My Journey with Acupuncture

I started getting acupuncture after I decided to go to acupuncture school. 

I figured I should try it out before, you know, committing my life to the discipline…but I was sort of grasping for why one would go to an acupuncturist in the first place. I was 22 and suffered from persistent acne so I figured that could be a starting point. 

I had very little money and acupuncture was expensive, but a certain acupuncturist’s card came across my desk on three separate occasions and I took this as a sign to go see her. 

Since I was late to my first appointment my acupuncturist said she would do a simple “four needle treatment” on me, and left me in the room with recorded singing bowls playing on a speaker. I proceeded to weep for half an hour—not because I was in pain or upset, but because the tears spontaneously and persistently needed to flow out of me.

When she came back she explained that the skin is connected to the lungs, and the lungs are connected to grief. Ah. And so began my journey with Traditional Chinese Medicine. 

There are a lot of reasons why you might want to try acupuncture. Usually people come to me with a pronounced physical pain that they haven’t been able to resolve through other avenues—like massages, painkillers, physical therapy, or talk therapy. 

Sometimes the complaints start there and then we branch out into poor sleep or digestion, anxiety and depression, fertility concerns, problematic periods or menopause symptoms, low energy, and maybe even skin conditions. 

It’s all related, of course. 

My skin problems, fatigue, and irregular periods were all symptoms of a deep unprocessed grief around losing my mother as an infant and an anorexic/vegetarian diet that left me practically malnourished (and please don’t skim over the profound metaphor of malnourishment here). 

Today, my sessions are offered in half-hour or full-hour increments. Sometimes I stay in the room the entire time, talking to you about what you’re experiencing and what led up to this moment. Sometimes I leave you with the needles to rest deeply and have a direct experience with Source. Sometimes I do bodywork, cupping, or gua sha. Sometimes we read Tarot cards or talk to spirit guides. Sometimes the needles are retained for a while, and sometimes they are used more like a reflex hammer to wake up different parts of your body and open your energy flow. 

My diagnostic skills rely heavily on taking your pulse (very different than the Western pulse system) and looking at your energetic field psychically. For remote patients we obviously focus entirely on the state of the energetic field and channeling any information that can be useful as you seek insight and relief. 

The initial visit is about two hours because I want to really get to know you and hear your full story. Come prepared for a deep dive! I do offer abbreviated initial visits for people on constrained budgets or with a very simple treatment focus—you can book a Discovery Call to discuss. I also offer group treatments at a discounted rate on Tuesday afternoons and Thursday mornings. This is a wonderful option for people with deep-seated imbalances that we need to chip away at over time. 

Start-Up Sessions are normally $370. Follow up session options include Hands-On Healing (30 minutes / $145), Extended Hands-On Healing (60 minutes / $235), or Community Acupuncture ($75). Some people choose to mix hands-on and remote sessions. I generally recommend you get treatment every 1-2 weeks for at least four treatments following the initial session to trial this modality and see how it works for you.