Tao to Health

Born in Seoul, Korea, and raised in Southern California, my journey has been about integrating the best of traditional East Asian knowledge with modern western science. Part of that journey involved witnessing my father recover from hemiplegia after a stroke shortly after we immigrated to the U.S. Conventional medicine alone could do little to help my father’s recovery. However, he was fortunate to have a dedicated and skilled acupuncturist who helped my father gain full mobility within a few years.

As a licensed acupuncturist, I’m trained in traditional East Asian medicine and have both a master’s and post-graduate doctorate degree in Acupuncture and Oriental medicine which included over 500 hours of training in biomedicine and research. I also have a master’s degree in public health which has made me acutely aware of deficiencies in our healthcare system. The U.S. spends the most in healthcare than any developed country but has some of the worst health outcomes such as the lowest life expectancy and the highest infant mortality rate. 

I use a personalized or individualized approach by reviewing your medical history and examining other factors that may be contributing to imbalances from an East Asian medical perspective. Conventional biomedicine tends to use methods based on a standardized one-size-fits-all approach. For instance, if specific lab test ranges are suboptimal, you are more or less prescribed the same medications another patient with the same suboptimal lab ranges would be given. The fact is stress is a part of life. Stress affects each person differently and can put your body out of balance which leads to illness. Traditional East Asian Medicine seeks to bring your body back to balance or homeostasis. Traditional East Asian Medicine uses diagnostic methods such as tongue, pulse and channel diagnosis to identify your unique pattern of imbalance. Based on your unique pattern, I would provide a tailored approach to assist your body to heal and regain balance (in addition to conventional biomedicine).