Meet Jasmine Moran of Jasmine Acupuncture in Somerville

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasmine Moran.

Jasmine, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Acupuncture became a regular part of my life when I was in my twenties, a time when I was studying kung fu several days a week. My teacher was an acupuncturist, and he would often give his students treatments — first he would break us, then he would fix us. In a way, Chinese medicine and martial arts were inseparable for me, and as I learned more, I saw how fluid the lines were between the physical aspects and the more subtle energies of the body. Breathing and visualization were necessary to punch correctly; an acupuncture needle could equally well release a tight muscle or a troubled mind. Acupuncture transformed my thinking around health and medicine, especially during my own treatments for injuries and asthma, as well as difficulties during my first pregnancy.

I opened my own kung fu school in Brooklyn, NY, while also doing graphic design for a weekly newspaper, teaching martial arts in elementary schools and performing regularly in two different bands. It was a hectic lifestyle but rich and never boring; I was doing what I loved and connecting with a wide range of people. In 2007, I had my first child, and we soon moved our little family from Brooklyn to Cambridge where my husband would begin graduate school. It was a time of transition, and I was yearning to direct my energies toward something meaningful. I decided I would become an acupuncturist and embark on a career in healthcare. It was daunting at first, but I had a strong feeling that this path would tie together so many things that were important to me: connecting with and helping people, problem solving, working independently, and deepening my understanding of how the body works and repairs itself. Acupuncture also relates to my love of the natural world and the connection between our physiological processes, the seasons and cycles of life. Truthfully, I can’t imagine I could have found a more fulfilling career. Every patient is a wonderful mystery — working with people on their health challenges requires some good listening and a lot of a detective work. Nothing is more satisfying than seeing them get better.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I decided to go to acupuncture school at a time when our family was growing. I became pregnant with my second child during my first semester, and so a three-and-a-half year Master’s degree program became a five-and-a-half year adventure. I stayed at home part time with an infant and a preschooler. I was up for hours the night before my first day of clinic, desperately trying to placate a screaming toddler with lollipops and dinosaur videos.  Now I am a business owner, and the challenges of running a small enterprise while raising a family and taking care of a household remain.  Although it can be frustrating at times, something in me enjoys the unpredictability of it all, having to think on your feet and be okay with uncertainty.  As I learned from two of my loves, sparring and music performance:  it’s good to have a plan but be ready to improvise.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
Acupuncture is remarkably multi-faceted. It is often described as holistic — acupuncturists don’t just look at individual symptoms; instead, we look at patterns. What this means for each of my patients is that the diagnosis and treatment will be tailored to how his or her individual body works. Two different patients who need treatment for migraines may be given different sets of acupuncture points if one has a history of severe menstrual cramps and the other has insomnia. What may seem like two separate issues to a western doctor, for example, constipation and depression, can be seen as having the same source to an acupuncturist. This is why patients can feel such a broad range of benefits. Many of my patients come initially for pain, but find that they are also sleeping better and have better digestion and more energy as a result of the treatments.

There are many styles of acupuncture, but I tend to gravitate towards the more gentle Japanese styles. Japanese acupuncture relies on palpating the abdomen and channels to help with diagnosis, and generally uses finer needles and an array of gentle tools in treatment. For this reason, and because I have so much experience working with children, the way I practice is suitable for many types of patients, including the very sensitive and very young — the youngest patient I have treated was a just few days old.

What were you like growing up?
As a child I was artistic and a little dreamy, musical and playful. I was also very shy and somewhat of an outsider.  We moved a lot during my childhood. I am one of five children, and we were born on three different continents. I was born in Ireland and lived in ten different places in Ireland and the United States before I was nine years old. I am of mixed heritage, Irish and Malaysian-Chinese. Being part of two distinct groups with little in common ensured that I would always be an outsider to either. Despite the challenges of this kind of upbringing, I also had the opportunity to experience different cultures firsthand. Playground dynamics at a small Catholic school in Ireland can be quite different from those at a public school in the Bronx. This life as a chameleon taught me to adapt, to be flexible, and to speak the lingua franca. I’ve learned to find joy when traveling through all types of situations, and aim to be true to my authentic self in each one.

Pricing:

• 90-minute Initial treatment: $100
• 60-minute Follow-up treatment: $85
• Package of 3 follow-ups: $225
• 30-minute Pediatric treatment: $40
• Package of 3 Pediatric treatments: $110

Contact Info:

• Address: Jasmine Acupuncture
  at Great Way Wellness Center
  278 Elm Street, Suite 227
  Somerville MA 02144
• Website: www.jasmine-acupuncture.com
• Phone: 617-575-9335
• Email: info@jasmine-acupuncture.com
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/jasmineacupuncture/

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