Brittany Longworth is an Eastern Shore “transplant” from Knowlton, New Jersey. She and her husband, Nick, graduated from Washington College in 2012 and never left! Their enchantment with the beauty and culture of the Eastern Shore inspired them to explore employment opportunities that would allow them to establish their roots in “the land of pleasant living”.

Brittany started studying acupuncture at the Maryland University of Integrative Health (formerly known as Tai Sophia) in Laurel, MD in August, 2012. She immediately fell in love with the subtle, yet precise nature of Five Element Acupuncture.

I will never forget my first day of school with my teachers Bob Duggan and Dianne Connely (the founders of Tai Sophia); I thought I was all prepared with my laptop, notebook, pens, and highlighters, boy was I in for a surprise! Dianne began our orientation ceremony by singing a song to celebrate the birth of a faculty member’s new baby. I was confused as I had never experienced a ritual like this before, much less in an institution of higher education. I also noticed that I had resistance to it and was upset that I was not frantically taking notes on my laptop as I had expected to do. Over the next two weeks my classmates and I spent 8 hours each day in awe, confusion, frustration, tears, and laughter as Bob and Dianne deconstructed our habitual ways of being in the world and taught us simple life and communication skills that I wish I had learned in Kindergarten! As I started to apply these new skills to my life, I noticed that I had more ease in my body, joy in my heart, and energy to do the activities that warm my soul. The single most important thing that I learned while in acupuncture school is that it takes a village. To borrow words from Bob Duggan “we have more people on this planet than ever recorded in human history and yet many of us are living in isolation”. Completing the acupuncture program while living two hours away from school was the most challenging thing I have ever accomplished and I never would have been able to do it without the help of my village. My village members: cheered me on when I felt like I couldn’t keep going, provided me with places to stay near school, helped me study for difficult exams, laughed with me in times of joy, hugged me in times of sorrow, helped me learn new things about myself and re-discover things that I had forgotten, checked on and fed my husband on the many nights I spent away from home, came to see me in clinic, shared in the excitement of Chinese Medicine, reminded me to keep practicing my promise in being, provided me with scholarships, inspired me to keep learning ~ and this is just a small fraction of the help and support I received. I am truly grateful for my village members and will continue to pay forward all of the gifts, generosity, and support you have bestowed upon me.

I share this with you because these are my roots and the basis through which I understand and practice acupuncture. I believe in working with my patients to help them awaken their mind, body, and spirit to the natural world in order to experience the journey of life with more ease, and less pain and conflict. I do this through listening, lifestyle and nutrition coaching, needles, moxibustion, and cupping.