A couple of weeks ago, I got a call at home from a fundraiser asking for money for the school where I received my master’s degree in Oriental Medicine.  I politely told the woman that I would not support the school and I told her why. You see, the school I attended also trains chiropractors.  This is not a problem.  The school trains chiropractors to perform acupuncture.  This is also not a problem.  However, the school trains chiropractors to perform “acupuncture” in 105 hours over seven weekends while at the same time they train acupuncturists in a three-year, 3,000 hour...

I have the best job in the world. As an acupuncturist, I have a parade of lovely, interesting people who come through my clinic looking for help and healing. As an acupuncturist, I get to use the tools of an ancient healing tradition called Chinese medicine. These tools include acupuncture, Chinese herbs, body work, food therapy, and healthy lifestyle traditions. One of the best parts of what I do is that I learn a little something from each and every patient who comes in through my door. Some of those lessons are uneventful, but some are profound. Here is a short list of some of the incredible things...

Many acupuncturists accept health insurance reimbursement for their services.  Many don’t.  I come down on the side of those who don’t.  I’d like to lay out my reasons for not accepting health insurance, because in the long run, I feel that it actually benefits my patients. First of all, let’s talk about…me.  The reality is that health insurance companies do not pay me or any other acupuncturist adequately for their time.  They typically will determine what they think is “appropriate and reasonable” and only reimburse that amount, which is often about half of my usual fee.  (My fees...

It seems that healing aches and pains, poor digestion, and menstrual cramps are not the only ills being treated with acupuncture needles.  The hair thin staple of acupuncturists worldwide is also playing a role in art restoration.  According to the NY Times, last week a woman fell at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and instead of breaking her wrist, she broke a painting, and an expensive one at that.  When the woman fell, she put a 6” tear into “The Actor”, a rare Picasso painted during the artist’s early rose Period around 1904-05. The painting now lives in the Met’s conservation...

It’s hard to think about much else as we witness, the devastation in Haiti from this week’s earthquake. It’s difficult to comprehend how any more misery can descend upon the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, and yet, we watch it happening as Haitians struggle to survive without food, water, or shelter. Please join me in doing what we can from afar, which is to donate to the massive relief efforts that are being undertaken to help the people of Haiti who are suffering from this overwhelming disaster. Some groups that are on the ground in Haiti now and can use your donations...