Celeste Calvitto, Journal correspondent | Posted: Friday, July 27, 2007 11:00 pm
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RAPID CITY - From the moment you meet her, you know that Rapid
City chiropractor Lisa Lundstrom practices what she preaches.
"We are family-based and totally laid back," Lundstrom, known
as "Dr. Lisa," said cheerfully as daughter Macy, 3, sits on the lap
of a member of the office staff. Ashley, 6-1/2, can also be seen at
the office now and then.
Lundstrom, the president of the Black Hills Chiropractic
Society, speaks with enthusiasm about helping people through her
profession, and with confidence about balancing her roles as a
businesswoman, mother and wife.
"I have a husband who is phenomenal," Lundstrom said of Cory,
who owns South Dakota Overhead Doors with his brother.
Both sets of her children's grandparents, a summertime
babysitter and a "great office staff" round out the support system
that Lundstrom said she is blessed to have.
"Being a working mother with two kids, two businesses and two
dogs, you are constantly juggling," she said with a smile.
A Rapid City native and graduate of the University of North
Dakota and chiropractic college in Bloomington, Minn., Lundstrom
had just started her own business when she found out she was
pregnant with Ashley. Both of her daughters "came to work with me
until I quit nursing," she said.
When she had a tiny satellite office in Custer, her supportive
patients would whisper when they saw Ashley sleeping and volunteer
to help look after her.
"One elderly woman would take her for a walk," Lundstrom
recalled.
Her daughters are learning at an early age to have empathy for
people because they have observed patients who are in pain. Ashley
is quite perceptive, Lundstrom said.
"She is aware of how others are feeling," Lundstrom
said.
Lundstrom is able to schedule her office hours to help support
her family life.
"You have to learn to prioritize," she said. "Scheduling kids'
activities is a full-time job in itself. You might not be able to
get a pedicure, but I wouldn't have it any other way."
Her children's babysitter wants to be a chiropractor, and told
Lundstrom of her plan to study psychology as an
undergraduate.
"I told her that was perfect," Lundstrom said.
What other advice does Lundstrom have for a young woman who
seeks to become both a businesswoman and a mom?
"Do it in stages," she said. "Get the education done."
It helps to have "a super husband" and to enjoy whatever
profession you choose, Lundstrom said.
"As a working woman, if you love what you do, you can handle
it all," she said.
