Journey to Life: Dr. Sharleen’s Story
When I was 18 years old, I was completing my first semester of college at the University of Nevada (Go Pack Go!), when I found that I was barely sleeping at night. During finals week, I just happened to have my annual gyno appointment scheduled, so I told her that I wasn’t sleeping well, she noticed that the scale was creeping up, and I cried in her office after learning that day of the death of a childhood friend. My doctor, pulled a pamphlet for Paxil off the counter and literally read from the pamphlet five questions:
Was I uncontrollably emotional? Ummm…I was crying wasn’t I?
Was I gaining weight? Thanks so much, freshman-15!
Did I have insomnia? Check!
Was I unmotivated? I was 18…of course, I was unmotivated!
Did I have low energy? Again…I wasn’t sleeping well.
She then wrote me a prescription for Paxil and a follow-up with the NP in two weeks.
SMH: I took that shit for four days…I knew it wasn’t the solution to help me sleep while I was overly stressed and ready for a break from school and the other difficulties with teenage life. I’m happy to report that the NP told me I wasn’t depressed, that I could stop the Paxil (which I already did on my own), and he told me about valerian root to help with my occasional insomnia. He also taught me one of my favorite phrases to this day: The solution to pollution is dilution. Drink your water, people!
A few years later when I was in my final year of college, I was pursuing my Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and I was severely unfulfilled in that industry. I wanted to help people, and I’ve always loved the human body, so I decided that I’d rather help people with their health. I thought there were two ways to do that: become an MD, or a massage therapist. Since I faint at the sight of blood, the MD route was not an option, so I told my sister that I wanted to drop out of college and go to massage school. Fortunately, she talked me into finishing my business degree, and she introduced me to an acupuncturist who was about to teach a new cohort of the Japanese-style massage he practiced. I had never heard of acupuncture or traditional Chinese medicine and as soon as I learned about the basic theory behind the ancient medicine…I fell in love!
Fast forward about five years, and all of the stars finally aligned so that I could attend graduate school to get my Master’s and become a Licensed Acupuncturist. Moving to California and getting licensed was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, and it’s been one of the best and most rewarding decisions of my life.
I practiced for a few years when I came across the power of hypnosis. I also decided that I wanted to try to combine the power of hypnosis and acupuncture…so now, I give you: HypnoPuncture! These two modalities are so complimentary and my patients find quicker, deeper healing.
At the time of this blog post, I’m in the process of creating two online courses to support my patients with autoimmune conditions, particularly Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This all comes from my own autoimmune healing, and seeing a need among my patients who have recently been diagnosed with autoimmune or Hashimoto’s.
If I can leave you with only one thing: There is hope, you can feel better, and even live the life you’ve always dreamed of, desire, and deserve! Let me be on your wellness team, and guide you through your own healing journey.
If you want to learn more about mine, check out my SUE Talk in the link below.