"To cure disease after it has appeared is like digging a well when one feels thirsty, or forging weapons after the war has already begun."
Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine
Acupuncture treatments include the optional use of the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) modalities of Fire Cupping, Moxibustion, Gua Sha, Tui Na (massage & acupressure), and Shi Liao Diet Therapy.
What is Acupuncture?
(針灸 :: zhen jiu :: acupuncture and moxibustion)
Acupuncture (針, zhen) uses tiny, disposable stainless steel needles to stimulate the flow of Qi and Blood throughout the Meridians of the body. Modern anatomical science sees it as stimulating the fascia (a fluid matrix of connective tissue, linking all tissues in the body) and directly down-regulating the nervous system into a parasympathetic state. Regulating the Qi, Blood, Yin, Yang, Fascia and Nervous System has an incredible ripple effect of stimulating healing throughout the whole body, and the mind too. Acupuncture also stimulates the body to release endorphins, our body’s own pain-relieving system, which cascades relief of many pain conditions. These are just where some of the benefits of acupuncture begin.
Acupuncture can help with: acute and chronic pain, digestive disturbances, menstrual discomfort and irregularity, reproductive health, fertility, skin conditions (eczema, psoriasis, acne), blood pressure, headache, heatstroke, mental health conditions of all kinds, addiction recovery, physical and emotional trauma, convalescence, and is supportive to concurrent treatment with Western medicine. Acupuncture is a beautiful example of a complementary medicine that can be used harmoniously alongside other therapies, and is not meant to be a replacement for emergency medicine.
I offer direct billing for: Telus Health, Sunlife, Pacific Blue Cross, Greenshield and Medavie providers.
Chinese Medicine is a preventative system of medicine rooted in Taoist philosophy and natural law. It is not just Acupuncture and Cupping, it is an art and way of life.
Yǎng Shēng Fǎ (養生法), translated as "the art of nourishing life," is an ancient Taoist and Traditional Chinese Medicine concept. It focuses on continuous health cultivation and preventative self-care rather than just treating illness. Also known as the 8 limbs of Chinese Medicine, Yang Sheng Fa consists of practices to support health and well being on a daily basis. The 8 limbs are:
Meditation and Breathing (our state of mind),
Diet and Food
Movement and Exercise
Feng shui
Cosmology and Astrology (Place and Time)
Herbal Medicine
Tui Na, Cupping
Acupuncture
We are not separate from nature and a headache is not an isolated event in the body. What this means is that often we need to look at the whole system and how that system is functioning in day to day life to correct chronic illness. Acupuncture is an incredible therapy in that it can impact the body on a physical, energetic, emotional and spiritual level because it works with channels of qi that connect to all our tissues and organs. We can have significant impact with one treatment but the lasting nature of that treatment depends on our lifestyle choices.
In Chinese Medicine, events and phenomena unfold through a kind of spontaneous cooperation,
an inner dynamic in the nature of things.
~ The Web that has no Weaver
My Philosophy and Approach
“There is more wisdom in your body, than in your deepest philosophy”.
I see every body as a unique ecosystem of intelligence with a lineage of stories. A vessel that has physical and energetic parts. I am an advocate for a “less is more” approach to treatment. Western medicine and western mind sees illness as something that needs to be fixed and often intervened with. I lead my work with curiosity and listening. The body knows what it needs if given the opportunity to feel into what that is. When there is a lot going on in the body, often it needs to feel held and safe before it can take anymore. I listen for if the body is asking for a more yin or more yang approach. There is a time and place for both. We are sensitive and resilient beings. We can handle a lot and we are good at holding it in and labouring on. We are also energetic creatures with incredible sensing ability. Just as I would approach a wild plant or animal, I approach each body I work with with mindfulness, presence and care. With an awareness that our system is physical, emotional and energetic. I am here for all of you and I don’t wish to isolate these parts. You are the healer, your body knows, I am just here to guide and support where you are already going.
Integrative Bodywork
A blend of acupressure, energy work, qi gong, tui na, myofascial release, and joint mobilization to encourage more glide and hydration the tissues, align joints, reduce inflammation, and holding patterns.
