Christina Velderman

Dr. Christina Velderman is a clinician, author, speaker, and educator dedicated to helping people transform pain into power and reclaim the radiant, joyful life they were meant to live. Named the 2024 Acupuncturists Without Borders Volunteer of the Year, Dr. Velderman’s work in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene brought free, trauma-informed acupuncture to over 800 survivors in crisis.

Shortly before the storm, her first-of-its-kind textbook Ethics for Acupuncturists was published internationally to facilitate East meeting West in the discussion of medical ethics for an ancient medicine practiced in the modern world. She serves as the Academic Dean at Daoist Traditions College of Chinese Medical Arts, where she brings visionary leadership to developing the next generation of healers. In her Asheville-based private practice, Soulfire Medicine, she specializes in the treatment of complex trauma and chronic illness, offering a unique and deeply integrative approach to healing.

Dr. V, as her patients call her, treats trauma from an insider’s perspective - she was born into intergenerational trauma and poverty and suffered for decades with complex PTSD, IBS, autoimmune illnesses, an eating disorder, substance use issues.. diagnosis after diagnosis, prescription after prescription. By her 30s she was completely disabled. Then she learned how to heal. Throughout the course of restoring her resiliency and falling in love with life again, she became an NCCAOM nationally board-certified Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine so her experiences could shine a light for others who feel lost in the dark.

Dr. Velderman earned both her MAOM and DAHM from Daoist Traditions College in 2021.