KELLY ANN ILSEMAN, LAC

Licensed Acupuncturist - Sub

Kelly is a licensed acupuncturist. She graduated from the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (OCOM) in 2020, where she studied acupuncture, herbal medicine, and shiatsu. Prior to moving to the Pacific NW, she spent 17 years working with a diverse group of high-need, high-achieving teenagers at the University of Maine Upward Bound Math-Science (UBMS) Program, a non-profit government-funded educational opportunity program. She served as the program’s Assistant Director from 2007-2017.  She earned a Master of Science and Environmental Education (2003) and a Master of Human Nutrition (2014), both from the University of Maine, as well as an undergraduate degree from Gordon College in Biology with minor in English (1998). Kelly is a board member with the Oregon Association of Acupuncturists Board (OAA) and has a small private practice in Portland. She is a member of  the National Acupuncture Detox Association (NADA) and the Society for Acupuncture Research (SAR). Kelly serves as a TA for OCOM’s research and shiatsu classes. She has eight+ years of experience teaching meditation as well as yoga (slow flow, yin, and nidra) and believes in the power of slow movement and acupuncture for nervous system regulation.

Kelly’s first acupuncture “home” was Pathways to Wellness, the New England School of Acupuncture’s intern clinic. Under the care of NESA interns, Kelly’s curiosity grew regarding the benefits she received from treatments. Pathways’ location, situated above South Boston Medical Center modeled integrative care and the opportunity for social impact. There, in the midst of the rush and hum, close to research institutions and hospitals, and the gritty energy of the gap between wealth and poverty, Kelly envisioned possibilities for the growth, integration, and impact of this medicine.

Kelly practices Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) acupuncture, influenced by Japanese pulse, point, and abdominal palpation as methods of gathering in-the-moment information during treatments. She infuses bodywork in the form of shiatsu or tuina into her treatments, and relies on the methods of listening, compassion, and curiosity. Kelly specializes in treating complex biomedical and mental-emotional conditions (stress, insomnia, anxiety, depression), chronic pain, digestive imbalances, and women’s health. Kelly brings a trauma- and substance-use-informed perspectives to her work. She uses yoga nidra and acupuncture in combination to help reframe patterned thinking and unwind somatic experiencing.

 Kelly is inspired to create pathways for greater access to and acceptance of this medicine.  She provides heart- and science-based patient care that aspires to be truly integrative. Her heart is in the non-profit world, and she is truly grateful for the opportunity to serve Quest Center as a sub-acupuncturist among a diverse and supportive team of providers. She humbly recognizes the power and trust each client places in her, acknowledges the beautiful power of acupuncture, herbal medicine, and mindful movement. As a practitioner she understands that she influences only a small part of the healing experience, allowing the patient to take center-stage in their own healing.  

When she’s not working, Kelly can be found hanging out with her cat Jerry, a part Maine-coon/part ragdoll cat, doing yoga, cooking, and gardening. She enjoys biking, hiking to waterfalls, listening to music, and watching movies with her partner.