Portland Location Closing - my Covid-19 casualty

To all of you, my dearest patients, I have a sad message today. After 14 years in business I am closing my Portland location and refocusing my practice closer to home in La Center, Washington only.

I have not made this decision lightly, but for my business to survive this pandemic there is a cost and at this time, that cost is the extra expense of my Portland practice at Southpark Square. The challenge of continuing to practice in this new era of Coronavirus with the extra steps and precautions required, plus the added need to manage childcare in a different way, has led me to realize that the best path forward for my practice and my family is to stay small and stay local to home.

Some of you in Portland have been with me since the very beginning and some of you are new to my practice. To all of you I give my deepest and sincerest thanks for trusting me with your care. It has been such an incredible honor to be of service, and to have been part of your lives for however long.

I am still practicing in La Center if any of you want to brave the drive! I will also continue to offer Telehealth options to anyone who is interested in acupressure, dietary and lifestyle advice, herbal prescriptions or therapeutic exercises - all available for booking online anytime.

For those of you for whom this is not an option, I want to refer you to my dear dear friend Lara Dilkes, LAc at PDX-Acupuncture (https://pdx-acupuncture.com). Lara and I went to school together and she is MY Acupuncturist. She is lovely and amazing and I trust her implicitly. Her practice is close to mine in downtown Portland on 3rd and she is a joyful spirit and a gifted provider. If you see her please tell her that I referred you, I promise you will get the best of care!

This whole experience of the coronavirus pandemic is so unexpected and for me, ever evolving. In many regards life feels forever changed for me, but as I mourn the loss of some experiences and freedoms, I celebrate others - the renewed sense of commitment to my own health and wellbeing instead of tumbling along in my typical (inherited?) workaholic fashion, the added time with my children, the appreciation of so many little things I took for granted. 

While reality itself may be objective, our experience of it is subjective and in the end, our “truth” becomes whatever story we tells ourselves about our experience. So I ask you - what is your truth in this moment? What will you remember and tell yourself about this time and will that story help you be well and grow to be the best self you can be?

Ultimately this is the reason I have decided to close my Portland practice - my highest calling and highest self involves a hybrid of caring for my family, managing a sustainable business and caring for myself so that I can continue to care for my family and my patients. Staying in La Center will allow me to do that, and I hope you can understand.

I’m reminded of a quote from one of my favorite books as I start to see Portland in my rear view mirror. It goes:

“Everything that happens in your life—every single thing—leaves a scar. A permanent scar. You’re not supposed to get over it. To get over something—to erase the mark it left on you—erases part of who you are.” 
― Matthew Woodring Stover, Blade of Tyshalle

I don’t think of Portland as a scar per se, but as an indelible mark on my life that I would never forget, regret or give up. Each of you have left your own mark on my life in the best possible way, and for each line and remembrance I say thank you.

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