Several years ago, I worked with a girl named Kim. To say our personalities didn’t mesh is an understatement. Hers was loud and in-your-face, mine stubborn and self-righteous. Then a massive turn of events in both of our lives gave us an opportunity to grow up and show each other some grace. Right around the time of my diagnosis, Kim met a great guy, fell in love, married and moved to Montana. We were both transforming into better versions of ourselves, and through our transitions, discovered a hidden friendship beneath the surface of the women we used to be. I now call Kim a dear friend.
A year after she moved, she was in Denver for a wedding and reached out to see if I was available for lunch. We met in Cherry Creek to catch up over a glass of wine and deviled eggs in the Colorado sun.
“Diane!” she exclaimed, to the red head walking our way. Screams were exchanged, and before I knew it, Kim’s friend Diane, who lived in the neighborhood and happened to be walking by, was ordering a Chardonnay and joining our conversation. Diane was lovely, and full of great ideas as I told her my story. She told me about a woman she sees named Joanna, who does energy healing.
“Joanna is hands down the most gifted healer and brightest light I’ve ever met. I literally share her contact info with someone new every day, and everyone just loves her. She’s magical and addictive, in the very best way. Everyone needs a Joanna in their life!”
That was enough to convince me to give her a go. I’m so excited to share with you today about my experiences Joanna with Gentle Heart Acupuncture. And I love the story above that brought me to her.
I didn’t quite know what to expect the first time I saw Joanna a couple years ago. All I knew was she combined massage, reiki, acupuncture, cupping and meditation.
The first time I lay on her table, she said to me, after tapping muscles in my arm, “I’m sensing a lot of sadness and anger from you.”
“Well,” I told her, “if you were to survey 100 people I know, zero of them would likely describe me as sad or angry.”
She went on to explain it was deep rooted. Then she asked what happened to me in my teens.
“Oh. Well my mom died when I was 15,” I explained.
“Yeah, we need to release 15-year-old Katie. Like right now.”
She started with acupuncture. I was lying face up, and as she started to stick the needles in my arms and legs, I was struck with an overwhelming sense of sadness. Hot tears started forming in my eyes. I looked at Joanna and asked her what was happening.
“Just let it out,” she assured me.
I was sobbing.
“I’m going to leave the room for a bit. I want you to talk to her. Talk to 15-year-old Katie and tell her it’s time to go,” she instructed before leaving me alone in the room.
Holy. Shit.
Have you ever been convulsing with tears while having fifteen needles sticking out of you? I have! I was trying not to move, but my body was overtaken. I was in hysterics. The tears were rolling into my ears. I couldn’t move my arms to brush them away.
“15-year-old, Katie?” I said aloud, “It’s time to go.”
My wailing slowed. Joanna re-entered the room. She had me turn to face down and finished the hour with massage, cupping, and the Jeanie Rub, which wakes up the cells and stimulates the lymph system.
I texted Diane after I left and thanked her for the recommendation. I literally felt a ton lighter.
Joanna got her bachelor’s degree in psychology. When exploring master’s programs, she realized she is very much an action-oriented person and that therapy, in the traditional sense, wasn’t quite what she wanted to do. She started to look at different modalities, and when she found acupuncture, it just clicked. She pursued a master’s degree in that.
She defines acupuncture as taking care of the energetic, electrical system. She combines acupuncture with reiki, cupping, massage, and mind/body work to make sure everything is reset and that all lines of communication between mind, body, spirit and the electrical system are working properly. Joanna specifically sets certain intentions when anyone walks through her door. The intention is to let go of anything that doesn’t serve that person and to align with their highest potential. Ultimately, it’s up to the individual, but she puts it out there that this is the space where they can do that.
Her clients come to her for an array of reasons – grief, depression, allergies, pain, trauma, PTSD, and fertility, to name a few. She works with a lot of fertility patients and women who have been assaulted and are working with Joanna in conjunction with therapy. Some clients come in for specific ailments and others don’t know what exactly they are looking for.
Joanna’s most heart opening experiences have been around women who have had specific traumas, around their parents or around childhood, and to watch them have unexplained fertility. “When they breakthrough emotionally on certain things and feel as though they deserve to be a parent and to then watch them conceive after that has been mind-blowing. It is the most beautiful blessing to be able to see that journey,” Joanna told me.
Joanna refers patients back and forth with a friend who focuses more on the medical side of fertility through acupuncture. Joanna tends to work well with people who have unexplained, more emotional/spiritual-based fertility issues where the doctors are saying everything is fine.
When asked about her process, Joanna explained she works 100% intuitively every single treatment. She might start with needles or cupping if she cannot get into the person’s energy. Her clients’ energy dictates the order of how she treats someone. She can sense when people are opened or closed.
She does work with kids but won’t do acupuncture if they are 10 or under – she does acupressure, body talk and energy work. Body talk is using kinesiology to ask the body yes or no questions. It is muscle testing and depending on the question, the body will answer in a certain way. Joanna worked with a toddler who adored his dog but was allergic. The family was gutted as they did not want to get rid of their dog. Joanna did a bunch of energy work/body talk, in conjunction with a western approach that the parents were exploring. Through body talk, Joanna could access what line of communication was off. She discovered the child’s immune system was thinking he was in danger every time the dog was around. Something frightening must have happened while the toddler had the dog’s saliva on him. Now whenever the dog’s saliva would get around him, he would react. Essentially, Joanna accessed the endocrine system and tapped and stimulated it to reset the line of communication. In the end, the boy was able to be around his dog again.
“My favorite part of my job is being able to come every single day and hold a space so that people can choose to help themselves. I see people who have been through the worst of the worst and who want to be better and who want to improve. I get to witness how resilient and amazing the human spirit is,” Joanna told me.
I’ve been seeing Joanna for a while now. Do I have a crazy, emotional breakthrough every single time I see her? No, thank goodness. I don’t think I could handle that! It’s usually when I least expect it now, that the tears start rolling as the needles enter my body. I am, however, always left feeling lighter and happier and clearer on the steps I need to take to serve my higher purpose.
I have referred countless people to Joanna. My friend Nicole, another cancer survivor, sees her regularly now and says, “Joanna has helped me in ways I could never imagine, a true compassionate soul who will help you when in need.”
We always draw cards at the end. During our last session, Joanna drew the Manifestation Power card, that read, “Use your spiritual gifts and natural abilities to attract your desired outcome.” At the time, I was anticipating a big transition in my life. Two days later, my desired outcome came to fruition.
If you have any interest in seeing Joanna, she is located in Cap Hill in Denver. Her rates are extremely reasonable. Please tell her I sent you!
Gentle Heart Acupuncture
Joanna Resnick
899 Logan Street, Suite 310
Denver, CO 80203
303.505.9060