Great River Symposium: Ask the Acupuncture Expert
Ask the Acupuncture Expert at our virtual 2023 Great River Symposium and Spring Gathering March 30-April 1. The event brings together leaders and learners in the field of acupuncture and Chinese medicine. Our speaker group includes an impressive list of scholars, authors, practitioners, and experts.
Group Question: How and when did you know you wanted a career in acupuncture and Chinese medicine?
Answer: Ask the acupuncture expert
Sabine Wilms, PhD
When I first started teaching Chinese culture and medical history at a small acupuncture school in Tucson, Arizona, after several years of teaching at a big state university and college. In contrast to the academic context, it was so inspiring and fun to have students and colleagues who cared about the subject and my knowledge in a much more embodied and living way, being able to apply what they learned from me to alleviate the suffering of their patients in clinic. There was no turning back after that. but really, my love of medicine started when I was still a teenager and worked as an assistant in my dad’s hospital in Germany, or even before that when my grandmother told me stories about studying pediatrics in Vienna before the second world war.
Great River Symposium Topic: Keynote Address: “Medicine & Virtue” (Ethics Hours)
Jenny Neiters, LAc, DACM
I had been running my family’s acupuncture practice since 1999, in 2011, my husband was giving a talk at an open house at an acupuncture college to potential students, explaining why he had the best job in the world. I heard him and realized I was doing all the work and he was having all of the fun. We hired an office manager and two weeks later I was in acupuncture school!
Great River Symposium Topic: “Simple Acupuncture Treatment for Ankle Pain and Instability”
John Pirog, MSOM, DiplAc, DiplCH
When I was a senior in high school — that would be 1970 — I was completing an art assignment in the Field Museum in Chicago, and I came across a display of bronze acupuncture needles. That sold me.
Great River Symposium Topic: “Aristolochic Acid and Herb Safety: Lessons We Are Still Learning”
Randal Lyons, DOM, LAc
Even though I was studying with a Chinese man & learning about Qi for 5 years, I had not considered making it a career until I got clean & sober (finally). I was a rock n’ roll musician living in Los Angeles and was applying this medicine to help me recover from using – so then I could start the cycle all over again.
When I quit drugs & alcohol, I also had to remove myself from “all slippery people, places & situations” as they say in the recovery field. This meant I had to stop playing music – because everything in my life was slippery – except for this relationship with Chinese Medicine. It was the only other field I could envision myself enjoying, so I jumped right in. And now, looking back, it all makes sense. As I specialize in treating trauma and addiction.
Great River Symposium Topic: “Opening the Eyes of the Heart: Chinese Medicine for Mental Health”
Brett Martin, DC, MPA, MSAc
I was a 4th-semester student in the chiropractic program and I was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in acupuncture. I met with the dean of the program and we had a discussion about my career path and my treatment approach once I entered practice. As a 4th semester student, it was something that I had not really thought about. I told him that I wanted to treat everything. He said, “With acupuncture, you can treat any condition.” He then asked, “Do you want to be a great chiropractor or do you want to be a great doctor?” I signed up for the master’s program the next day.
Great River Symposium Topic: “Acupuncture for the Treatment of Hyperhidrosis”
Engage with these speakers (and several others) and hundreds of other acupuncture and Chinese medicine professionals at the virtual 2023 Great River Symposium and Spring Gathering.
Ask the Acupuncture Expert at our virtual 2023 Great River Symposium and Spring Gathering is March 30-April 1, 2023.
