Success Stories

Paula is a 63-year-old woman who came to me because she had been diagnosed with long covid. A year after having covid, she continued to have persistent vertigo, chronic fatigue and neurological symptoms. When she came to see me, she was under the care of a neurologist, rheumatologist, physiatrist and had seen several other specialists. She was told that her symptoms were most likely a long covid presentation but none of the medications that she was offered had been effective.  Her biggest fear was that her life, as she had known it, was over. She feared that she would not be able to work, drive a car or take care of herself because of the way that she felt daily. Her main question was if acupuncture treatment might help her. She said to me “I have tried everything else, and no one can help me.” She had never had acupuncture before, and I explained that acupuncture treatment had a long track record of helping people with both vertigo and chronic fatigue syndrome. Because of my specialization in chronic conditions, I have successfully helped many people suffering from the symptoms that she was experiencing, even though long-covid was still a new condition. I completed an acupuncture assessment and suggested a treatment plan for her. She decided that she was willing to give it a try. Paula’s life is significantly different after being treated with acupuncture. About 8 weeks into the treatment plan, she regained the ability to drive a car and was able to return to work 4 days per week. She was no longer dizzy and we discussed how she can manage her energy level to prevent symptoms from recurring. 

Alice was 58-year-old who when she came to see me for help with anxiety. She began to suffer from anxiety at the same time as her periods became irregular and she entered her perimenopausal transition around the age of 52. Her anxiety was significantly impacting her life. She was waking during the night feeling anxious and sweaty. She noticed dryness in her hair and skin, and she felt like she was stuck in perpetual PMS. She had been offered hormone replacement therapy by her doctor, but she did not want to take it as her mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer in her 50’s and Alice was not comfortable with the risks of hormone therapy. She had tried increasing her exercise through walking and yoga, which she enjoyed but these activities did not reduce her stress and anxiety level the way they had in the past.  

When she came to see me, she had started to limit her time outside of her home due to anxiety and she was sleeping only 4 to 5 hours per night, which made her exhausted, on top of feeling anxious. After doing a personalized assessment, I created a comprehensive treatment plan for Alice, which included regular acupuncture, a review of her vitamins and supplements and a referral for counseling. After 6 weeks of care, she was feeling significantly better. She was sleeping 6-7 hours per night and experienced fewer night sweats. She developed strategies to cope with her anxiety. The plan was effective in calming Alice’s nervous system and balancing her hormones and allowed her body to fully transition into menopause. A year later, Alice told me that she felt like a different woman – she had resumed all of her daily activities and was able to enjoy her life again. 

Roxanne was a 38-year-old working mom of 2 young children when she came to see me because she was chronically exhausted. She was a successful corporate professional who was struggling with anxiety and fatigue, especially before her periods. She was married and loved being a mom and a wife, but she told me in our first meeting that she felt like she was falling apart on the inside. She had been working from home during the pandemic with both of her kids also at home. Even though her kids were back in school, and she was back in the office most days, she felt consistently exhausted and she was anxious much of the time. She had tried taking a handful of supplements that were marketed for stress-relief, but none had been helpful. After talking with her for over an hour in our initial meeting, I created a plan for Roxanne that included regular acupuncture and stress management techniques that she could do in less than 15 minutes a day. I did an acupuncture assessment to understand the underlying causes for her fatigue and anxiety. Once I had identified her pattern, I explained that acupuncture could help regulate her hormones and soothe her nervous system to help her settle after a stressful time.  I also reviewed and tailored her vitamin and supplement plan to just two products that matched her constitution. After several sessions of acupuncture on a weekly basis, she reported feeling more relaxed and less overwhelmed during the day. She was still struggling to unwind in the evening, and I offered her more support to help regulate her nervous system at the end of her long days of work and caring for her family. Through this process, she found the balance that she had been missing. She continued to have acupuncture on a regular basis to regulate hormones and calm her nerves. 

Laura had just turned 41 when she came to see me for help with fertility. She had been trying to get pregnant for the past year and had been unsuccessful. She and her partner had decided that they would not do medical fertility treatments, like IUI or IVF and wanted to do everything possible to have a baby naturally. Even though she was 41, Laura strongly believed that she could conceive and carry a baby and she wanted to see if acupuncture and herbs could help her. I met with her and completed a Natural Fertility Assessment, in which I identified that Laura was likely still fertile, but she fit in the category of blocked fertility. Before seeing me, Laura had been trying all sorts of supplements and lifestyle changes to help her get pregnant, but she wasn’t sure what was working. We did a complete review of her fertility strategies. I discovered that several of the supplements that she was taking were unnecessary, her recent dietary changes were working against her fertility and that her cycle tracking system was likely inaccurate.  I showed her the categories of food that would enhance fertility to her and recommended that she cut out the extra supplements. Finally, we set up a system for her to accurately track her ovulation window and scheduled her acupuncture treatments at key points of her cycle. I created customized herbal formulas for her that also followed the four stages of the cycle. I encouraged her to put her energy into stress reduction and calming her nervous system with simple techniques that she could do at home. She followed our treatment plan carefully and after 6 months, she conceived. Laura and her partner had a healthy baby naturally at age 42. 

Amanda was 36 years old when she came to see me for help with fertility. She had been trying to conceive for 6 months. Even though she had not been trying for all that long, because she had irregular periods and PCOS, she had already been referred to a fertility clinic for IVF. Her greatest concern was the fear that she would not be able to get pregnant at all. She was also very worried that she and her husband would not be able to afford the tens of thousands of dollars required for IVF treatments as her insurance did not cover IVF. A close friend of hers had gotten pregnant after seeing me for fertility acupuncture and she wondered if I could help her too. I explained to her that having PCOS can make it more difficult to conceive, but it did not mean that she absolutely could not have a natural pregnancy. I completed a Natural Fertility Assessment for her and determined that in addition to having PCOS, she fit into the category of deficient fertility and that her body needed support and nourishment. We agreed on a three-month treatment plan, after which she planned to start the IVF process. She had weekly acupuncture treatments, and I recommended a customized herbal formula for her. She enjoyed the treatments, felt relaxed and we talked about mindset and how to handle the stress of having difficulty getting pregnant. She conceived after 6 visits and went on to have a healthy pregnancy and a beautiful baby boy. This approach saved her a significant amount of stress and tens of thousands of dollars in fertility treatments.