Bruce Rizzo, DC

I am not so enthusiastic about big adjustments. My wife saw Bruce Rizzo and he helped her. My experience has been excellent. My hips were out and off to the side and I was in pain. He adjusted me and I walked out whole. Other injuries and imbalances– I have also received help with. I have become a believer and recommend Bruce highly. A very skilled and intuitive professional.

Bruce Rizzo is hands down, the best Chiropractor I have ever been to. I was introduced to him through my massage therapist. As stated in other posts, he is an, «Active Release Practitioner». He couples his Chiropractic alignments with a ART to ensure he addresses tissue binding and joint binding. His office is warm, friendly and very informative. His bedside manner is fast paced and very interactive. During the session he is constantly asking questions and addressing body mechanics in a comprehensive, progressively moving way. Highly recommend Bruce

Bruce Rizzo works wonders! While I don’t have full-​fledged TMJ, I have had jaw treatment on an off for years because I clench my teeth at night. In one visit, my jaw is more at ease than it has been in years, and I can breathe MUCH more freely. Not only did he do a significant amount of work on the muscles of my jaw; he also brought relief to the connective muscles in my neck, shoulders, and shoulder blades. I am so grateful that I found Dr. Bruce and cannot wait for my next visit!

Bruce Rizzo is not your typical chiropractor – he is an Active Release Technique (ART) practitioner. ART, in my opinion, works much more effectively than regular chiropractic for most problems. It’s a little like deep tissue massage but is more powerful and lasts longer.
I first met Bruce when he was an associate at my brother Ethan’s chiropractic office in Berkeley. Because of my particular upper back and neck (mostly computer-​and-​sitting-​related) issues and the fact that I’ve always responded well to deep tissue work, Ethan recommended I see Bruce, who turned out to be the best practitioner I’ve seen in over 25 years of seeking help.
I also have had bouts of jaw pain, or TMJ, over the years. Recently, some medication I’m taking made me clench my teeth even more than usual, causing serious jaw discomfort. Bruce was able use his hand in my mouth (encased in a rubber glove) to work the soft tissue and jaw muscles so that the clenching released – and stayed that way! I even recommended him to my dentist to tell dental patients about.

6 Months now I’ve been seeing Bruce Rizzo and am very happy with his work.
This may seem like a long time for treatment, but I am in his words «his most constricted» patient — as I have very limited range of motion in my leg joints (knee & ankle), and severely impaired musculature, nerve sensation, blood supply, etc. due to an auto accident that happened thirty years ago.
I have been working with phyical therapists and doctors for years and finally decided that I have to try something different, hence Bruce. Unknowingly, unconsciously I had fallen into physical and mental patterns of acceptance that Bruce has turned around completely forever and for better. For me his work has been game-​changing and full of useful epiphanies.
We meet once every two weeks regularly and I’m ecstatic to have achieved nearly a «no pain» state with improvements to musculature, walking gait, joint flexion that has been a gradual process of realization and discovery that is leading to a life free of pain, discomfort and sudden traumatic spasms — that I had assumed would always be part of my life before working with Bruce.
As much as he works on me, he also teaches me or creates exercises for me to do that have helped equally if not more — the good thing is that I can begin to — if not cure, at least maintain my current improved status on my own. This is critically important not that I plan on stopping my visits to Bruce, but it gives me confidence that improvements can be made by myself if I work at it.
Six months of treatment is a long time and yet I can see this becoming years if Bruce’s body can hold up to the abuse!

I’m extremely happy I found Dr. Rizzo (thanks, Unilocal!) I have really specific chiropractic needs – you go crunching my bones and my body doesn’t get better, it gets worse. Getting chiropractors to understand this can be a hassle at times. Fortunately for me, Dr. Rizzo gets it and is willing to work with my needs and my input. He uses techniques and tools that don’t involve standard manual manipulations (i.e. the «snap and crack» we tend to associate with chiropractors). They make a big difference in my pain levels. He always checks in to make sure that what he’s doing is effective, that it doesn’t hurt, etc. I feel like he listens to me and genuinely wants to use my feedback to fine-​tune his work.
His staff is great, too. Maureen is always cheerful and efficient!

Last week I had a treatment with Dr. Rizzo for the first time and I am blown away. He is awesome. Thanks Bruce for helping me stand up straight again.
Happily I can highly recommend him to anyone, A++++++ experience across the board.

First I must say a) I am a chiropractor, b) I have never met Dr. Rizzo, but I have met patients of his. Every one of them sing his praises. I do not have time in my own practice to provide Active Release Technique, so when I come accross a patient that I feel can benefit from that work I will refer them to him. And I did so today.

I hurt my neck and shoulder very badly in an embarrassing turn of events. I was in pain all night and cold called Dr. Rizzo the next day. He fit me into his schedule and from the moment those hands touched my body I knew I was in the right place. I can’t explain what he did to me (even though its my body) but through all the twists, rubs, pokes and squeezes my tense, «injured for life» (my words) back and neck feel AMAZING. This guy is absolutely the real deal and has even made me question my line of work. I will put chiropractor on my short list of potential careers after working with Dr. Rizzo. THANK YOU!

Dr. Rizzo has helped me to heal a persistent shoulder injury. I was really depressed about not being able to weight lift the past 6 months, and with Bruce’s help I’m back in the gym and lifting again, so far so good. Thanks much! I recommend him very highly.

When I hear the word «chiropractor», I usually shrink back with fear due to nightmare stories told to me by friends where the chiro recommends you come back to the office multiple times per week, and thousands of dollars later you are still feeling the same pain…
Bruce Rizzo does not fit this description whatsoever. He has an outstanding knowledge about soft tissue, human anatomy, and extensive experience dealing with athletic injuries using Active Release Therapy (ART). When I was living in San Diego, I received ART often, as I am a triathlete. When I learned that Bruce was an ART provider, I immediately went to him when my right hip was acting up (external hip rotation and lateral knee pain). It’s been a month and a half (and only 3 sessions later — see? No going to him 5x per week!), I am very close to being back to 100%, and back to doing all the physical activities I love.
I would highly recommend Bruce to anyone with an acute or chronic injury. Active Release WORKS — while the therapy itself might be somewhat painful or uncomfortable (that is the case no matter who the practitioner is), ART will help you heal and get back on your feet. One thing I really like about Bruce is that he LISTENS to you, and takes detailed notes during every session so that he can give you the best treatment possible.

Bruce is a true healer. I first went to him about 7 years ago when I was in a training program for a marathon. Every week I would hobble in with a different injury and say «I’m done; I’ll never be able to do this.» But he wouldn’t let me quit, always saying something like, «I think we can get you through this». And then after a session of his deep tissue «Active Release Technique» I would feel amazingly better. I sent him a picture of me crossing the finish line of the Honolulu Marathon.
I must admit, I was at first skeptical of chiropractors. I told Bruce when we first met that I didn’t want him to do any cracking or sudden jerking. He laughed and said he had other ways.
He is friendly, personable, empathetic, takes his time, and he gets results. He cares about people, loves what he does, and it shows.

I found Bruce before he opened his own practice and was working for another Berkeley chiropractor. His work is amazing. I was having shoulder problems which he addressed with ART (Active Release Technique). After a few sessions, my pain was gone. The pain had been so bad that it was waking me up at night, so getting relief was a big priority. I would recommend Bruce to anyone who needs relief from an acute or chronic condition as well as those who would benefit from regular chiropractic care.

Bruce is perhaps the best Chiropractor I’ve ever met; he knows his stuff, is kind and straight-​forward and doesn’t try to sell you $ 3000 worth of sessions or supplements you don’t need. As a massage therapist, I’ve referred numerous clients to him who were looking for a great Chiropractor and none have been short of extremely happy.
His technique style of combining deep tissue muscle work (ART) with adjustments is very effective and he spends a good amount of time with you as opposed to the wham-​bam-​thank-​you-​mam style of some Chiropractors. See him, get better and write your own 5-​star review.

Dr. Rizzo is at the top of his game! He is a very well seasoned ART (Active Release Technique) practitioner, and the guy I go to when I am hurting. As both a fellow chiropractor and ART practitioner, I am picky about who works on me, and I completely trust his judgement and ability to help. I hold absolutely no reservations about recommending Dr. Rizzo.

Bruce Rizzo has been extremely effective at getting me back on the healthy side of living whenever I go into a neck or back episode. After I see him I am good to go for months or years! Maureen, his office manager, makes it very simple to get in and be taken care of. Yes, five stars!

Bruce is a great Active Release chiropractor. I recently went to one in LA and realized that he is definitely better! Active Release works with your muscles in addition to regular chiro-​type adjustments. I’ve been to several traditional chiro and they have never been able to help. With Bruce, I go in with severe lower back pain or shoulder pain and 15 minutes later, no pain!

I always doubted chiropractors. Not any more! Bruce Rizzo makes you feel better! His technique makes the muscles relax and stop hurting. I look forward to going to see him. His calm, easy going personality helps too. A real professional and a good man.

I only went to this guy once, but he was absolutely amazing. Normally, I am leery of chiropractors, but he was so gentle. I had a spasm in my back so badly I couldn’t turn my head or neck. When I left he had completely worked me over, I felt so much better and within a day I was almost 100% better. Bruce will make you feel safe and comfortable.