Centralia Acupuncturist Looks to Help Clients Through Chinese Medicine

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Avishan Saberian had already been operating her White Tiger Acupuncture business in Olympia for three years before she was persuaded to expand her business to Centralia.

Beautiful Skin owner Kim Chase didn’t have an acupuncturist at her day spa in downtown Centralia, so she provided Saberian an offer she couldn’t say no to in hopes of convincing Saberian to expand her business down to the Hub City. Chase offered Saberian a private personal space to work in so she could do her charting and have her daughter with her.

It turns out, Saberian couldn’t say no, and she moved into the Beautiful Skin store in November 2020. 

She didn’t plan on being an acupuncturist, it just sort of happened that way. 

Saberian, a Portland, Oregon, native, had been volunteering at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center since she was 15 years old, racking up volunteer hours doing post-op for patients after surgery. At 18 years old, she began volunteering at Oregon Health & Science University’s Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, working in the critical care unit for children and pediatric oncology.

“I was always drawn to the medical field,” Saberian said. “Volunteering helped me learn that what was going on in the medical system was important, but it wasn’t something I wanted to spend my time doing.”

She wanted to do something  working with people that would prevent them from getting to a hospital and needing medical care.

Saberian attended college, eventually attending a naturopathic school while working toward a master’s degree. She later switched from naturopathic to Classical Chinese Medicine following her parents’ divorce; an experience that granted her a moment of intuition.

“I had a huge moment of adversity,” Saberian said. “In the face of adversity, I chose Chinese medicine and acupuncture because it granted me insight into the experience I was having. But also, it granted me ways to tap into the body’s natural ability to process emotion and pain.”

She realized naturopathic medicine wasn’t her place in life. She found that Classical Chinese Medicine (CCM) was her niche, and began studying it at the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland. Now she’s a board-certified licensed acupuncturist (L.Ac., EAMP), Tai Ji Chuan, Tibetan Healing Yoga and Buteyko breathing educator.

CCM is a sophisticated, ancient medical system passed down for thousands of years in China that offers an alternative for serious health care needs.

Saberian uses the fundamental CCM treatment methods to help her patients at White Tiger Acupuncture. Those include acupuncture, cupping (the use of warmed glass jars to create suction on certain points of the body), moxibustion (the burning of herbal leaves on or near the body), heat therapy, massage, herbal medicine and many more.

“Many people are stuck with pain, mentally or emotionally, with migraines, back pain or neck pain,” Saberian said. “They’re going through pain on so many levels and they’re attracting more pain, because they can’t figure out the root cause of the pain.”

And that’s exactly what CCM is great at doing, Saberian said, diagnosing and treating the root cause of the problem.

“We don’t treat the symptoms, we treat the root,” she said. “We give them a solid foundation they can stand on so they can start healing, deal with their current pain and prevent future illnesses.”

Saberian can fix symptoms quickly with acupuncture, for people who are in a significant amount of pain, with semi-permanent cartilage punctures that stay in for a couple days. It can take just seconds for some people to feel relief.

The treatments can help a variety of problems, such as orthopedic conditions in the feet, ankles, arms and legs, along with digestive and breathing problems, anxiety, depression and much more. Saberian does not prescribe or take people off medications. 

Saberian is currently offering a new patient special: $52.50 for the first visit. White Tiger Acupuncture also takes a multitude of insurances, and most cover acupuncture treatment, she said, including Regence, Aetna, Premera, Teamsters and many more.

White Tiger Acupuncture is currently open in Centralia from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesdays; and noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays. To learn more or to schedule an appointment, contact White Tiger Acupuncture at 360-868-4421, or visit its website at whitetigeracupuncture.janeapp.com/locations/centralia-wa.

More Information on White Tiger Acupuncture

Owner: Avishan Saberian

Location: 408 N. Tower Ave., Centralia 

Hours: 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., Monday; 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Wednesday; Noon to 4 p.m., Sunday

Phone: 360-868-4421

Website: whitetigeracupuncture.janeapp.com/locations/centralia-wa

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Reporter Eric Trent can be reached at etrent@chronline.com. Visit chronline.com/business for more coverage of local businesses.