First, she experienced a growing discomfort with the Western medical model, especially under the influence of managed care (insurance companies). As a therapist, she was required to see more and more patients a day because insurance reimbursement fell every year while the costs of running a clinic increased. Over the years, she saw the focus of Western

Around the same time, Julie started to have problems with her hands. Performing manual therapy day in and day out led to nighttime numbness and pain in her hands. One of the doctors Julie worked for diagnosed her with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) even though Julie knew it was not what was wrong (actually, true CTS is rare except in the elderly and, temporarily, in pregnant women). She was sent for the standard medical tests—a nerve conduction velocity (NCV) and electromyelogram (EMG). The tests came back negative. Her doctor told her that he could do cortisone shots in her wrists, and if that didn’t work, he could do surgery. Julie did not see the rationale behind treating her wrists/carpal tunnels when the tests had shown the problem was not coming from that area. Her nurse case manager asked Julie if she had ever tried acupuncture (no) and if she was opposed to it (no, she would try anything to get rid of the pain and be able to sleep). So, Julie was sent to see an acupuncturist. Within three sessions, her numbness and pain were significantly decreased, and symptoms she had suffered from for years, e.g. extremely dry skin on her hands, were almost gone. One day, Julie and her acupuncturist were talking about how they each treated tennis elbow. Her acupuncturist said, “You and I do very similar things, but I let the needles do the work for me.” In that moment, Julie knew she needed to leave her job and study acupuncture.

Julie had been impressed with the effectiveness of acupuncture, the diversity of conditions it treated and how gentle it was (especially after years of helping people recover from surgery). However, when she started school, she did not realize that acupuncture was only one part of Oriental medicine. She had no idea of the power of Chinese herbs, diet therapy, and Qi Gong. Julie graduated from the acclaimed Academy of Oriental Medicine at Austin (AOMA). Through this rigorous program, she received over 2300 hours in classroom training and over 1000 hours of supervised clinical experience (the state of Texas requires a total of 1800 hours of training). At AOMA, Julie excelled in all areas of training and found a love and deep respect for Oriental medicine.

Now, as a practitioner of Oriental medicine, Julie has the freedom to define her own practice as one that is focused on the specific, individual needs of each patient, something she was not allowed to do working in the Western medical model. She is able to practice a truly holistic medicine, viewing her patients not as a body to be “fixed,” but as a dynamic, organic being who is influenced by genetics, environment, beliefs, emotions, and lifestyle.

Julie continues her education in both Oriental medicine and Western medicine. She maintains her Occupational Therapy certification through meeting national requirements of continuing education. It is her belief that an understanding of both offers her patients the best path to true healing and wellness.

Julie has had great success treating gynecological/women's issues, stress, anxiety and other emotional issues, and digestive disorders. On a deeper level, she excels at helping people get "unstuck" in their lives.

Bachelor of Science in Biology (Psychology minor), Millikin University, Decatur, IL, 1993; graduated summa cum laude

Master of Science in Occupational Therapy; Tufts University; Boston, MA, 1995

Master of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine; Academy of Oriental Medicine at Austin; Austin, TX, 2008