About me
I am an acupuncturist trained in Japan and licensed by the Japanese Ministry of Health.
Like many of my patients, I first turned to acupuncture in a moment of desperation and heartbreak, not knowing whether it would help.
While living in Japan, I found myself ready to start a family, but while I got pregnant easily, my pregnancies ended in loss. I wanted to do whatever I could to prepare my body for a healthy pregnancy, but my doctors had little to advice to offer other than to wait and try again.
I started seeing a practitioner of traditional Japanese meridian therapy, and found everything that I had felt was missing from modern Western medicine, and more.
He listened to me with patience, acknowledged my grief, and validated my doubts. In diagnosis, he took everything into account — not only my symptoms, but also my history, lifestyle, and emotions. In examination and treatment, he treated me gently and with the utmost respect, taking minute care to identify and treat each point.
He taught me what was happening in my body and gave me practical advice, based on insights into human physiology dating back millennia, on how to start healing myself.
I learned perspectives on health that, though considered common sense in Japan, are largely unknown in the West. After each session I felt more energized, found it easier to maintain my healthy habits, and felt more hope. Not long after, I had a healthy pregnancy and gave birth to my first son.
Out of a desire to understand how the apparent magic of acupuncture actually works, coupled with the conviction that this profound understanding of the human body needs to be shared, I embarked on a 4-year course of study in Japanese acupuncture and moxibustion, and in 2022 I received my license from the Japanese Ministry of Health.
And now I hope to share what I have learned with you, and guide you as you embark on your own healing journey.
About the clinic
You can find my clinic, Shizumi Acupuncture, nestled in a quiet corner of Urbanization Cap Blanc, Cullera, overlooking the sea.
The clinic name, Shizumi (静海) meaning ”calm sea” in Japanese, conveys my hope that this will be a place that calms the turbulent currents of the mind and body, helping you restore comfort, peace and ease.
What to expect: your first appointment
You will be asked to complete a detailed Patient Intake Form prior to your first appointment.
In the first 30 minutes, we will discuss and expand on the information provided in this form.
I will then leave the room so that you can change into the treatment clothing provided and wait on the acupuncture bed, lying on your back. In Japanese acupuncture, you remain mostly clothed throughout the treatment, with only the part being treated gently exposed.
Treatment starts with examination. I will feel your pulse, and gently palpate your abdomen and along meridians, in order to gather key information for pattern diagnosis.
I will then perform needling and moxibustion (involving the burning of mugwort on or near the skin to produce a warming or hot sensation) at selected points on your head, chest, abdomen, arms, legs and feet.
You will then be asked to lie on your abdomen, and points on the back of the body will be treated.
Depending on the pattern diagnosed, the needles will either be removed immediately, or may be left in place for about 10 minutes.
Finally, I will examine you again to assess how your body has responded to treatment, and leave you to rest for a few minutes before rising and changing back into your clothes.
