Meet Ruth Sie | Acupuncturist & Body Literacy Educator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ruth Sie and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ruth, what matters most to you?
As a women’s health and body literacy educator, helping people “learn to read the language of their bodies” is the principle that matters most to me.

I help women build an intellectual understanding of their hormonal cycles by educating them on anatomy and physiology and how to observe, chart, and interpret their ovulatory menstrual cycles. This practice has many applications. Primarily it is used as a way to naturally avoid pregnancy, optimize conception, or recognize and fix hormonal imbalances.

Now more than ever, our reproductive rights are being challenged. That makes it more important than ever that we understand our reproductive choices in the context of “pro-choice.” At the root of pro-choice is informed choice. How can we be fully informed if we are not literate in how our choices affect our bodies, informed to make decisions about what is uniquely best for our individual bodies? The answer is body literacy.

I’m talking about knowing when we ovulate, because as women with a uterus and ovaries, our bodies are designed to ovulate during our reproductive years. On average, that’s about 450 cycles in our lifetime! It is also a fact that we are NOT FERTILE EVERYDAY OF OUR CYCLES. In fact, we are only fertile about 1/3-1/4 of our cycles, only around the event of ovulation. That said, just because we ovulate doesn’t mean that we will ever have to experience pregnancy unless we choose to. The sooner we embrace our ovulating bodies and the hormones that drive it, the sooner we can work WITH our bodies to achieve our health goals, rather than against them.

By understanding and recognizing when we ovulate, it introduces a much broader contraceptive spectrum than we (including medical doctors) have been taught. You’ll be able to recognize the proper timing for Plan B, an ovulation inhibitor, which is only effective when taken in the fertile window before ovulation. The IUD inhibits implantation if you had unprotected sex in the 4-day window after ovulation when sperm could still be viable in the body and potentially fertilize an egg. That means that using either of these options outside of those windows is ineffective (and potentially unnecessary). Other pregnancy inhibitors include Queen Anne’s Lace to inhibit implantation, menstrual extraction before a missed period, and only if necessary, the abortion pill after a missed period. And if you’re not ovulating (and therefore menstruating) regularly, then it introduces a major healing opportunity to work on balancing your hormones.

It is only with body literacy that we are empowered to make informed decisions that truly honor “my body, my choice.”

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I’m a Licensed Acupuncturist and Body Literacy Educator trained in herbal medicine, Tai Chi, and sound therapy. At VIBRANT acupuncture & sound, I love combining all of these practices together to create dynamic, deeply restorative experiences, holding space for people to feel safe in their bodies and to heal.

A first generation Chinese-Canadian-American immigrant, I am a daughter of immigrants who survived the Chinese cultural revolution where more than 80M people died of unnatural deaths, mostly of famine. It is because of my parents’ determination to pursue their dream of a better life that I have the privilege of sharing with you today my passion of empowering women and promoting women’s health, body literacy, and community through this universal, experiential bond that connects us all.

At the heart of my practice is teaching body literacy and embodiment practices. This is the work I’m most proud of and excited to share. Acupuncture and sound therapy is the medicine that people come to receive, and it’s the combination of it with education and embodiment practices that creates long-lasting, transformative healing within.

I now teach two learning series: a 4-week training on Body Literacy & Womb Wisdom, and a 6-week Vocal Alchemy training that involves healing through vocal embodiment practices and mantra work.

How I got here is quite a journey!
In 2014, I left a career of ten years working at a big tech corporation [Microsoft], feeling burnt out and unfulfilled. This was preceded by a devastating breakup that left me broken, confused, and questioning my life at its core. It was with the help of an amazing therapist and various embodiment practices that I found the voice of my own inner guide, one that I had been ignoring for most of my life in favor of checking off the proverbial boxes of success based on society’s script.

When I took the leap, I moved to the Bay Area where I gave myself the space to explore my next path. I reached out to volunteer opportunities that led to a year of research work at UCSF and an apprenticeship with an acupuncturist and Qigong Grandmaster. Her encouragement led to me moving toward Chinese Medicine in LA. While in school completing my Master’s, I reached out to volunteer with the UCLA Center for East West Medicine. That led to a year-long research position at the LA County Department of Health Services supporting a study in chronic pain management, followed by a 2-year acupuncture fellowship at the Center for East West Medicine.

Looking back, this transition was one of the biggest risks I’d take in life; one that would turn out to be the most liberating and rewarding. It was not easy, and it was scary AF! One of the most valuable lessons I can share from my own experience is to seek out volunteer opportunities that align to the work that inspires you. Try it on for size. Nonprofits are eager for people with the right intentions and willingness to work hard. Bring whatever you can to the table and humbly accept that you’ll be starting from the ground up. Appreciate the people you meet along the way who may turn out to be your greatest allies in supporting your path forward.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
To me, what makes LA so special is that I can be at the beach, out to the desert, and up to the mountains in under 2 hours (if you time traffic just right!) I would take my bff, Erin, to Los Olivos for wine tasting and dinner at the Lark in Santa Barbara. We’d stay a night or two in Joshua Tree, where we’d visit the Integratron for a mind-blowing sound bath, star gaze, catch some meteors up in the dark night sky, and do an intention setting ritual under the new moon. We’d spend a day up in Big Bear skiing up in the mountains followed by some apres dining in the village. Finally, we’d end the week with a relaxing spa day at Hugh Spa in K-town!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Sarah Bly, founder of The Well, School of Body Literacy, and all the sex educators, wise women, and Fertility Awareness Educators (FAEs) out there doing amazing work to advance body literacy! Also, all the caregivers – moms, dads, sisters, grandmothers, aunties out there who, with access to body literacy will be the future teachers and influencers of an empowered, body-wise culture.

Website: www.vibrant-acupuncture.com

Instagram: vibrant.acupuncture

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthsie