Happiness

I am one of the growing number of Twin Cities (MN) practitioners with a small clinic. We're open 3 days per week. My full-time job is being mom to my 17-month old son Elijah.

Elijah was born 3 weeks after I graduated with my OM Masters degree. I didn't have a chance to join the professional side of the acupuncture world until 11 months later. That was ok with me. I was and am SO happy to be a mom, and to be my son's primary caregiver. For me, that is happiness. I felt annoyed when my mind gradually jumped a bit into the "I've got this skill that's really useful and was expensive to obtain...maybe I should start using it" mode.
As I thought about it more, I was discouraged. I'd need to have a pretty office and market and do a lot of things that meant time away from baby. And even then, I felt like I would have to convince people to try it and negotiate with them to stay due to the prices typically charged for treatment. I couldn't even afford my services on a regular basis! But eventually I'd have to start repaying those loans...

I realized, as my postpartum haze lifted more and more, that helping the few with this wonderfully effective medicine would not be worth starting up. I didn't spend 3+ years to get a Masters degree in Boutiquery (yup. Just made up a new word. This comes easily when spending day and night with a toddler). Happiness, in the Chinese Medicine arena, means helping as many people as possible. That's when I heard about Community Acupuncture.

Isn't it amazing that when we become clear about something help in achieving that something seems to arrive? The trick is knowing that, trusting it and realizing that the help may not be in the form one expects. CA was a very pleasant surprise. It makes me proud and passionate about my profession-- and gives me hope for the future. I might not be practicing at all right now if I hadn't found CA and it hadn't made me happy.

So my posts are going to be about happiness -- because that is what it is all about. when you feel that warmth of joy in your gut, you know you're on the right track. Happiness is our birthright. I see it with my patients, my family, myself. If we can keep the obstacles to happiness away as much as is in our control, then we choose to be happy. When things are out of our control we can choose to be happy. Sometimes it is easier than others.

My practice plan is to eventually expand to a big-big clinic...but right now I'm content to write about happiness during naptime and see some patients later in the day when daddy gets home...