About Acupuncture
Acupuncture uses super-thin needles to stimulate key points in the body, commonly located along planes of connective tissue where structures meet. Activation of these points sends messages to the brain and therefore the whole body. This can have an effect on both the immediate area and further areas through the body’s interconnected network of fascia, connective tissue, blood vessels, and nerves. Acupuncture can provide long-lasting, drug-free relief from pain, stress, and many internal disorders.
Electroacupuncture adds mild electrical stimulation to the same acupuncture points using a device similar to a TENS machine used in physiotherapy. This allows us to send a stronger message to the local tissue and your brain without moving the needle as much.
Researchers have found that different settings (frequency, intensity, continuous vs. intermittent) affect the body differently and lead to neurons releasing different transmitters. (Reference.)
Cupping uses plastic, glass or silicone cups to create a vacuum against the skin that gently pulls soft tissue away from the body. Similar to massage, cupping stimulates pressure receptors, moving and relaxing connective tissues, but improves circulation faster to muscles, joints and skin. Cups can stay in one place or be slid along muscles or meridians. Consider it like an inverse massage, pulling tissue away instead of pressing it into the body.
TCM stands for Traditional Chinese Medicine and is a combination of techniques, including acupuncture, for preventative and reparative healthcare.
TCM recognizes that a health condition is rarely just one symptom and aims to treat patients holistically. In TCM, health history is examined for patterns to relieve not only the main complaint, but also address the whole system and root cause. Treatments are also tailored to your individual body instead of treating every person with a given ailment as the same.
There are small risks associated with acupuncture. The risks of serious side effects are higher from taking Tylenol (also rare) than going to a properly trained acupuncturist.
The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) recognizes acupuncture as an effective treatment for a large range of issues including mental-emotional disorders, allergies, headaches, digestive issues, hormone imbalances and repetitive strain disorders.
In a review of 31 high-quality studies by Dr. Sun & Gan at Duke University, acupuncture was found to work as well as or better than drugs and to have fewer side effects.
Acupuncture needles are whisker-thin. For comparison, 10 acupuncture needles can fit into just one hypodermic needle.
Ever plucked your eyebrows? Acupuncture is far less painful.
It is frequently painless, as most points don’t hurt at all — and some you may not even feel at all. The most common discomfort you may feel is if the needle is close to a hair follicle, there is a quick sharp pain (like plucking an eyebrow hair), which passes quickly.
There can be a warm sensation near the acupuncture point, a tight muscle ache, or an overall heavy feeling. Acupuncture treatments usually make people feel deeply relaxed by the end because it down-regulates the nervous system and turns off the fight-or-flight mode.
Because other methods aren’t giving you the results you want or have unwanted side effects. Or you are seeking a whole-body treatment instead of spot treatment. Or you like interesting sensation/are a bit of a daredevil.
From my background in massage and biology, I believe people invented acupuncture because they found a spot that felt good to rub or squeeze and you can only rub or squeeze for so long; if a tool can do the same job (or a better job) why not try it? Old Chinese medical text clearly show the paths of nerves you can stimulate by pressing specific spots. We get the best benefits when we combine hands on examination of the body with anatomy texts both, ancient and modern.
I love getting massage and providing it but I can only work one one or two areas at one time. With acupuncture I can use cups on tight back muscles, directly stimulate a frozen shoulder capsule with a needle, trigger a muscle twitch response in rock-hard calves while warming the core of the body with applied heat and herbal tincture all at the same time!
Because acupuncture can work fast and may prevent recurrences.
In a review of 31 high-quality studies by Dr. Sun & Gan at Duke University, acupuncture was found to work as well as or better than drugs and to have fewer side effects.
About Appointments
I offer direct billing to these extended medical plans:
- Pacific Blue Cross
- Medavie Blue Cross
- Greenshield
- Sunlife
- Telus E-claims Portal, including Canada Life, ManuLife, Equitable, GroupHealth, GroupSource, Johnson Group Inc., and many more.
Contact your provider to verify your coverage before booking.
Important: In the unlikely event that your insurance provider’s system is down, you are responsible for paying for treatment on the day of, then submitting your claim for reimbursement yourself.
ICBC
I also offer direct billing to ICBC, pre-approved within 12 weeks of a collision with permission of your case manager after that.
- Please aim to arrive 5-10 minutes before your appointment time. Help yourself to water or the washroom.
- If you have not filled out the intake form we emailed for your first appointment, please arrive 15-20 minutes early. We can work on it together if needed.
- Your appointment time is reserved for you. But sometimes it happens, we’ve all run late. If you arrive late, your appointment will still end at the scheduled time and the full fee applies. However, I will adapt the treatment for the time remaining, so you can still leave relaxed.
Initial appointments are 75-90 minutes, depending what fits your schedule and budget. We discuss what brings you in, what you’ve already tried, and safety info about acupuncture (e.g. if you are on blood thinners). We also holistically review your lifestyle; i.e. sleep, hunger, mood, stress, etc. Then we get you comfortable on the table, so you can experience 40-60 minutes of treatment.
Follow up appointments can be 30-90 minutes, depending on how many concerns you want to address and if we are just using needles or adding cupping, electrical stimulation, and/or massage.
Typically, people undress as they would for a massage, mostly unclothed and covered by a sheet, exposing areas as they are worked.
However, your comfort is most important. You can be fully dressed to receive acupuncture. We can stimulate points on the feet, hands and head to treat the whole body. It is helpful to be able to uncover injuries, so consider wearing or bringing loose-fitting clothes, shorts or a sports bra.
A minimum of 48 hours notice is required to cancel or change appointments, except in cases of illness, unavoidable emergencies, or extreme inclement weather.
DO NOT EMAIL cancellation or rescheduling requests.
Our priority is taking care of you AND everyone else at our clinic. If you might be contagious please:
- stay home and rest
- phone 250.370.1020 asap to let me know
- don’t worry about cancellation fees
- reschedule for when you feel better
- consider a tele-health video chat appointment instead
If you are dealing with ongoing allergy, headache or stomach-ache symptoms, please still attend your appointment.
Why chose me as your acupuncturist?
- You want someone with an excellent hands-on touch. I have over a decade of prior experience offering relaxation massage. My current practice combines modalities of acupuncture with cupping, massage, and TCM.
- You want someone who is not only knowledgable and experienced, but also continues to invest in her education. I regularly attend new acupuncture courses and workshops. And I enjoy reading nerdy research papers on, for example, how neurology and acupuncture relate.
- You have questions and want a down-to-earth and interesting conversation about how various systems are interrelated. For example, how the TCM Kidney System relates to adrenal glands (BSc. Biology) or your root chakra (4 months learning Ayurvedic massage) or Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (so many psychology courses).