Satori Poch, Licensed Acupuncturist

"The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the

care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease."


  - Thomas Edison

Mission

The mission of Comfort Acupuncture & Wellness, LLC is to heal, educate and empower people to achieve optimal health and wellness in a natural and holistic way. We offer these services through compassion and respect to all individuals.

Our logo encompasses all that our company represents. Our foundation is built on the balance of yin and yang. Acupuncture, herbal therapy, nutrition and massage are the modalities that we use to bring about that balance.

Satori Poch is nationally certified in both Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) and is licensed by the Virginia Board of Medicine. In San Francisco, California she worked in various hospital and clinical settings that included the California Pacific Medical Center for Stroke Rehabilitation Center, American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Community Clinic and the local Auricular Community Clinic. She also completed the Advanced Clinical Internship Program at Zhejiang Medical University in Hangzhou, China with rotations in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) internal medicine, dermatology, gynecology, acupuncture and Tui Na (Chinese medical massage) departments. She received her post-graduate degree from the American College of Traditional Medicine and her Bachelor of Science degree from the College of William and Mary.

A native to Richmond, Virginia, Satori lives here with her husband, two sons and daughter. Her passion is teaching and empowering people to live happy, healthy and balanced lives through Chinese Medicine.

How Satori came to study Chinese Medicine:

As a high school student, she interned at the Medical College of Virginia. During her undergraduate studies, she worked at Sentara Williamsburg Community Hospital and some of the local community clinics. In addition, she completed a research project on "the SARS epidemic in Hong Kong and the efficacy of using Chinese medicine to combat the epidemic." All of which, was to mentally prepare her for a career in medicine. However, during her undergraduate studies, Satori suffered from severe abdominal pain that affected her physically, mentally and emotionally. The pain occurred suddenly every evening and left her lying balled up in a fetal position and in tears every night. She saw many specialists and tried many different pharmaceutical drugs and antibiotics. None of which helped her condition and instead left her feeling extremely weak and sick. It wasn't until she almost lost her life due to a severe drug interaction that she realized "there has to be another alternative."

During a study abroad trip to China, Satori experienced the same symptoms. She had chills, her face got extremely pale, her body felt weak and her abdominal pain felt sharp and stabbing. Being thousands of miles from home, without insurance and unable to communicate effectively, she was really scared. After all the over-the-counter Western medicine drugs had failed, she decided she should consult a Chinese medicine doctor.

Unable to convey her symptoms to the doctor, she was unsure what to expect. The doctor just smiled, reached out his hand to feel her pulses, motioned for her to show him her tongue and almost immediately he began writing her a formula. After a couple of days she felt instantly better. After the third day, she was back to normal. She was amazed. After suffering for years without relief and almost losing her life to a drug interaction. This doctor, without the use of x-rays, blood work or lab tests the doctor was able to effectively diagnose and treat her. Experiences like this were the first of many great encounters Satori had with Chinese medicine.

Kristina Allred received her Master’s degree in Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine at Southwest Acupuncture College in Santa Fe, NM. She is board certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and the State of Virginia. Kristina gained invaluable experience with clinical internships at Santa Fe Women's Health, Indian Health Services Hospital of New Mexico, St. Vincent Hospital and Health South Rehabilitation Hospital.

Continuing education and experience in nutrition as well as herbal medicine and Chinese traditional physical therapies have enriched her life as well as her practice. Working on organic farms and as a whole foods chef provided a practical knowledge of nutrition and health- taking it from the classroom to the plate! Kristina spent years studying with the Weston Price and Traditional Foods movement, eventually writing and publishing a weekly health column in the Coeur D’ Alene Press. As a member of the International Association of Reiki Professionals (IARP), she served as a volunteer with the University of Arizona Cancer Center, and guest instructor in vibrational medicine at the University of Arizona Medical School in the Integrative Medicine rotation for residents.

Kristina has practiced in diverse settings from hospitals to integrative wellness centers to high end spas. She is excited to join Satori in offering compassionate and beneficial care to the community at Comfort Acupuncture.