About the practice
Meet Dr. Justin Butler, D.C.
A personal understanding of pain. A lifelong commitment to helping people move forward.
Chapter 1
Colorado skies to the California coast.
Justin Butler was raised in Broomfield, Colorado, where wide skies, mountain trails, and a love of the natural world shaped his early perspective on the body and how it moves.
As a teenager, he moved with his family to Santa Barbara, California, where he completed high school and began building a life on the coast. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from California State University, Northridge — a foundation that would later shape how he listens to and thinks about patients.
His interest in how people heal, grow, and reconnect with their lives eventually led him to Palmer College of Chiropractic West, where he earned his Doctor of Chiropractic degree.
Chapter 2
A future in football — and an injury that changed everything.
Long before he considered chiropractic, Justin was pursuing an ambitious path in football — one aimed at the NFL. That dream shaped his training, his identity, and his sense of what his body could do.
A devastating injury ended that path. It also began another chapter he hadn't planned for: one where ordinary movements became difficult. Walking could be painful. Playing recreational sports felt nearly impossible. Every morning began with a series of warm-up exercises just so his injured limbs felt usable.
Without those exercises, simple things — making the bed, cooking breakfast — could trigger intense pain. That would have been hard enough on its own. What made it heavier was being a young father who wanted to be able to play with and protect his children.
Chapter 3
The moment that changed his understanding of care.
He had already begun receiving regular chiropractic care. It was helping, though he didn't fully realize how much his body had changed.
One afternoon, his three-year-old daughter Avery lost her footing while playing on a couch and began falling toward a glass table.
Justin instinctively sprinted across the room and caught her.
After the immediate fear passed, he realized something quietly profound: he wasn't in pain. He hadn't done his usual warm-up exercises that morning. He had sprinted, reacted, and moved without the limitations that had controlled his life.
The experience showed him that the real value of recovery wasn't about returning to football. It was about being able to protect, play with, and stay present for his children.
Chapter 4
A calling — and a clinical foundation.
That moment with Avery shaped Justin's commitment to chiropractic care. It became less about a career and more about a purpose — helping other people live with fewer physical limitations and more of the moments that matter.
After graduating from Palmer College of Chiropractic West, he developed his early clinical foundation at Advanced Chiropractic Group under the mentorship of Dr. Michael York, D.C. That formative chapter shaped how he approaches evaluation, communication, and personalized care today.
Chapter 5
A season for family.
Life later called Justin away from active practice for a period when family needed to come first. He'll be the first to say that season wasn't a detour — it was formative.
It strengthened his understanding of resilience, love, responsibility, and what actually matters most. It also shaped the tone and pace he brings to every patient conversation today.
Chapter 6
A new beginning in Cardiff-by-the-Sea.
Now rooted in San Diego, Dr. Butler is stepping fully into his calling through Healing Hands and Healing Hearts Wellness Center in Cardiff-by-the-Sea.
For him, the practice represents more than a professional beginning. It's a homecoming — to the coast, to a community, and to the work he feels most called to do.
Care philosophy
What guides every visit.
Listen first
Every visit begins with a real conversation. Your history, your goals, and your daily life shape what care looks like.
Honest guidance
Clear recommendations, transparent expectations, and no pressure to over-commit before you've felt the work.
Care built around you
Personalized adjustments, soft-tissue work, and movement guidance chosen for the person in front of us — not a template.
Focused on function
The goal is real, everyday function: sleeping, working, playing, moving with more ease and fewer limitations.
Credentials & techniques
Training and hands-on approach.
Education
- B.A. in Psychology, California State University, Northridge
- Doctor of Chiropractic, Palmer College of Chiropractic West
Early clinical foundation
- Advanced Chiropractic Group under Dr. Michael York, D.C.
Techniques & approaches
Care may incorporate any of the following, chosen based on your needs, comfort, and how your body responds over time.
- Diversified manual adjusting
- Activator Methods
- Thompson Drop Table
- Toggle Recoil & upper-cervical approaches
- Flexion-distraction
- Extremity adjusting
- Applied Kinesiology
- Graston Technique & Gua Sha
- Instrument-assisted soft-tissue work
- Corrective exercise & rehabilitation
- Nutritional coaching
- Pediatric, prenatal & postnatal care
Start your care
Start with a conversation.
Book a comprehensive exam and begin with a real conversation about what you're experiencing and what you'd like to get back to doing.