FACES OF LIFE
Expand Your Vision
Dr . Dafne Jiménez Pérez
Alumna : Doctor of Chiropractic
Dr . Dafne Jiménez Pérez comes from a town in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico called Orocovis , where she grew up with her parents and a younger sister .
“ I come from a huge family , and I ’ m actually the first one who studied further than a bachelor ’ s degree ,” she said . “ It ’ s been exciting to go through this process with all of them supporting me .”
Dr . Perez earned her Doctor of Chiropractic degree from Life University in December 2020 . She started the D . C . program in 2016 after her best friend recommended Life U .
“ He was the first one who put the ‘ chiropractic curiosity ’ in me ,” she recalled . “ I originally applied to med school , and I didn ’ t feel in alignment with everything , because I ’ m the one in my family who always seeks more natural things for my health . However , I had never heard of Chiropractic before , and he said , ‘ You should check out Chiropractic — it sounds more like something you would like to do .’”
At her friend ’ s urging , Dr . Perez attended an event in Puerto Rico where she met many DCs and learned more about the profession – including that chiropractors treat children and expectant mothers .
“ That was it for me ,” she said . “ It was like , ‘ This is everything I ’ ve always wanted and more , and you can treat moms and kids too ? Sign me up !’”
After that , Dr . Perez and her mother attended a LIFE Leadership Weekend on the University ’ s campus where she applied to the D . C . program “ right then and there .” Dr . Perez emphasized the importance of including her family in the process , especially since they had supported her desire to become a medical doctor .
“ I have always been Wonder Woman ; I want to do everything by myself , and I want to prove to others that I can do it . In Chiropractic , I learned that it ’ s OK to ask for help . Having a community with me the whole way kept me going in the challenging times .”
“ I went through that whole process with them , so the sudden change of heart was a bit hard on my family ,” she explained . “ It was literally completely different from one day to the other . I didn ’ t think of it ; I didn ’ t question it . It was just something I was drawn into , and I just needed my family on board as well . It was a big deal for me that if I was going to do this , then I had to do it right .”
Dr . Perez initially intended to take a full course load in order to finish her degree as quickly as possible . However , when she got to Life U , she realized how important it was to her that she get involved on campus .
“ I wanted to do so many things , because I ’ ve always been the girl involved in everything .
I just wanted to divide my time properly , and I ’ m so happy I did that ,” she said . “ I was actually able to travel the world for the school , so it was great !”
One of the organizations she joined was the Life U chapter of the World Congress of Chiropractic Students , which she served as media coordinator and , later , president .
“ I went on to be the Americas Regional Coordinator , which was a big thing for me because I was the first Latina to have that position ,” she explained . “ I was in charge of all the schools in the U . S . as well as Central and South America . It was all very exciting , and I got to meet people from literally all around the world . Learning Chiropractic — learning to adjust — was wonderful , and connecting with so many people was one of the most rewarding experiences I had the opportunity to have .”
After graduation , Dr . Perez moved back to Puerto Rico to spend some quality time with her family before she starts a job in Ireland this spring . She had two pieces of advice for current and future Life U students .
“ I have always been Wonder Woman ; I want to do everything by myself , and I want to prove to others that I can do it . In Chiropractic , I learned that it ’ s OK to ask for help . Having a community with me the whole way kept me going in the challenging times ,” she said . “ Also , go to as many seminars and as many clubs as you can , because that ’ s when I actually expanded my vision of Chiropractic . The clubs at Life U are amazing and have amazing leaders ; they ’ re all very passionate about what they do . That ’ s actually the way to find out which niche within Chiropractic is the best for you .”
Alumni . LIFE . edu | 2021
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