OEM Repairs with Stem Cells- Part II

**🎙️ Podcast Show Notes:

Here’s the straight scoop, just for the shop owners and leaders who built their careers while sacrificing their bodies, and now need repairs… 

This week’s episode starts with a simple question that hits hard when your knees, back, or shoulders pay the bills: “Do you want to keep your original parts?” From years on concrete floors, under frame racks and inside the booth… knee pain finally reached the point where a surgeon said replacement was the only option. Instead of signing up for a scalpel, I went looking for another door and found it through stem cell therapy.

I walk you through my real-world experiences traveling to a stem cell clinic in Tijuana. One trip brought early relief. The second trip, at a higher dose, came with a brutal post-injection flare that nearly knocked me flat before a surprisingly fast rebound. No hype. No miracles. Just the truth of what regenerative medicine looks like when your body earns your income.

We break down what reshaped my thinking after reading Tony Robbins’ book - Life Force, including the difference between autologous and perinatal stem cells, why some treatments are only available outside the U.S., and what questions you must ask clinics about sourcing, sterility, and cell counts. I also explain the protocol I used, including ultrasound-guided injections, PRP, and exosomes, in plain language.

Just as important, we talk mindset. When things went sideways, preparation, calm thinking, and problem-solving turned fear into a plan. This episode is for anyone told, “You’re out of options,” but still believes there might be another way forward.

 Key Takeaways

• Stem cells vs surgery is a trade-off, not a miracle. Know the risks, costs, and recovery realities.
• Ask better questions about sourcing, dosage, and safety before choosing a clinic.
• Mindset is leverage. Planning and courage can carry you through your toughest days, on the job and in life.

If you lead a collision business or work with your hands every day, this episode will challenge how you think about pain, recovery, and longevity in the industry. Subscribe, listen, and share it with someone who’s been told they’re “Out of options.”

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Transcript

Teaser And Big Promise

Rick 0:00

Well, it's been just a week since my second visit to the R3 stem cell clinic in Tijuana, Mexico, for another round of stem cell therapy for my knees. And I wanted to give all of you an update on the experience and results. Spoiler alert, this was nothing like my first visit in 2024. And you're going to want to hear all about this. So stick around, trust me, you're going to want to listen in after this original message. You're not going to believe what happened after that second double dose was administered. Unfreaking believable. Thanks so much for stopping in. If you're a returning listener and haven't done so already, please take a minute and click the follow or subscribe button and then rate and review the show. When you rate and review the show, the algorithms for Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, and all the other platforms will see that it's valuable and show it to more people that have never seen it before, and hopefully it can help them too. I would really, really, really appreciate your help sharing this word with your friends and family as well. And if you're a brand new listener, welcome. I hope you find something of value here that helps you in your personal or professional life as well. Please make sure to click the subscribe or follow button so you never miss another episode. If you've been listening to the show for a while, or been on the receiving end of my daily quote of the day emails, or maybe just catch my posts on Facebook or LinkedIn. You know them all about the quotes, right? If you'd like to start receiving my quote of the day emails, there's a link in the show notes to sign up. It's free and you can unsubscribe at any time. Well, it's been just a week since my second visit to the R3 stem cell clinic in Tijuana, Mexico for another round of stem cell therapy for my knees. And I wanted to give all of you an update on the experience and results. Spoiler alert, this was nothing like my first visit in 2024, and you're going to want to hear all about this. But I'll get to those unbelievable details a little later. First, I wanted to reshare my original message from March of 2024, right after my initial treatment, and talk about the science and the background and why my choice for regenerative medicine to begin with, and the importance of how this advanced medical path may be a great choice for you or a loved one in the very near future. So, stick around. Trust me, you're going to want to listen in after this original message. You're not going to believe what happened after that second double dose was administered. It's unfreaking believable. Alright, let's roll back to March 2024, episode 164, OEM repairs with stem cells. This episode, I'm pulling back the curtain and sharing a very personal story that I felt compelled to share with you, in hopes that it'll provide not only an alternative natural option to pain and suffering some of us in this profession experience every single day, but also to motivate and inspire you to have a little faith, get a little bit out of your comfort zone, take ownership of your physical condition, and consider trying something that may be out of the norm to help yourself. In all my travels visiting and working with hundreds of shops over the years, I've seen the toll that this very physical work can take on the human body. Both men and women that work in a collision or auto repair industry that are over forty five or fifty years old are now suffering the effects of wear and tear on their joints from several decades of climbing over and under vehicles, frame racks, and the repetitive side to side abuse our hips, knees, and ankles undergo in the paint booth. I can't count how many techs and industry reps I've known with hips or knees replaced, rotator cuff repairs, shoulder surgeries, and usually followed by several weeks or months of painful rehab regimens, long recovery times, permanent reduced mobility, missed time off work, as well as missed income. Sometimes unable to return to the trade that provided their family's sole source of income for the last several decades. There has to be another option, right? Now I should probably take this opportunity to inform you, just in case you don't know me, I am absolutely not a doctor in any shape or form, or any way connected to the medical community. In fact, most times I'm not even the sharpest pencil in the box, so what I'm going to share with you today is just my own experience, what I've learned, and honestly, just my own personal opinion on this subject. When it comes to health in your body, it's on you to do your own due diligence. Now with that said, like I joked about not being the sharpest pencil in the box, I'm constantly trying to learn new things that interest me, and then do what I can to share what I've learned with others. I truly believe that's what we are put on this planet for, and it's one of the main reasons I do this podcast every week. So last year I bought a book by Tony Robbins called Life Force. I wasn't exactly sure what it was, but but I did know it had something to do with health, wellness, and vitality, and being a student of Tony Robbins' teachings and philosophies, I knew it would be a great read and a useful resource. Also, Tony was donating all the proceeds from the sales of this book to his life's passions, his collaboration with Feeding America. So I was basically helping others as I helped myself. So that's a win-win, right? Much like his last resource book, Money Master the Game, where he interviewed and spent massive amounts of time with the world's top investors and wealth builders, Tony condensed all that financial knowledge into a rock solid, proven plan and investment model that the average investor could follow to realize maximum returns, based on what those at the top of their game have done. So after getting through that six hundred plus page book, I followed his plan, I made some moves with my own financial portfolio, and during a period where most Americans lost, I don't know, maybe eighteen percent of their four oh one K value, I was able to avoid that hit and enjoy about a two percent gain. So when Tony shares some advice and direction, I tend to listen. Well, much like he did in his financial book, for Life Force, Tony immersed himself with the world's top minds in health, medicine, and especially regenerative medicine, where the science and advancements are heading. There was a lot of focus on stem cells and how far they've come, and what they've learned in the past twenty years, how they're being used, and what the difference in stem cell types are. This is what grabbed my attention. So how does this apply to our industry? Well, right around the time I was reading Life Force, and I'm a slow reader, so it takes me quite a while to get through a book, especially a six hundred pager, I was experiencing occasional pain in my right knee, probably due to a combination of the daily exercise regimen I've been on for the past four years, and the fact that I walk most evenings after dinner, and the fact that I've always lived an active lifestyle, coupled with years of standing on and walking on cold, hard concrete shop floors, as well as fifteen years of painting vehicles. That swaying side to side motion of painting below a belt line, knees slightly bent, oof, that's a killer right there. Like most in this industry, I've definitely put more than my fair share of wear and tear on my knees. Well the pain started to accelerate, and after much prodding for my wife, I finally agreed, against my better judgment, to make an appointment with an orthopedic specialist. After a set of x-rays and an exam, I heard those words I had dreaded for months. Yep, you're bone on bone in that right knee. You'll need a full knee replacement. And I'm like, whoa, wait a second. Isn't there another option? Something else I can do and another way to fix this? And that dude just looks at me in a very cocky manner and says, Nope. Three months or three years from now, you'll be back. Did I mention I don't like doctors? Especially arrogant ones. Although he did give me a cortisone shot, and that did make my knee feel much better and it got me through the massive amount of walking I had to do during SEMA last year, but it also sent me on a journey of discovery. Wait, so why again am I telling you this little knee story anyways? Oh yeah, at the core level, I wanted to address an issue that many have or will have to deal with, and share what I've learned and experienced, so it may give some of you suffering some hope and a possible alternative plan, something that may extend your physical freedom and possibly avoid an unneeded surgery and that painful rehab that follows. Something that's more natural solution, less intrusive, less time off work, less income loss, and to possibly excite you about the advancements in regenerative medicine available right now. If you're running a collision shop, whether second generation, third generation, or original owner, grinding every day, putting out fires, chasing KPIs, working in rather than on the business, and wondering why progress still feels slower than it should, let's take a little pause right here. As a longtime industry supplier, performance coach, and host of this podcast, I've worked inside this industry for over four decades, and I've learned a few things the hard way. Tools and tactics absolutely matter, but mindset drives everything. How you think shapes how you lead, how you hire, how you grow, and how you show up when things get messy. That's where one-on-one coaching makes a difference. You get focused conversations, real accountability, and guidance tailored to you in your shop, not generic cookie cutter advice. The collision repair business has changed dramatically in the last few years. The technology, the tools, the equipment needed to repair today's new vehicles, customer expectations that vary by generation, OEM certifications and repair procedures, ADAS calibrations, electric vehicles, and the ever-growing national technician shortage, it's a lot, isn't it? It can be absolutely overwhelming and very challenging on where to focus first, right? If only I had someone who could help me find clarity in all the chaos. If only there was someone that could help guide me through the changes I need to make so I could create a successful business, increase my net revenue. If only I had a coach that could help me without getting in my way, or trying to run my business for me, or costing me a fortune. This is where I can help. The goal is simple. Help you make consistent improvements, build sustainable culture, gain better profitability, and shave years off the learning curve. If you're open to adjusting how you think and how you lead, book a free 15-minute discovery call with me right now. No sales pitch, no blue sky promises, just an honest conversation to see if it's a fit. You have absolutely nothing to lose but everything to gain. Secure a spot now. After my disappointing visit with Dr. WiseAss, I started doing a lot of reading and web searching on stem cells for treating joints and arthritic conditions. Fortunately, I had the Tony Robbins book to answer many questions, and the fact that Tony not only used stem cells to repair a shoulder injury from a skiing accident, but discovered a side effect of that treatment also curing his long suffering back issue. Well with that I had great faith as I continued my research. Now stem cells are considered experimental and there's no guaranteed results. Nor does anyone's medical insurance ever cover any of it. But there are hospitals and clinics all over the world having great success for the past ten plus years using stem cell therapy to treat many diseases, things like cancer, diabetes, leukemia, and dozens of other conditions, as well as helping heal many joint issues. By the way, knee replacement surgery, uh in fact all surgeries have no guarantees either, just to keep that in mind. Now what's important to know is stem cells are derived from several sources, from your own body or from others. Bone marrow, fat cells, dental pulp are just a couple samples of what we have in our own bodies that usually get used in clinics within the US. But if you venture outside the United States to places like you know, Germany, India, the Grand Cayman Islands, or many areas in Mexico, there's much more effective cells available. As I read in Tony's book and verified on many websites and resource sites, the best cells are derived from the placenta and umbilica cord that used to be discarded after every single birth. Now I'm not smart enough to fully explain how massive that difference is between a stem cell from a placenta versus a fifty-year-old bone marrow or fat cell, but I'll leave that up to you. But you'll see pretty quick which are best. Oh yeah, I should probably mention the US doesn't sanction the use of umbilica or placenta cells, but they can be had without any problem outside the US. Okay, so you've done your research, decided this is a path you want to go down, good for you. But be prepared. And what I mean is, most people that haven't really done the research on it won't understand or may not support your decision. In fact, they may really try to talk you out of it. I get it. I know it's hard to understand how that may work for a loved one, but you don't know anything but we've always known about the human body. Like if something doesn't work right, or it's fallen apart, or it's a common disease, you go to the doctor and do what they tell you, right? You take the meds that they tell you, you get the surgery that they recommend, right? Well going against the grain, thinking outside the box, and embracing emergent technology is not for everybody, and not everybody believes it and not everybody has faith in it. Like my favorite virtual mentor Dean Graziosi always says, they never erect statues of critics, do they? No, they don't. But they do for the crazy ones, the bold ones, the ones that try something that others thought wouldn't work, right? In wrapping up my experience with stem cells, I finally narrowed down the options of places that would provide the right treatment I felt I needed without costing me an arm and a leg. Or like my wife kept warning me of that I'd end up in the back of a white van and a tub of ice with my kidney missing. Keep in mind some facilities and certain treatments can be very expensive. But then that really becomes a personal decision on what the value of money versus pain or mobility is to each one of us, you know. So as the pain got worse, I really started pushing my decision making, and I finally made an appointment at a clinic in Tijuana, Mexico. So my rationale as I secured a date for treatment was something that made sense in my brain was I could get a knee replacement, sure, just like anybody else has. Spend thousands of dollars in co-pays after the surgery and months of rehab, lose income from being off work, have the risk of issues with my new bionic knee, infections, or something I just have to learn to live with, I mean that's a real concern. And once my OEM knee comes out, that's it. And they put that aftermarket one in, there's no going back to the OEM knee, right? But with stem cell treatment, there's no downtime other than the travel, no rehab, just right back to work, even the same day if needed. Sure, there's a cost involved, but realistically, it wasn't bad at all. And what I had convinced my wife of was if this works, even for a couple years, that's a couple more years of uninterrupted enjoyment of a normally functioning body. And as I discovered at the clinic, there is some uh that come back every year or two for maintenance treatments. And in the end, if it didn't work at all, sure, I wasted some money on a treatment that didn't work. Worst case, that replacement knee is still a final option. Now it's only been one week since my treatment. But I will tell you this, no kidding, my knee felt better that evening, and a little better each day since. I'm not limping with each step, stairs are much better. And they told me at the clinic not to expect anything for at least a couple weeks, maybe even a month. But I'm telling you, I'm very happy with the results so far. So was the thought of getting a medical procedure done in a foreign country a little unnerving? Absolutely. Was the fact that I was traveling to a reportedly dangerous area of Mexico, controlled by drug lords, well, at least that's what the news says. Hell yes it was. Was there risk involved? Oh yeah. But in my mind, the benefits outweighed the risks. And it ended up that the area I was in was safe, the clinic was sterile and spotless, and the care I was given was top shelf, and my positive expectations were definitely exceeded. Don't let fear rob you of your dreams. Alrighty then, as I promised you at the beginning, if you stuck around after the original message, I would share my wild ride with stem cell therapy part two, and all the unbelievable details, the dramatic story, and the end results, as well as the message I learned from this experience. Now stem cell therapy is not really a once and done for most age worn joint issues. It's different than other applications that can be a one-shot repair or improvement. But with the knees, sometimes a return maintenance visit after six or twelve or eighteen months may be needed, and this is where I was. After eighteen months I could feel some pain again and scheduled another round of injections, this time at two and a half times the original dose, so twenty five million cells versus ten million cells the first time. Yeah, I was gonna show those knees who's around the show, right? Well it's still less risky than replacing my OEM knee with some aftermarket parts, although the traveling south of the border, which if anybody's seen the news the last week or so, was really scary. Anyways, I felt the results were a great value for the risk and the cost. So bright and early Wednesday morning, I was ready to go and my driver, Mauricio, picked me up at the hotel, then moved on to pick up two more sets of patients on the way to the clinic in Tijuana. Amazingly enough, the other patients had previous positive stem cell experiences just like I did. And it was a good positive ride, and everybody's ready to get their stemies on. So I was pumped and ready for my injections, and the first one to be taken back to the procedure room after my Myers cocktail IV was fully drained into my system. Now I'm not really sure exactly what's in that Myers cocktail, but you know, some vitamins and some other things, and it prepares the body for the stem cells. At least that's what they told me. So I had two shots prepared, one for each knee containing 25 million stem cells, my own PRP, which is comes from your blood work, and some exosomes. I watched each shot go into the knee with a sonogram and never felt any pain. I even took a couple pictures. No problem. And when I was done, I went back to the patient prep area and waited for the others to complete their therapies so our driver Mauricio could take us back to the States. After about an hour after the injections, waiting in the prep area, I could feel some action and some tightness in my knees and thought, no big deal. But on the drive back to my hotel, my legs were getting more uncomfortable by the minute. I was twitching and moving and trying to get comfortable in the seat, and I was starting to get a little concerned and and I really just wanted to get back to my hotel and and lay down and rest my legs. Now I'd taken a couple hours from the time of injections to by the time I actually got dropped off, but by the time I reached my hotel, and that was the last stop, of course, I was just dying to get out of that van. But when I went to stand up and step out, the pain was so incredible and I was very unstable. I I felt like I was unable to walk at that point. But I really didn't have a choice. Uh I slowly stepped out of the van into the hotel pavement in great pain and just kind of wobbled unassisted very slowly all the way back to my room. It felt like a mile, and it seemed to take me at least fifteen or twenty minutes to walk more like a two-minute walk, right? Once in the room, I headed directly to the bedroom. I was in a two-bedroom suite. So I tossed my bag on the far side of the bed and fell into the bed, hoping for some relief. But to my surprise, there was no comfort to be found. No matter what position I tried, I could not find a spot where the pain was any less. So I just lay there for hours, hoping time with my legs resting and elevated would help. It did not. I tried to get out of bed a couple times just to get some water and use the bathroom. Oh my god, I couldn't even lift my legs up to swing over the side of the bed. I literally had to lift them up by hand. And actually getting out of the bed was not going to happen without using some kind of support. Fortunately, the bedroom door handle was close enough to where I was sitting on the edge of the bed to use for leverage. And from there I had to use every door frame, door handle, and hard surface to support myself for movement. What the hell is going on here? Somewhere in the early evening hours I realized somehow I needed to get prepared for my early morning flight home to Detroit. That meant I had to have my stuff packed and ready to go, and with a six AM flight, I needed to be up by about three AM, get my things up to the lobby and catch the first shuttle to the airport. How the hell am I going to do that? I can even stand unsupported, let alone walk. And this is where the real fear started kicking in for me. How am I going to navigate the long walks through security, getting to the gates? I had a connection in Midway Chicago too, which is another set of challenges. You know, boarding, de boarding the planes, baggage, with my current physical condition, how the hell is I gonna do that? An earlier version of me may have been in full panic mode by now, but I remained focused on how to solve my dilemma and not lose my shit. So as I lay in my bed, all this running through my mind, I started strategizing. What can I do? I could cancel my flights and stay another day here in the hotel, but that really didn't feel like a good option. No, I I needed to get back home and deal with whatever happens next from home where I have some support. Okay, now how am I supposed to get through this whole travel thing? Aha, then it came to me. I called the Southwest Airlines help desk and inquired how I could get some mobility support. And within minutes I had it figured out and handled. I would have wheelchair assistance throughout every step of my travel, all the way to baggage pickup in Detroit. So I was feeling a little bit better there. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention I also had to upgrade my seat selections as well. Yeah, I couldn't see myself limping down road to road 21 or 23. So the universe kicked in and helped me out, and when I checked online to get an upgrade, there was actually one available front row seat on each of my flights. So I took those. Now although I didn't get more than an hour's sleep that night, I did manage to survive travel day, and my knees actually felt better by the time I got home. And over the next two days I had rapid improvement in mobility, reduced pain and swelling on my knees, and by Sunday pretty much felt back to normal, which was great. Now, the normal response to all this would be thank God I survived. I'm never doing something stupid like that again, right? No. Every situation we experience does make us stronger, and we grow because of it. I'm a firm believer in the concept of life happens for us and not to us. Listen, I knew the risks up front. There's no guarantee of success with this therapy. It says right on the post procedure paperwork, varying degrees of pain and swelling are common, along with some other disclaimers. But I had faith into technology. It had proven itself to me before. And I expected this to be the right move for me. Sometimes growth requires pain as a down payment, I guess. But not everything that is good or helpful or gets you to the next level in life is easy or painless. No pain, no gain, right? This was purely a very rare reaction. A random bag check event, you may say. So if you're considering using stem cell therapy as a solution to a medical issue you may have, I'm not trying to scare you, I'm just being real. I would encourage you to do your due diligence. Research endlessly like I did. But don't be afraid to try it. There is incredible success worldwide with this technology every single day. If you want more information, please feel free to reach out to me anytime. I'll share with you whatever I can. That's all I had for you today. Thanks again for tuning in. I really appreciate your support, and I hope you have a great week. I can always be reached at www.ricksilover.com, where you can find all my social media links, podcast episodes, blog posts, and much more.