Dr. Don MacDonald On Polyvagal-Informed Chiropractic

After nearly three decades in practice, Dr. Don MacDonald still returns to the same question when he enters the adjusting room: what is this person’s nervous system communicating right now? It is a practical question, not a slogan. It has shaped his work as an Edmonton chiropractor, educator, and mentor, and it now sits at the center of The Informed Chiropractor Collective. For Dr. Don and Brandi MacDonald, polyvagal-informed chiropractic is not about replacing clinical judgment. It is about expanding it with sharper observation, better communication, and more thoughtful hands-on care.

The Origin Of Polyvagal-Informed Chiropractic

Dr. Don MacDonald graduated from Palmer College of Chiropractic and has practiced since 1997. Alongside his ongoing work at South Side Chiropractic in Edmonton, he has taught chiropractors in Canada and internationally, served as a former president of the Edmonton Chiropractic Society, and written “The Underdog Curse,” a people-pleaser’s guide to growth and stress reduction. Yet his teaching today grew from something very grounded: years of noticing that technique alone did not explain everything happening in the room.

That awareness led him to develop the MacDonald Safety Corridor Protocol, an approach to assessment and adjusting that considers how a person may respond to cues of safety and stress. In polyvagal-informed chiropractic, those responses are not treated as a simple formula. Instead, they become part of a richer clinical conversation. A chiropractor observes tone, breath, movement, readiness, and connection, then uses that information to guide the next decision with care.

The MacDonald Safety Corridor Protocol brings attention to interconnected areas associated with tension, stability, and perception, including the upper cervical spine, ribs, diaphragm, pelvis, pelvic floor, and cranial structures. Dr. Don teaches chiropractors to think in relationships rather than isolated parts. The goal is not to make broad claims about what one protocol can prove or treat. The goal is to help chiropractors become more precise in how they assess, touch, adjust, and explain what they are doing.

That distinction matters. Dr. Don and Brandi are careful to present their work as education for chiropractors, not as a cure-all or replacement for appropriate medical assessment. Their message is not that other providers are missing something. Rather, it is that experienced chiropractors often sense there is another level available to them. Polyvagal-informed chiropractic gives them a language for exploring that level with humility, structure, and clinical respect.

How Dr. Don And Brandi Teach Together

The strongest feature of The Informed Chiropractor Collective is the partnership behind it. Dr. Don brings nearly thirty years of hands-on chiropractic practice and a deep focus on adjusting. Brandi MacDonald brings a background in social work, expertise in interoception and communication, and a refined understanding of how people experience safety and stress. Together, they teach chiropractors how body awareness and language can support one another in daily practice.

In their seminars, these skills are not separated into abstract categories. Brandi helps chiropractors consider what a patient may be feeling, how a conversation may land, and why trust can influence the clinical encounter. Dr. Don then connects that awareness to assessment, touch, positioning, and adjusting. The result is a teaching style that feels both practical and human. Chiropractors learn to ask better questions, notice more useful patterns, and communicate with greater confidence.

The Informed Chiropractor Collective was created for chiropractors who have already invested in their craft. Many are experienced, skilled, and dedicated, but they feel they have reached a ceiling. They may want more clarity in complex visits, more confidence in explaining care, or a stronger sense of connection with practice members. Through ongoing mentorship and hands-on seminars, Dr. Don and Brandi give them a place to refine those skills without pretending that expertise eliminates the need for growth.

Their international teaching has taken them to chiropractic audiences in more than twelve countries, including events such as Life West’s The Wave and Parker Seminars. This matters because polyvagal-informed chiropractic is not tied to one local style of practice. Chiropractors throughout the world face a similar challenge: how to combine technical skill, nervous system awareness, and clear communication in a way that feels authentic and useful in the adjusting room.

That combination also gives the MacDonalds’ work its emotional center. Brandi and Dr. Don challenge one another’s thinking. She grounds the communication side in how people sense and interpret their internal experience. He tests those ideas against the realities of clinical practice. Their work is better because they build it together, and that is the same experience they want chiropractors to have when they enter The Informed Chiropractor Collective.

The Pelvic Floor Protocol Within The Larger Lens

One distinctive part of Dr. Don’s hands-on teaching is his pelvic floor protocol. He presents it as part of the broader MacDonald Safety Corridor Protocol, not as a stand-alone promise or a shortcut. The pelvic floor is often left out of chiropractic conversations about movement, tension, breath, and body awareness. Dr. Don invites chiropractors to consider it within a wider pattern that may include the pelvis, diaphragm, ribs, upper cervical spine, and other structures.

For experienced chiropractors, this can open a careful and respectful area of inquiry. The pelvic floor protocol is taught in professional settings where boundaries, clinical reasoning, and appropriate scope are central. The article can introduce the concept, but the hands-on teaching belongs in seminars, where chiropractors can ask questions, receive guidance, and understand the context. That is consistent with the MacDonalds’ larger philosophy: skill grows through practice, feedback, and discernment.

This is also where polyvagal-informed chiropractic becomes more than theory. A chiropractor may notice how a person breathes, braces, hesitates, settles, or responds to contact. Those observations do not replace diagnosis. They help guide the encounter. Dr. Don teaches that the chiropractor’s hands and words should work in the same direction. Brandi teaches that communication can either support trust or create unnecessary uncertainty. Together, they help chiropractors bring more coherence to both.

The MacDonalds’ approach speaks to chiropractors who want to feel excited about practice again. Not because they need a trend, but because clinical life can become repetitive without meaningful development. The Informed Chiropractor Collective offers a professional space where seasoned practitioners can sharpen adjusting, study the MacDonald Safety Corridor Protocol, explore pelvic floor protocol concepts, and build more confident conversations with the people in their care.

For chiropractors searching for a deeper way to connect technique, communication, and nervous system awareness, Dr. Don MacDonald and Brandi MacDonald offer more than information. They offer a teaching partnership rooted in practice. Explore The Informed Chiropractor Collective to learn how polyvagal-informed chiropractic can help refine hands-on work, strengthen patient conversations, and bring renewed clarity to the adjusting room.

Explore More About The Informed Chiropractor

Ready to explore a more informed approach to chiropractic care and leadership? Visit The Informed Chiropractor to discover resources designed to support chiropractors and their communities. For deeper conversations and practical insights, listen to the podcast, watch educational content on YouTube, connect with Brandi MacDonald on Instagram and Facebook, or follow Dr. Don MacDonald on Facebook to stay connected with their latest conversations, perspectives, and resources.