Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Sansone.
Hi Heather, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I was raised with holistic medicine with my father being a chiropractor. He was inspired to become a chiropractor after my traumatic birth. Thanks to my parents, I grew up healthy with none of the surgeries that allopathic medicine had recommended. I was drawn to follow the same path early on and became a massage therapist shortly after high school and was the principle therapist in a sports medicine rehabilitation center for several years. I found working with people who were injured very rewarding and for those that were not seeing improvement, I referred them to my acupuncturist. When these people came back reporting complete resolution of their chronic symptoms, my interest in acupuncture only grew deeper.
I began my studies in acupuncture in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1997 and graduated in 2000. I was fortunate to study under a living master, Dr. Chang Yi Hsiang, a 64th generation Taoist master. I opened my clinic, Shendao Acupuncture in January 2002 in Manoa Valley, Hawaii on the island of Oahu. I had a practice in Honolulu, Hawaii for 20 years that was referral only. I never advertised and had no website. My practice grew rapidly and I periodically had to stop accepting new patients, in order to be available for my existing patients.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
In my fourth year of private practice, I was experiencing anxiety with a tension in my upper abdomen and for the first time my regular acupuncture treatments could not help me. To be honest I was responding negatively to them. This is when I found the Kiiko Matusumoto Style of acupuncture (KMS) which I still continue to study and practice to this day. It offered a different way to assess and treat the body. I received this style of acupuncture with great results and then of course had to study it myself. I traveled all over North America to study under Kiiko and I was invited to attend the first Japan study program in 2011.
Leaving Hawaii and starting a new practice has been a challenge for sure, but I think of it more as an adventure! I have been in Magnolia, Texas ( very close to The Woodlands) since May 2023. I am happy to be here in Texas, close to my family that also moved here from Hawaii.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I see only one patient at at time, and the sessions are usually around 90 min. The initial appointment is longer for the consultation . I spend as much time as needed to assess the person every time they come in for a treatment and do not rush the process. I use palpation ( acupressure to specific diagnostic areas ) to assess where there is imbalances . I will always address the autonomic nervous system (ANS) with everyone, every time. This is our nervous system and it often gets imbalanced with physical, chemical, emotional stress.
Acupuncture is working with our biological electricity (Qi), our life force energy, which is always working towards homeostasis.
There is still a lot of misconceptions and misunderstandings with acupuncture. You don’t have to have anything wrong with you to get a treatment. General wellness visits are highly encouraged as we often adapt to rather high levels of stress and feel that they are normal until we reach a threshold and then our body screams with symptoms. With that said, I can address anything related to stress!
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I am working side by side with my father at Sansone Institute where we often co-treat our patients.
We have combined the wisdom of eastern philosophy with the recent breakthroughs in quantum physics to bring a unique, research tested path to wellness.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shendaoacupuncture.com
- Other: https://www.sansoneinstitute.com
