02/28/2023
Acupuncturists have WAY MORE education and training than you probably think they do.
I recently got my doctorate degree and a lot of people are asking me why I chose to do that when I have so many years of experience under my belt.
There are many reasons and one of them is I think having the credential of Dr so-and-so is an easy way to convey that I have a ton of training, and I think that’s good for our profession and good for patients.
Additionally, my doctorate program had a focus on integrative and functional medicine and now I can order and interpret labs in my state of CO, and I’m very excited about that.
I made this video to spread the word about how much training acupuncturists have. There’s some variation (some acupuncturists aren’t trained in herbs or “dry needling” the way I am, for example). And of course, as in any and all professions, there are better ones and not-so-great ones. But generally, acupuncturists deserve way more respect.
It makes me bananas when someone underestimates the education and training involved to become an acupuncturist. Because it underestimates the medicine. We’re not just pokin’ people where it hurts, it’s a very complex and sophisticated system of pattern differentiation and root cause identification. THAT’s where the power is.
Which is why, as I see other professions trying to steal pieces of our medicine (ahem, dry needling), I can’t help but roll my eyes because they’re practicing such a superficial fraction of our medicine (while also claiming that it’s “better” or different or “more medical” than what we do). While they may get a muscle to release (one of the many ways that we work) without addressing the underlying cause of the problem, it will continue needing treatment. It’s rude, ignorant, and cultural appropriation to not give credit where credit is due and whitewash it by calling it more medical. I didn’t mean for this to be about dry needling, but I guess that’s where we ended up, haha!
Acupuncturists have so much education and training. We address pain AND internal underlying root causes. Get one on your team!
