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SHARE MY STORY
Ozge Stephen Acupuncture’s Story
I finally had the chance to sit down and do our Share My Story with our wonderful friend Ozge Stephen from Ozge Stephen Acupuncture.
Before Ozge became a Registered Acupuncturist, she studied sociology and gender studies. While working in a restaurant she fell down two flights of stairs. Unable to walk, she ended up going around in circles from chiropractors to massage therapists until she visited an acupuncturist.
Acupuncture not only helped ease the muscle spasms and tightness, but it also helped with her insomnia and anxiety and left her feeling absolutely amazing!
“Acupuncture had such a profound impact on my well being that I had to know more, so I started my training at Pacific Rim College in 2014. The three years I spent studying acupuncture not only gave me the knowledge I needed to start my career path, but also a community of incredible humans, who became my peers and dearest friends.”
Ozge offers a variety of treatments to help her clients, but her deep passion is treating mental health issues. She frequently treats anxiety, stress, depression and post traumatic stress disorder in her practice. She said: “One of the big things acupuncture does is to help your body move from a flight or fight mode into a rest and digest mode. It reminds your body how it feels physically when it’s safe. Once your body is reminded of that state of safety, it wants to go back and stay there.”
Have you ever gone to a doctor wanting to figure our why you are constantly in pain and they tell you they only have time to look at one issue or talk about one symptom at the time? I know I have, that is why I think it is also incredibly important to mention that acupuncturists use a holistic approach, which means that they don’t just look at the symptoms, but they look at you as a whole. How do these physical symptoms relate to your experiences, your emotions, your family history, to your environment and even to the seasons?
“I think the big thing with acupuncture is that people don’t know what it can treat.”
During pregnancy for instance, acupuncture can help with sciatica pain, it can help turn breach babies and induce labor (where indicated). Knowing she was able to help pregnant women in a less invasive and risk-free way, as well as having had first hand experience with acupuncture and birth, she decided to become a doula.
What is a Doula? A doula is someone who supports women by providing continuous care before, during, or after childbirth in the form of information, physical support, and emotional support. Combining doula work and acupuncture, Ozge can do much more than offer information and support. Using acupuncture treatments during pregnancy, she can help reduce nausea, lower back and pelvic pain, as well as help with emotional imbalances, headaches and sleeping problems. And again, using the holistic approach she doesn’t look at pregnancy as a symptom, but she looks at you as a whole person and seeing how pregnancy fits in with that.
Her focus is on the mental and emotional transitional aspects of pregnancies and birth. “Birth is a huge change for your body, mind, and who you are in society. I want to find a way to help families through this transition as best as I can.”
Knowing Ozge for just shy of 9 years as a friend as well as having consulted her as a practitioner, I can tell you that she is always the first person I turn to when something ails me or my family. She is one of the most genuine and kind hearted people I know, and I can not recommend her highly enough.
