All Bodies Heal!

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Too often within health care (and the world at large!), certain bodies are prioritized while others are left feeling unsafe, unseen, and unwelcome due to insidious tactics ranging from unspoken stigmas about which bodies are valuable and deserving of good health, to overt physical barriers to access.  

As our bodies are politicized, so too is our care of them; it is my intention to create and hold a radically inclusive, body positive,  individually empowering space in which anyone who seeks it can receive the care they need. 

Acupuncture is a potent, highly effective, science-backed modality of health care which has been in practice around the globe for thousands of years; it is considered "holistic" because it treats the whole body as an interconnected network, allowing resolution of dysfunction in all of the body's systems.  

I work within several traditions but primarily offer acupuncture in the style of my former mentor, world-renowned Japanese master practitioner Kiiko Matsumoto, through the westernized lens of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). This system is unique in many ways; what is generally most obvious to patients receiving care is gentler needling and more hands-on palpation. 

I was privileged to have studied under Dr. Mark Seem who, along with the brilliant Dr. Janet Travell, helped to develop a system of acupuncture which allows for the release of musculoskeletal trigger points; this approach has been popularized by non-acupuncturists under the name 'dry needling.'  

Needle free techniques such as gua sha, fire cupping, and moxibustion are also a frequent part of my practice, as is whole food nutritional counseling. 

I have special clinical interest and experience working with chronic illness and autoimmune conditions (Lyme disease and associated co-infections, thyroid conditions, EDS/POTS and MCAS), repro/sexual health (supporting gender affirmation, perimenopause transition), and pain management/rehabilitation for athletes of all types. I adhere to the philosophy of health at every size and I am a fervent believer that all bodies are good bodies!

While my specialty is  deep tissue, I am endlessly humbled by the power of therapeutic touch and will work with you to tailor your session to  what your body needs at the time. 

Many of my clients are folks suffering from repetitive strain - athletes, tattoo artists, bartenders, touring musicians - but you don't need to be in pain to receive massage! 

Honoring the body's powerful ability to hold sometimes very heavy emotions for us, I continue to study modalities of touch therapy for survivors of both direct and generational/systemic trauma.  I am also happy to offer pre- and post-natal massage to pregnant people of all genders. 

I began practicing massage as a graduate of Baltimore School of Massage in 2006, and received my masters degree from Tri-State College of Acupuncture in New York City with a license to practice acupuncture as of 2010. 

Clinically, my practice is deeply influenced by my experience navigating a previously misdiagnosed chronic illness which was, after many painful and confusing years, finally correctly identified as Lyme disease. I find both hands-on bodywork and acupuncture to be profoundly effective for treating a panoply of diseases and pain conditions in the body and mind and consider it a personal goal to debunk skepticism about the efficacy of natural medicine, as well as to help detach acupuncture from its unfounded connection to "new age woo woo" esotericism. As a heavily tattooed and gender non-conforming person, it is also my intention to challenge preconceptions about who can/should practice healthcare. 

Outside of the treatment space, I recently turned from my first love of Muay Thai and am exploring a growing passion for CrossFit. Social justice will always be the lens through which I approach the world; I feel particularly galvanized by the ongoing, vital, and interlocking work toward reproductive justice, queer/trans rights, and anti-racism and I am always thrilled to serve as a resource for folks looking for ways to get involved. I am an avid music fan and have played bass guitar in several local metal bands over the past 15 years. Hiking, wildcrafting, and mushroom hunting have been giving me life, especially during the COVID shutdown. After trying to make it elsewhere, I am happy to be back living in Baltimore with my amazing partner and our two ridiculous cats, one bearded dragon, and four chickens.