January 20, 2017

Meet Jenny Karns of Atlanta Center for Acupuncture & Wellness in Buckhead

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenny Karns.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Jenny. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My husband and I lived in France for about five years, and an acquaintance recommended I try acupuncture. Skeptically, I made an appointment and was blown away when it actually worked! I continued seeing my acupuncturist, Dr. Tran, for a few years and truly enjoyed every treatment. He was Vietnamese and we both only spoke broken French—Our communication was remedial at best, but it was such a blast. I was so curious and inspired, and he was very willing to teach me.

After my husband was transferred to Atlanta, I wanted to continue treatments. Doing a google search for a local practitioner, I discovered some acupuncture schools. I had no idea it was ever an option! I figured you had to be part of some ancient Asian lineage or something to learn. So, looking into it more, I decided it was the perfect career change for me. The only problem was, there were no acupuncture schools in Georgia, with the closest ones in Florida and North Carolina. So, I enrolled in a three-year master’s program in Gainesville, FL. The first two years I was able to keep my job in Atlanta and commute back and forth, but the third year, I had to relocate for the full-time clinical year. Nearly everyone in my class was commuting from across the country, temporarily leaving family, friends, and jobs to study acupuncture, so we were all in the same boat and formed a really strong bond.

I had a few truly exceptional, eye-opening teachers who really brought acupuncture to life for me. I also spent a summer studying in China and managed to find a mentor, nicknamed “Dr. Strange Theory by his students,” who inspired me to deeper explore the theory and mysticism behind yin and yang and Chinese Medicine.

After graduation, I sat for my national board exams (NCCAOM) and began practicing in 2010. We are licensed by the Georgia Medical Board. I now also act as an acupuncture advisor for the Medical Board.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think everyone has struggles when they first open a business! I’d been working under another group for about 4 years before I decided to branch out on my own. That decision was a hard one to make personally and professionally. But, I had begun to feel uninspired and worn down, so when a great opportunity opened itself inside a new location, I decided to take the jump. It was terrifying leaving a comfortable, secure place to face the possibility of professional and financial failure (which internally felt very personal to me). I spent a lot of time talking to business-savvy family and friends and they pushed me to try – and if I failed, to try again. Everything really would be ok, even when sometimes it felt like it wouldn’t.

So, with a ton of help and support, I went for it! It was more or less a smooth, exciting transition and the creative aspect was really motivating for me. My first week was booked up and I’d set some realistic networking goals to keep the practice steadily growing. Then, literally on my opening day, I discovered that I was pregnant with our first child. It was overwhelming, to say the least, but ultimately pushed me to bring on another practitioner and get things busy and stable enough for me to step away on maternity leave. And, in the end, everything really was ok and things have continued to grow and develop even better than I’d anticipated.

Atlanta Center for Acupuncture & Wellness – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am an acupuncturist specializing in women’s health and fertility (having completed advanced board certification from the American Board of Oriental Reproductive Medicine (ABORM). I have two colleagues, Jessi Reis and Hannah Tran. Jessi is also ABORM certified specializing in women’s health and Hannah works with a lot of emotional conditions like anxiety, depression, PTSD, etc. We are all well-versed in general acupuncture such as chronic pain, digestion, lifestyle, etc.

As a team of strong, intelligent women, I like to think we promote more of a “boutique” style acupuncture approach. We are as busy as we want to be, but always striving to maintain a healthy work-life balance. I want to ensure that we have ample time for our patients’ needs while still taking care of our own health, personal needs, and internal development. It’s so easy to get wrapped up a busy life that we sacrifice our own health and balance, which makes it impossible to promote it!

We get a lot of local referrals from reproductive specialists, OBGYNs, therapists, ENTs, etc. Acupuncture has become more mainstream and accepted as a legit approach to fertility enhancement and menstrual disorders (as well as pain management, digestive disorders, migraines, vertigo, anxiety, etc) and I like to think our professionalism and success has played a role in Atlanta’s progression with alternative medicine.

There are a lot of things I dream about incorporating into the business and where I’d like to see it in 5-10 years. Honestly, though, I work with incredibly kind and generous people and I’m extremely grateful for where things are at right now. I would never rush into something that wasn’t a 100% perfect fit. But, as a chronic daydreamer with a great team and support network, the possibilities really are limitless.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I think acupuncture can be magical. Some of my most memorable moments include women who have been given a 1-2% chance of conceiving, and we’ll help them get pregnant, carry, and birth a healthy baby. Many women still keep in touch and send pictures, years later.

Acupuncture can be as deep and powerful as the practitioner. I was taught that each acupuncture point has three levels: body, mind, and spirit. As a practitioner, we decide on what level we want to treat the patient (and a lot of that depends on the depth of the practitioner). It’s really such a beautiful, elegant approach to health and I think we have the potential to help a lot of people.

Pricing: