Dr. ERica Robyn Burley, DSOM, L.Ac (SHE/HER)

Licensed Acupuncturist, Board Certified HErbalisT

MY STORY

Owning and operating an acupuncture practice is the culmination of a pretty non-traditional journey. My life’s path has revolved around the desire to make the world a better place from a very young age. As a natural empath with my Sun in Cancer and the “wounded healer” centaur Chiron on my Ascendant, my younger years were marked by an acute awareness of the suffering of all living beings on the planet and a desire to transform that suffering into something better. I grew up feeling highly attuned to animals, nature, the shadow world and the inter-generational trauma held in our collective human field. Always fascinated by the ways in which human experience intersects with socio-political realities, I was drawn to study psychology and women’s studies as an undergrad. I loved my neuropsychology and biochemistry courses, but I found it hard to reconcile my academic passions with the unsavory reality that pursuing further education in such fields would most likely involve animal experimentation or eventual employment at a pharmaceutical company.

For as long as I can remember I have been drawn to elevating the underdog— at times becoming the underdog— so I could fully experience what that feels like. Upon graduating from college, in defiance of the status quo, I left my academic dreams behind, immersing myself instead in the highly politicized activist punk traveler scene. I discovered a seemingly insular world of protests and parties that had a much larger purpose that I felt very connected to. Every gathering, show, and potluck was held for the benefit something or someone, based on the collective vision of wanting to co-create a positive and just world through solidarity and mutual aid rather than consumerism. My 20s were wholeheartedly dedicated to experiential learning, seeing the world, immersing myself in different cultures, learning another language, and participating in political activism and grassroots development projects across the globe designed to help improve quality of life from the bottom up.

The experience of challenging the establishment and believing each person holds the power to effect social change was good for me. Since then, I have approached life with the sense that things don’t have to be the way they are, and that the choices we make really do matter. Compared to the passionate chaos I embodied in my twenties, I have another life now— but I haven’t changed. Punk taught me I could be whatever I wanted to be, and that’s the way I’ve lived my life and continue to do so. My life’s work has been to figure out how to support my community while also honoring my needs, meeting my goals, and fulfilling my potential.

In 2008, I obtained my certification as an AcuDetox specialist from Lincoln Hospital in the South Bronx. The incredible story of the occupation of that very hospital by the Black Panthers and Young Lords during the raging heroin epidemic of the 1970s enamored me with the radical roots of community acupuncture. In opposition to widespread use of methadone as the only addiction treatment, racial justice activists succeeded in creating Lincoln Detox and began offering auricular acupuncture in a community setting as a safe, effective, and low-cost drug-free treatment option. Providing the same 5-point needle protocol (NADA) as a means to treat addiction, stress and trauma to under-served communities in the South Bronx opened the door for me to merge my passions and beliefs with a fulfilling and sustainable career.

When I formally returned to academia in pursuit of my Master’s degree from Pacific College of Health and Science in New York, I finally discovered the perspective I had been seeking— the core holistic philosophy of Chinese Medicine that acknowledges the interrelatedness of all things. This perspective has bestowed upon me a healing modality that merges physical and emotional healing, personal development, evolution of consciousness, and social justice. As an acupuncturist and herbalist I have found a fulfilling and radical way to stand up to massive corporations that are willing to turn a profit at the expense of their own consumers’ lives, health, and integrity. Classical Chinese medicine has provided me with the perfect medium to carry my ultimate treatment goal far and wide— to change the world one person at a time, by restoring hope, health, and trust in the innate healing potential that is carried within each and every one of us.

Silver Lining Acupuncture is a labor of love that serves as a healing refuge for your mind, body, and soul. We welcome and honor individuals from all racial and ethnic backgrounds, and aim to provide a safe and supportive treatment space for the LGBTQIA+ community. Our goal is to provide outstanding holistic health care that deeply supports you throughout your personal healing journey. We have a patient-centered approach that honors you as a whole person as you navigate physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual challenges that may arise. We walk beside you as you discover and embrace long-lasting positive changes that lead you to uncover your deepest potentials in life.

When I am not at work I love to spend time outdoors with Pikol— my magnificent dog and miraculous healer— as we appreciate the endless beauty of the natural world. We moved from Brooklyn NY to Portland in 2017 to be closer to nature.

CLINICAL TRAINING

Dr. Erica Robyn Burley, DSOM, L.Ac (preferred name Robyn) has been practicing classical Chinese medicine for over a decade with the guidance of 88th-generation Daoist Priest Dr. Jeffrey C. Yuen and his direct students as her main teachers and inspiration. Robyn was formally trained in acupuncture and herbal medicine at the Pacific College of Health and Science, where she received her Master’s degree and graduated as Valedictorian of her class, and at National University of Natural Medicine where she received her Doctorate in Chinese medicine.

Robyn’s post-graduate work took her to China to study directly with famed medical herbalist Dr. Heiner Fruehauf and Dr. Wang Qingyu, the official lineage holder of the Jinjing (Tendon and Channel) School of Qigong. She has an academic background in psychology and has completed specialized training in somatic-centered mindfulness-based therapies in the Master’s program in Integrative Mental Health.

Robyn’s commitment to service led her to the Vajra Varahi health clinic in Nepal where she provided hundreds of treatments for local residents affected by the catastrophic earthquake of 2015.

Robyn is fluent in Spanish. [Se habla español].

professional experience

Throughout her career, Robyn has provided thousands of treatments in Portland, Oregon and in the wider New York City community, as well as abroad, with the goal of broadening her understanding of current health care needs, providing accessible treatments for under-served communities, and expanding her mastery of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. 

In addition to her private practice, Robyn has had the great privilege to serve patients at:  

• Housing Works (NYC)

• Fortune Society (NYC)

• St. John's Riverside Hospital (NYC)

• Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center (NYC)

• Lutheran Medical Center (NYC)

• Womankind (formerly the New York Asian Women's Center) (NYC)

• Vajra Varahi Health Clinic (NEPAL)

• Work Song Chinese Medicine (NYC)

• Tigerlily Holistic (NYC)

• Montavilla Community Acupuncture (PDX)