Founder, Owner of Blue Heron Acupuncture, Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine (DACM), Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac.), Diplomate of Oriental Medicine (Dipl. O.M.) - Nationally board certified in acupuncture and herbal medicine, Master’s of Science (M.S.), Currently becoming certified in Neurostructural Integration Technique (NST)
Dr. Lisa Abernathy founded Blue Heron Acupuncture with the hopes of creating a beautiful, inspiring space where patients can feel welcome, at ease and able to invite transformational healing into their lives. Through collaborations with fellow holistic and allopathic practitioners and intensive continued education, Lisa is honored to create a unique service for Charleston - a respite that invites self-care and mindfulness, effective referrals, a full Chinese herbal pharmacy, and care of the highest caliber.
Dr. Lisa’s focus is on raising self-awareness, empowering patients and encouraging healing on both a physical and emotional level. She enriches her understanding of and passion for Chinese Medicine with ongoing continuing education courses, studying with Jeffrey Yuen and other leaders in the field. Lisa’s postgraduate studies, research and work with patients have focused on trauma resilience, fertility, autoimmune conditions, pain, endocrine disorders, headaches, women’s health, pediatrics, and emotional wellbeing.
Before pursuing her career in Chinese Medicine, Lisa studied Psychology and Literature at Appalachian State University. After college, she worked with seniors with Alzheimer’s, a homeless shelter and a theatre company. When she eventually tried acupuncture and experienced the sense of wellbeing it induces, she realized she had found her calling, an opportunity to merge her interests in psychology, art and poetry in a way that invites deep healing for people.
Lisa obtained her Master’s and Doctoral Degrees in Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine from Daoist Traditions College of Chinese Medical Arts, comprised of five years of full time study in Classical Chinese Medicine including Chinese herbal medicine. Her training included an 800-hour clinical internship, during which she treated hundreds of patients under the clinical guidance of Asheville’s top Chinese medicine clinicians. Lisa was incredibly fortunate to study with Dr. Jeffrey Yuen, global leader in reintroducing Classical Chinese Medicine, throughout her years at and post-Daoist Traditions - his teachings have shaped her understanding of the medicine and her approach to working with patients.
Having been raised in an Air Force family, Lisa spent much of her childhood, adolescent and young adult years living in Charleston, interspersed with jaunts in North Carolina, Ohio, Alabama, Saudi Arabia and California. Lisa loves visiting historic sites and getting outdoors with her family. She is pleased to share her passion for health and Chinese Medicine with the wonderful people of the Lowcountry.
Victoria (Tori) Ansell, MAc., Dipl. Ac., LAc., graduated from the College of Charleston with a BA in Psychology in 2019. In 2020, she studied Mental Health Counseling at Sofia University. Halfway into the program, she realized that our healthcare system, including mental healthcare, was very compartmentalized and failed to consider the whole person, diet and lifestyle, subjective and objective. That fall, Tori committed to the lifelong study and love of Traditional Chinese Medicine and hasn’t looked back.
Tori graduated with honors from Colorado Chinese Medicine University with a Masters in Acupuncture (MAc.) in 2024. In her clinical training, she had the opportunity to help hundreds of patients and gained experience in treating insomnia, anxiety, headaches, neuropathy, tremor, musculoskeletal conditions, chronic fatigue, and digestive disorders.
“What I love about Chinese medicine is that it is a partnership and an opportunity for patients to become more connected with their body and to realize their potential for wellbeing.”
Tori resonates most with patients:
*Traditional medical care is not helping, you have investigated health treatments and would like to try something new, or you prefer holistic healthcare in general.
*You are in pain and want to get back to feeling like yourself and having a happy, productive life.
*You are at a crossroads in your life and feel like you need support with stress or life changes.
*You are seeking mental health support when therapy is not helping or if they feel they’ve hit a plateau in their personal healing journey
