand how to build and scale a business.

Final Thoughts

The difference between treating symptoms and addressing root causes often comes down to time and attention. Dr. Casey spent an hour with me, mapping out patterns my body had developed over more than a decade of compensation. That coccyx injury from high school had created a cascade of issues—my body constantly trying to protect and work around that misalignment, leading to tension that radiates everywhere and triggers migraines.

What struck me most was his practical approach to care. He didn’t try to sell me on endless appointments or promise miracle cures. He gave me a plan—specific exercises, mobilization work, and things I could do on my own to support the adjustments and soft-tissue work we did together. That hour at Wood Chiropractic shifted how I think about managing chronic pain.

About Elisa Edelstein
Elisa is a curious and versatile writer, carving her niche in the health and wellness industry since 2015. Her lens is rooted in real world experience as a personal trainer and competitive bodybuilder and extended out of the gym and on to the page as a writer where she is able to combine her passions for empowering others, promoting wellness, and the power of the written word.