Located along De Anza Blvd. in San Mateo, a bright teal sign glows with the letters “Wellness & Psychological Services.” However, it is not a typical Western medical clinic. Opened in 2004, Lotus Healing Acupuncture has been providing traditional Chinese medicine services to Bay Area residents.
TCM dates back more than 2,200 years to ancient China and encompasses various medical forms that aim to restore a person’s qi, a vital energy that makes up the physical body and feelings, and yin-yang, the opposite forces that form a whole. In TCM, it is believed that if a person’s qi is blocked, it can affect their mental and physical health. The most known forms of TCM are acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. Acupuncture involves placing thin sterilized needles into meridian points of the body in order to improve the flow of qi.
The owner of Lotus Healing Acupuncture, Vivian Chou, grew up in Taiwan with a family of TCM practitioners but never planned on pursuing a career in TCM. “My grandfather was a herbalist and my father was a Chinese doctor who practiced Chinese medicine and acupuncture. When I was younger, he was always preparing me to go on this route, but I wasn’t really interested,” she said.
“That was until he passed away in 1996. It was a traumatic event for the whole family and after that, I decided to pursue traditional Chinese medicine,” Chou said.
Deciding her own career path and passions was a very important value to Chou. “I decided to pursue TCM by myself. In the Asian community, a lot of times parents wanted to tell kids to go on certain career journeys. I hated that. Back then my father wanted me to pursue TCM but it was later that I decided for myself that this is something I wanted to do,” she said
In 1992, Chou immigrated from Taiwan to America to pursue her education in TCM. “When I first came to America, I couldn’t speak much English. I only knew four phrases, ‘Hi’, ‘How are you’, ‘Thank you’, and ‘Bye’. I spent so many years struggling and being bullied because of my language skills. But through pushing myself, studying very hard, and going to school I was able to improve my language skills,” she said.
In 1999, Chou received a master of science in TCM from the Academy of Chinese Culture & Health Sciences. That same year, she received her acupuncturist license and became a national certified diplomate in acupuncture and herbology.
In the early 2000s, TCM was still a foreign medical practice in America. Chou decided to pursue a PhD to strengthen her knowledge. “When TCM was introduced here, we were going against Western medicine. In a way, Western MDs rule the world. In our license, we are titled acupuncturists, and to the Western world, that sounded like a technician. But in truth, we are more than that,” she said.
In 2003, Chou received a PhD in Oriental Medicine Research Advancement from Global University. “At that time, the acupuncture community as a whole was trying to elevate the status of medicine,” she said.
After graduating, Chou worked as an interpreter for an acupuncture school in Oakland, Calif. In 2002, she worked for a medical group specialized in providing medical care for workers who were injured from their jobs. “Eventually I felt like it was time and I was ready to have my own practice where I could decide what I want to do instead of being told what can be done,” she said.
In 2004, she opened Lotus Healing Acupuncture. When Chou initially began brainstorming names for the store, she found inspiration in Buddhism. “Buddhism is a philosophy that I feel like I can relay. I believe I’m only the vessel as I’m working with someone. Through me I pray that there is a higher power coming through me to enhance and achieve a better result. I wanted to call in and invite a higher power which is the lotus, a symbol in Buddhism, which represents purity and compassion. I want to cultivate compassion through helping people,” she said.
When she opened her business, many people were skeptical about trying acupuncture. “When people first hear about acupuncture and learn that it involves needles, they become a bit skittish,” Chou said.
Chou now has an established customer base. Her mission statement is to “promote holistic health.” “Everything about identity is identity. You cannot say emotional identity doesn’t belong and has no relation to the physical identity. Is this person happy? Is this person having back pain? It’s actually only the manifestation from something else like emotional disturbance. That can manifest,” Chou said.
New patients are given a 90-minute consultation where Chou understands the patients’ needs and works to create a plan curated to their concerns. “By observing how a person walks, presents themselves, looks, and shares with me, I can translate it into valuable information because that’s the beauty of Chinese medicine. For example, how a person sleeps at night, their palpation, checking acupuncture points, and looking at the tongue. Through all of this I can decipher the information and explain to the patient what we’re planning on doing today,” Chou said.
Chou’s advice to new immigrants is to find strength in their unique knowledge of various backgrounds. “I used to feel like I’m not enough compared to someone who can communicate without problems, but I realized that was self-judgment. Just because we have a language barrier doesn’t mean that we are any less than someone who was born here. Through our dual language skills we can reach more people and be able to offer more. We are all trying to be the best person we can. Don’t be afraid, you have to try. Otherwise, you will regret it,” Chou said.
Find more information on Lotus Healing Acupuncture here. The clinic is located at 226 De Anza Blvd. Floor 2 in San Mateo.
