Welcome to LeShiatsu.com! I hope you are enjoying browsing these pages. I am adding another page here, in case you might like reading a little bit about me.
What I do
I dedicate my energy and time to helping people feel better, naturally. As a Registered Acupuncturist, I am a regulated healthcare professional. In addition I practice Shiatsu massage, and I teach Tai-Chi and QiGong.
With Acupuncture, and Shiatsu massage, I treat a great variety of health issues, such as pain of all origins, stubborn chronic problems, women's health issues, stress and mental-emotional challenges. Quite often a person comes for a challenging health issue that requires a course of several treatments. Once symptoms and root causes have been improved, many people come for regular appointments, for health maintenance and well-being.
I enjoy developing a respectful and caring relationship with patients who come to see me, focusing on the long term.
I also see women who seek to conceive and then provide follow-up care throughout their pregnancy, and beyond!
What motivates me greatly, is that the Qi-based medicine of Eastern healing traditions helps understand the person globally - mind, body, lifestyle. I enjoy this approach because it is holistic and it is effective. In addition to trying to "fix" a health problem physically through treatments, it often happens that a significant development comes from helping a person understand why their emotional past still affects their health, or why their living conditions or hectic life rhythm slows their recovery down.
I continuously review what I've learned to further digest and absorb the rich material left by ancient and contemporary masters, and I spend a significant amount of time on continuing education. I also like reading about the latest scientific research. What I do is a great complement to Western modern medicine, and is not meant as a substitute for your Family Doctor's and other health professional's care. But I often see people who have not found significant help for their pain and other symptoms, and I am glad to be of service if I can.
To further help people in their health journey, I also teach Tai-Chi and QiGong. Tai-Chi and QiGong are a wonderful form of meditative exercise. Acupuncture and Shiatsu as therapies, and Tai-Chi & QiGong as self-care gentle exercising, all share the same principle: balance the person, and promote a harmonious flow of Qi, our life force. Qi is pronounced "tchi" and is also often spelled "Chi", or Ki in Japanese. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), a strong Qi that flows freely in the body is the source of good health, and a pain-free life.
I develop original Tai-Chi & QiGong programs, leveraging my
understanding of the body, its bio-mechanics and physiology, and the
deep knowledge and wisdom from TCM and its Qi-energy system. My
programs are designed to encourage people to enjoy being in class, and
then practice at home.
My Education and Training
- Biomedical Engineering degree (5 years with two 6-month coops): Université de Technologie de Compiègne, France
- Master Degree in Biomedical Engineering: INSA de Lyon, France
- PhD in Biomedical Engineering: Université Claude Bernard, Lyon, France
- Corporate experiences:
Philips Medical Systems in France and the Netherlands,
Mitra Imaging, Agfa Healthcare, Medicalis in Waterloo, Ontario
- Shiatsu diploma: Shiatsu School of Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Acupuncture diploma: Shiatsu School of Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Japanese Acupuncture: workshops with the method founder Kiiko Matsumoto, course and apprenticing with Takamassa Tsurusaki
- Numerous Acupuncture workshops
- Tai-Chi: my teacher in Kitchener is Steve Higgins from Cold Mountain Internal Arts. I also take workshops with Sam Masich from Masich Internal Arts, and recently became one of his Recognized Student and Instructor. I am a certified instructor with the Canadian Taijiquan Federation.
My Background
I grew up in France, and came to Canada in 2000.
I studied Biomedical Engineering in France, and then worked with a vendor of Medical Imaging equipment (X-Ray, CT Scanner, MRI etc). My career path was somewhat unconventional, since I first went into sales, then into research to complete my PhD, and finally into Marketing. My interest was to understand the various aspects of the business, so that I would be in a position to help make systems that benefit patients the most. When I came to Waterloo to work for a very innovative company, I focused on computerized patients records integrated with some intelligence that helps physicians prescribe the right imaging test first. That's when it became more clear to me that my passion was around patient care, more than technology and business. So after 15 exciting years as a Biomedical Engineer working with global medical technology vendors, I looked for ways to be involved in my community with a direct human touch. When an introduction to Shiatsu, a manual Qi-based therapy, was given to my Tai-Chi group, it just felt right!
I went for a 101 Shiatsu course, and then completed in 2006 the two-year program of the Shiatsu School of Canada in Toronto. After over a year of Shiatsu practice, I went for their acupuncture program, and have since added acupuncture to my treatments. The styles of acupuncture I practice are from Traditional Chinese Medicine, the foundation for all acupuncture, as well as Applied Channel Theory from Dr Wang Ju-Yi. I also use Japanese acupuncture, a more modern development of acupuncture, based on Kiiko Matsumoto's teachings. I promote self-empowerment for healing and health maintenance. Tai-Chi has become an amazing springboard for my own self-care, personal growth and professional development. So I started to teach it in 2007.
I also spend some time volunteering. In the past it was for research
and technology institutions. For instance I served in the Council (aka
Board) of the National Research Council of Canada. Currently I am on
the advisory board of a local initiative to deliver mental health
services via tele-medicine for the francophone and other language
minority groups. I have served the Canadian Taijiquan Federation as a
Board member and a co-editor of their quarterly journal. I have
supported my Tai-Chi teacher, Steve Higgins, in various initiatives
for his club Cold Mountain Internal Arts, for instance with his web
site, and with our Tai-Chi and music improvisation group, a very
creative initiative called the Waterloo Contemporary Internal Arts
Studio. I've had to reduce my extra-curricular activities since 2014,
due to an unexpected turn of life, and am currently enjoying centering
my energy around my main lines of work. But recently I joined the new
Patient and Family Advisory Committee, that our local health
administration or LHIN has created to bring the patient at the heart
of our local system and make the patient's voice heard when planning
health programs. Here
is a link to this committee's web
page.
I enjoy staying in touch with my former colleagues from medical high-tech companies, as I love medical technology and innovation. Eventually, I envision an integrated healthcare system where the best of Eastern and modern Western medicines are offered to patients, leveraging both modern science and millenia-old medical traditions, and where patients' electronic records are shared by all health professionals, from all disciplines.
Sometimes people wonder about their therapist's background and credentials, and what all the letters behind their names mean. As you can see below my picture on the left side of this page, I am a Registered Acupuncturist, hence the letter R.Ac. I am registered with the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario, www.ctcmpao.on.ca/. My certification number is # 2334. Since April, 1st, 2013, acupuncture is a regulated healthcare profession in Ontario.
Education is something I consider a lifelong process, so when we meet
it is likely that I have plans for a few courses or seminars to
further improve my clinical skills, and my Tai-Chi practice.
Bonne journée, et bonne santé!
Patricia Béretta Beaurepaire