Since I became licensed, I've tried many "grow-your-business-by-blogging" strategies, all of which fell flat after just a handful of posts. I've learned that something as time-consuming as blogging is ultimately the easiest thing to put off if you don't enjoy doing it. So I've opted to return to a more personal approach, the original reason people created blogs - a true web log. I do love to write, and maybe you - a potential client, a close friend, a random, curious person from across the world - will enjoy reading about my observations and experiences, and that has some value - even if these posts of mine won't necessarily generate any revenue.
2014 has been a strange year. I've learned a lot about running a business and what it truly means to be a healer. I've learned that some of the oldest advice I ever received - "just be yourself" - is also some of the most important advice one could ever heed. I've accepted that I am not your conventional acupuncturist, if there is such a thing; I'm definitely not your conventional medical worker. I love science and studies and "proof," but the more I trust my intuition, the better results I seem to get. I'm starting to get comfortable with my witch-y side, truly letting myself believe that these needles, these herbs, the vibration of a tuning fork, the touch of a hand, can transform a person's experience at the deepest level. I have witnessed small miracles: a sore shoulder moving without pain, an insomniac sleeping through the night, anxiety transformed to joy... and these things keep me energized for the hard work ahead.
I own a home now. I'm married and I have a garden. I am a business owner. But there are days where I'm still compelled to be completely irresponsible, or months where I don't have enough money to buy something that I am totally convinced I need (until I realize I can't afford it, and the need sort of dissipates). I have decided that these experiences are OK - they are part of my journey. Healers aren't perfect. My image of a healer has changed so much in the last year. Back when I was in school, I used to imagine myself walking the halls of some hospital, wearing a lab coat over my business-casual attire, feeling important and respectable as I worked to single-handedly elevate the practice of acupuncture into acceptance by the medical establishment. Then I began to idealize the wise women of yesterday, pulling herbs from the soil with strong hands, lending a gentle touch to soothe a headache, always ready with the right remedy. Now I know I lie somewhere between. I am a healer right where I am. In the morning, putting on makeup in my bathroom mirror, I say to myself: this is what a healer looks like.
I am a healer when I'm singing on stage, drinking at a bar, or riding bikes with my friends. I am still a healer when I'm sick myself, nursing the cold that's been going around, trying to heed the same advice I'd give my patients. It's not something that goes away when I leave the clinic. It's a part of me, and I don't have to embody any kind of stereotype to better serve my patients or attract my ideal client.
So that's it - that's my declaration. I always feel vaguely guilty when I write an entire blog post about myself. But as I return to the world of the Web Log I feel compelled to set the record straight. And for all those wellness workers, coaches, therapists, bodyworkers out there who still feel like impostors (and face it, we all do sometimes) - look at yourself and say, "THIS is what a healer looks like."
2014 has been a strange year. I've learned a lot about running a business and what it truly means to be a healer. I've learned that some of the oldest advice I ever received - "just be yourself" - is also some of the most important advice one could ever heed. I've accepted that I am not your conventional acupuncturist, if there is such a thing; I'm definitely not your conventional medical worker. I love science and studies and "proof," but the more I trust my intuition, the better results I seem to get. I'm starting to get comfortable with my witch-y side, truly letting myself believe that these needles, these herbs, the vibration of a tuning fork, the touch of a hand, can transform a person's experience at the deepest level. I have witnessed small miracles: a sore shoulder moving without pain, an insomniac sleeping through the night, anxiety transformed to joy... and these things keep me energized for the hard work ahead.
I own a home now. I'm married and I have a garden. I am a business owner. But there are days where I'm still compelled to be completely irresponsible, or months where I don't have enough money to buy something that I am totally convinced I need (until I realize I can't afford it, and the need sort of dissipates). I have decided that these experiences are OK - they are part of my journey. Healers aren't perfect. My image of a healer has changed so much in the last year. Back when I was in school, I used to imagine myself walking the halls of some hospital, wearing a lab coat over my business-casual attire, feeling important and respectable as I worked to single-handedly elevate the practice of acupuncture into acceptance by the medical establishment. Then I began to idealize the wise women of yesterday, pulling herbs from the soil with strong hands, lending a gentle touch to soothe a headache, always ready with the right remedy. Now I know I lie somewhere between. I am a healer right where I am. In the morning, putting on makeup in my bathroom mirror, I say to myself: this is what a healer looks like.
Healers can have weird haircuts if they darn well please.
I am a healer when I'm singing on stage, drinking at a bar, or riding bikes with my friends. I am still a healer when I'm sick myself, nursing the cold that's been going around, trying to heed the same advice I'd give my patients. It's not something that goes away when I leave the clinic. It's a part of me, and I don't have to embody any kind of stereotype to better serve my patients or attract my ideal client.
So that's it - that's my declaration. I always feel vaguely guilty when I write an entire blog post about myself. But as I return to the world of the Web Log I feel compelled to set the record straight. And for all those wellness workers, coaches, therapists, bodyworkers out there who still feel like impostors (and face it, we all do sometimes) - look at yourself and say, "THIS is what a healer looks like."
