Susan Wellman, OMD

About Susan

I became interested in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in 1972, when President Nixon first traveled to China.

James Reston (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Reston), traveling with the presidential party, became ill and required an emergency appendectomy (https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/14/opinion/l-reston-helped-open-a-door-to-acupuncture-011282.html). He was rushed to the hospital, where his appendix was successfully removed with only ear acupuncture for anesthesia! He was wide awake during the procedure but experienced no pain. I found that amazing and searched for more information on acupuncture and Chinese medicine. But at that time, there was no information available in English.

It wasn’t until 1989 that the first book in English about Traditional Chinese Medicine, “The Web that has no Weaver” by Ted Kaptchuk was published (http://tedkaptchuk.com/). I wanted to study more, but at that time, there was little information in English.

In 1997, my goal of studying TCM finally became a reality. I discovered one of the top U.S. schools of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Northwest Institute of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in the city of Seattle.

I graduated in March 2002.

While in school, I was privileged to study under highly respected and experienced Doctors of Traditional Chinese Medicine. I interned for three years and upon graduation passed the National Board exams, credentialing as a Doctor of Oriental Medicine (DOM).

In 2002, I opened a Traditional Chinese Medicine practice (Chinese herbs, acupuncture, Chinese nutrition and massage-therapy). I discovered that many people in the U.S. first try Chinese medicine when they have failed to find answers to their health problems and had only experienced frustration with their lack of progress.

My patients come from all walks of life, all backgrounds, ages, shapes and sizes. And they come to me with varying degrees of severity in their diseases ailments. I am able to help them with TCM.

My teachers had instilled in me that when the time came, it would be my responsibility to train the next generation of Traditional Chinese Medicine providers. This is what they had done, this was how it was done in China, this is how it has been done for thousands of years.

So, in 2011, I began my teaching career at Middleway Acupuncture Institute (https://mwai.edu/).

Since then, I have worked at four Traditional Chinese Medicine schools, in four different cities across the United States.

I’ve trained hundreds of graduate students and proudly watched many complete their studies and begin their professional journeys, just as I was taught.