Trainings & Education
I have always been fascinated by the body and amazed at how we can take the components of food, air, and water to create all the complexity of function in these bodies we walk in. As a child I dreamed of growing up to be an old wise-woman in a cottage full of herbs with a goat as my companion! My path to get there has been a winding one, with many challenges and traumas to move through, and many joys and kindnesses along the way. Maybe you can relate?
Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine:
After receiving my B.S. at the University of Maryland, I went on to study East Asian Medicine at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), formerly the New England School of Acupuncture. In 2017 I graduated with my Masters in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, with a focus on Japanese acupuncture styles and herbal medicine. I then earned my national board certification (NCCAOM) and became licensed to practice in Vermont.
During my time at MCPHS I had the privilege of working with patients with a wide range of backgrounds and complaints, from children to elders, and acute injury to chronic disease, in a hospital and our student clinics. Before starting Green Dragon Acupuncture in 2021, I worked in community acupuncture in Burlington, VT serving the population of Chittenden County. I continued my studies and have gone on to take numerous continuing education trainings with focuses on GI dysfunction, endocrine diseases, musculoskeletal pain, fertility and menopause symptoms. Most notably among these tools are Dr. Richard Tan’s Balance Method, Kiiko Matsumoto’s Japanese Treatment Styles, and David Euler’s palpation based methods for diagnosing and treating disease; I prize these methods for their direct feedback systems that let me know right away if my treatment is working and allow me to get out of my headspace and work directly with a client’s body.
My herbal studies have also expanded to include an apprenticeship at the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism, where I learned a foundation in Western Herbalism, cultivation and medicinal preparations. I continue to take trainings and self study both Western and East Asian herbalism and refine my medicine making skills with plants and fungi harvested locally, often from my own land in Worcester, Vermont.
Mindset and Life Coaching:
I strongly believe in the mind-body connection in illness and wellness, which informs my interactions with clients at every level. I have studied the mind-body connection through East Asian Medicine, Yoga, Buddhism & Mindfulness Meditation, Peruvian and other Indigenous Shamanic practices, and other Nature based forms of spirituality. In my own journey I’ve found it pivotal to connect these ancient wisdom traditions with the best of modern neuroscience, child developmental psychology, and trauma informed therapy (I’m especially fond of Gabor Mate’s body of work). I’ve seen this create a powerful combination to build compassion, create clarity around your priorities, and release old blocks so you can stay focused and consistent as you manifest your goals in real time.
My journey with mindfulness began at age 7 when I first attempted to sit in meditation with my Aunt—a practicing Buddhist—when staying at her and her wife’s house. I wasn’t ready for seated practice yet! However, the peace I felt in her meditation room, and the wisdom I felt in conversation with my two aunts left a deep impression on me as I developed.
Then I began practicing Yoga Asanas in college, and learned how nourishing a daily practice could be for my well being. In 2011 I found my first Sangha in a group that met monthly for group sits and discussion on the Dharma. It was there I dove deeply, finding much needed support for my spiritual growth in this community of like-minded practitioners. We shared literature, videos, and our journeys. They introduced me to the teachings of Baba Ram Dass and took me to Tara Brach’s weekly teachings with the IMCW. These 2 teachers have profoundly shaped the way I relate to myself, to mindfulness, and to life. I continue to follow and revisit their teachings more than any other Dharma teachers I’ve found along the way.
As my journey continues I have gone on to study taoism from the Classical Chinese Acupuncture perspective, Shamanism from Elders in Peru and my Elder here in Vermont (Sabrinajoy Milbury) and Indigenous American teachings in the Abenaki, Narragansett, and Lakota traditions from a number of Elders I respect deeply. I have found these teachings profound in their ability to connect myself, and my clients to our innate wisdom and unlearn the patterns that have kept us stuck in stress and poor health for so long.
I have also had the privilege of working with several coaches: Business coaching, Life coaching, Hypnobirthing, and potty training my kids! In working with them, receiving their guidance, and studying their approaches I have developed a style of coaching my clients that feels truly in alignment with my purpose.