Loren Morgan, the new chiropractor at Arctic Chiropractic, is making a few adjustments to Wrangell himself.

He had lived in Anchorage since 1981, driving down to his fish camp on the Kenai Peninsula as often as he could. When Omid Rahmanian left the Wrangell office due to family needs, Morgan jumped at the opportunity to relocate his practice. "I love the water, and I love to fish; the opening was a real blessing to me."

Morgan's wife, Melody, is tying up loose ends in Anchorage and getting their house ready to go on the market before joining him here. "We had planned on downsizing, so this is one way to do it," he said.

Morgan originally came to Alaska in the building trades, but injured himself and was introduced to chiropractic care.

"The chiropractor interrupted my life," he said, "and then it became my life."

He graduated from the Palmer College of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, in 1989, and then came back to Alaska, where he's practiced ever since. He served two terms as president of the Alaska Chiropractic Society from 1999-2002.

At one point, the terms on the lease for his office building in Anchorage changed, which he took as a sign to retire. "That lasted a month," he said. He began to work as a temporary fill-in for other chiropractors in the Arctic Chiropractic network who went on vacation or other leave.

The company has more than 30 clinics around Alaska. Morgan has worked across the state, from Utqiagvik (formerly known as Barrow) to Valdez, including two short stints in Wrangell. Having grown up in a similarly sized town in Idaho, he appreciated the sense of place he experienced in Wrangell.

"Smaller town have better communities," he said. "They are more about relationships. People here have been great."

Morgan suggests that people pay attention to their bodies and come in early to address pain and complications. "That way you can receive care on your timeline, before it becomes an emergency. If you wait, it's going to hit when it is most inconvenient, like when you're ready to leave on a vacation."

The downtown office on Lynch Street is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 to 6 p.m.; phone 907-874-3361.