About Your Care

My goal as a provider is to offer safe, effective and evidence-based care that supports your goals for physical, mental and emotional well-being. Western biomedicine and traditional forms of healthcare such as acupuncture and herbal medicine are not in competition with one another and can be used together seamlessly if they are allowed to coexist as different lenses through which to view the body. Integrative care is understanding the strengths and limitations of each healthcare system and skillfully using them together to get the widest range of options for treatment and the best results.

I seek to accompany you in a way that is patient-centered and consent driven. This type of care is respectful of and works with whatever other medical or complementary therapies you are utilizing.  I have sturdy working relationships with many area medical offices, midwives, allied/complementary and mental health care providers and I strive to maintain seamless continuity of care with your other providers as much as possible. 

Areas of Expertise

 

  • Reproductive and sexual health care from menarche to menopause and beyond.

  • Concerns related to menstruation such as menstrual irregularity and pain, chronic pelvic pain, PMS/PMDD, migraine and dysfunctional uterine bleeding.

  • Fertility and preconception care.

  • Pregnancy, birth and postpartum care.

  • Easing the transition during perimenopause and menopause.

  • Mental health concerns such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, and chronic stress.

  • Support for women with ADHD and other neurodifferences.

  • Ailments that defy diagnosis and treatment by other modalities

About Acupuncture

 

I practice a gentle and unique form of Japanese-style acupuncture in the Kototama Inochi lineage that uses between four and fifteen carefully placed needles per treatment.  These needles are thinner than a human hair and are inserted very shallowly just below the skin.  I also use moxibustion, cupping, bodywork and other healthcare practices from the rich tradition of East Asian Medicine. Acupuncture was brought to Japan from China in the 6th Century and has multiple lineages that developed over the last 1500 years.  Japanese acupuncture is known for its efficiency and precision and treatments aim to use a minimal amount of stimulation to attain the greatest results. Much of the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) theory remains intact and the majority of the actual acupuncture points are also the same.  In the Japanese styles there is a strong emphasis on root (meridian based) and branch (symptomatic) treatment, “listening” carefully to the wrist pulse throughout the treatment, the use of thin needles and shallow insertion.

About Herbal Therapy

 

Customized herbal medicines formulated by an herbalist can provide safe and effective results for a wide range of concerns and almost never produce side-effects. They can be utilized to address health concerns for which there are few pharmaceutical options; can be used in some cases as an alternative to pharmaceuticals and under the care of a trained herbalist can also be used alongside medications and other Western therapeutics. Herbal therapy can be a safe, gentle and effective solution and can be used alone or help support your course of acupuncture therapy.

Cost of Care

 

Acupuncture + herbs for adults

  • $100 for a 50 minute full appointment, plus the cost of herbs.

  • Insurance accepted.

Acupuncture maintenance and follow up

  • $60 for a 50 minute follow up appointment. Available for established patients only.

  • Insurance accepted.

PREBIRTH ACUPUNCTURE (36 weeks onward)

  • $80 for a 50 minute full appointment

  • $60 for a 50 minute follow-up appointment

  • Weekly prebirth acupuncture treatments beginning at 36 weeks to create optimal conditions for labor are increasingly the subject of research.  A 2017 Cochrane Review  showed that acupuncture improves cervical readiness prior to labor. In observational studies acupuncture has been shown to decrease the need for medical induction of labor, pain medication and emergency c-sections.  Prebirth treatments do not “induce” labor or make contractions, but instead help to create optimal conditions for labor to begin in a timely and efficient way. 

  • Insurance accepted.

Breech, Posterior or Malpositioned Babies

  • $80 for a 50 minute full appointment

  • Treatments are most effective when started between 32 and 35 weeks of pregnancy. Sometimes a second treatment may be required. The use of acupuncture and moxibustion for breech is increasingly the subject of research and is included in RCOG Green Top Guideline 20a as a clinical guideline to reduce incidence of term breech presentation. Sarah has written extensively and teaches internationally on the subject of acupuncture and moxibustion for breech babies and if you would like more information, co-authored research summaries can be found here and here.

  • Instructions and moxa sticks for daily home care will be provided.

  • Available for treatment outside of normal office hours. Call or email to book

Labor Facilitation Prior to a Medical Induction

  • $80 for a 50 minute full appointment

  • These appointments are only available within 72 hours of a scheduled medical induction.  Several appointments spaced 24-48 hours apart may be desired.

  • Instructions for acupressure to be used at home and during your induction will be provided

  • Available for treatment outside of normal office hours. Call or email to book.

Acupuncture + herbs for children under 15

  • $50 for a 25 minute appointment, plus the cost of herbs.

  • Insurance accepted

Remote Herbal Consultation

  • $80 for one 30 minute initial phone consult and one 15 minute follow up, plus the cost of herbs.

Cost of herbs

  • Custom herbal tinctures are $16-$20 per ounce.

  • Cost of herbs and supplements are kept as low as possible and I do not mark up herbs and supplements over my cost. I do not profit from the sale of herbs and supplements.