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About Me

I grew up in New Jersey where I attended Trenton State University, and later graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Liberal Studies. I moved to California in 1979 to study therapeutic massage and holistic health, and in 1981 studied acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine at the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, San Francisco. Later, I attended the San Francisco College of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine where I received my Oriental Medical Doctor degree.

I moved to Sonoma County in 1984 and set up a private practice in Cotati for 15 years. In 1994 I joined Kaiser Permanente, Santa Rosa where I now work full-time providing acupuncture in the Chronic Pain Department. I am fortunate to work with an exceptional team of providers and support staff and enjoy working in the medical setting.

My journey into acupuncture and Oriental Medicine began after college when I went to live in Western New York State to heal the wounds of a recent divorce and figure out what I was going to do with the rest of my life. While there I checked out two books about acupuncture from the library. Reading those books was like coming home. I savored every word and imagined how wonderful it would be to be able to do something so great. Then I promptly got depressed, thinking that even if I could learn how to do acupuncture, it was not a legal profession at that time.

Eventually I found my way to Santa Cruz, CA to study massage and holistic health. There I started studying herbs with Michael Tierra, who was also an acupuncturist. One day Michael told me that in some rural areas of China, where there were few doctors, laymen, called barefoot doctors, practiced acupuncture. If the case was too complex, the patient then had to travel to the city to see the doctor of Oriental medicine. Almost as if thinking out loud, Michael stated he was thinking of teaching a barefoot doctor class and what did I think about that?

There it was, my opportunity to study acupuncture and Oriental medicine, staring me in the face. I signed up for several courses and on the very first day, administered my first acupuncture treatment on an orange. Then I practiced on myself and learned a very basic treatment for classmates and friends. I apprenticed in Michael's clinic two days a week for a year doing dietary counseling, herb instruction, office work and anything that enabled me to observe Michael at work.

The road from apprenticing to licensure at that time was long and unregulated, and I still didn't know how I would be able to utilize my teachings in a legal profession. Then, in 1981, California enacted a law to allow schools to prepare students for the acupuncture licensing examination. I immediately applied to the American College of Traditional Chinese medicine in San Francisco, where I completed my training and became licensed to practice, legally.

As I looked back at that day when acupuncture seemed like only a dream, I realized that something bigger than myself guided me in the right direction. This experience helped me to trust my inner voice of excitement and to act on my passions. I now have over 20 years experience and feel grateful that I was able to create such a gratifying profession.

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