East meet West: Alaska Institute of Oriental Medicine offers a different type of healing in these difficult times

2020 will undoubtedly go down as one of the most stressful years any of us can remember. Many of those that have gotten COVID and recovered still suffer from physical ailments and healing only begins when you receive your first negative test. For those who have been fortunate enough to remain free from the virus are struggling from stress, depression, anxiety and more brought on by the new mandates, loss of employment, and isolation. There are many treatments for these maladies, including medical help from professionals like physicians, psychologists, and other health care workers, but there are some non-traditional treatments that could help as well, and many of them can be accessed by attending The Alaska Institute of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture, and Massage Therapy.

While many know of the institute as primarily as massage therapy school, there is so much more that goes on behind the doors of the location in a strip mall off of 26th Avenue and Spenard Road. The Oriental Healing Arts Center entity of the business began in the year 2000, and in 2003 they opened the rest of the location with the addition of the institute that includes the Oriental Medicine and Massage Therapy. In 2008 they added the Acupuncture program.

The mission statement of the institute is clear about their goals of wellness and states that they want “to bring individuals and their lives to wholeness by educating them about the centuries old path to healing of Tai Chi, QiGong, Qi/Energy Healing, Massage Therapy, Chinese Herbs, and Acupuncture.” They also state they seek an open partnership with the health care community in looking to achieve these goals. Manager and admissions officer Lee Ann Benko believes that healing can take place with a combination of the two but speaks of one difference in the two communities.

“It takes commitment,” she said. “It’s not like taking a pill or having a surgery.”

With a background in chemistry and biology she sees the importance of all types of health care.

Benko has seen many people have success in different areas while utilizing the services that the institute offers. Each of these different types of services have the same goal and can offer the same results. She works with people individually to find the right path for them.

“You have all of these different options. It’s the one that speaks the most to you,” Benko said. “It’s not about which modality is right for your disharmony; it's which modality is right for you, and that is huge. That’s one of my favorite things to do is to sit down and talk to people and find out who they are and how they move and which direction is going to work for them to heal.”

The goal, Benko said, is to discover the way that a person will be most comfortable while trying to achieve the goals of moving energy, vibrations, and balancing the flow of energy.

Through the pandemic the institute has been able to survive while adhering to very strict COVID policies. Masks, sanitizing, taking temperatures, keeping distance, and a detailed intake sheet with questions about risky behavior and lifestyle have kept the community that practices these healing arts with extremely low exposure and no positive cases. In an effort to offer their services to people in an even safer manner they have created streaming classes. Benko relayed, “We have Tai Chi classes, and QiGong classes and as a matter of fact that is one of the things that we are doing in December. We are live streaming on three different Facebook pages. A Tai Chi or QiGong class every day in December at 6 p.m. There is also my TuiNa class on Wednesdays and Fridays is doing self-acupressure for stress relief.”

In an effort to make healing more affordable they are also offering reduced rates for certain services throughout the month.

“We decreased the price of our student massages to $30 per hour,” Benko said. “We also decreased the price of our professional massages by $25 an hour.”

Benko believes in the healing that the institute can offer and has seen firsthand the benefits that clients have received with not only the anxiety, fatigue, and stress that have come from dealing with a pandemic but also with more serious mental and physical issues. Veterans healing from PTSD, cancer patients, injuries, and even those with digestive issues have found relief over the years that the institute has been in business. Benko herself has even seen changes in her personal world through her studies and instruction.

“When I started doing Tai Chi back in 1995, I was a wallflower, no eye contact,” she said. “There are people that I still communicate with today that were in the first class with me, and don’t remember me being there. I had a complete lack of self-confidence. Now I am out and about, I am the manager here, I am a completely different person and I attribute that completely to Tai Chi. It gave me the ability to move in the world.”

Graduates of the academies 11-month course have been able to find work all over Anchorage, working in hospitals, chiropractic offices, private practices and more. Those who have utilized the practices have found healing and peace. During the holidays, and during the time that we recover from the pandemic healing can be found in many places.