Hello, hi

My name is Elisha Maye Veldhuijzen...

Though you can to call me Lish.

People often ask how I came to practise Traditional Chinese Medicine, Somatic Therapy, and Reiki.

The honest answer is simple: I've always been fascinated by what it means to be human — how our bodies adapt, carry our stories, and communicate long before we have words for what we're experiencing.

That curiosity became a lifelong study. Not only of medicine, but of relationship: our relationship with our bodies, with one another, and with the many ways we make meaning from our lives.

Over time, I realized I wasn't collecting modalities — I was learning different languages for listening to the same human experience.

Today, every treatment I offer begins the same way: with careful listening, genuine curiosity, and respect for the body's innate intelligence.

A Way of Seeing

Long before I had language for concepts like embodiment, interoception, or nervous system regulation, I experienced the world primarily through my body. As a child, I assumed everyone did. Only later did I realize that my relationship with sensation, emotion, and the people around me was different from many of those I met.

That realization didn't lead me to certainty — it led me to curiosity.

Rather than searching for answers, I became interested in learning how to ask better questions.

That curiosity continues to shape every treatment I offer. Whether we're working through Traditional Chinese Medicine, Somatic Therapy, or Reiki, my role is never to override your experience. It is to listen alongside you, notice patterns together, and create the conditions in which your own body can begin to speak more clearly.

My Practice

I am a Registered Acupuncturist, Certified Psychosomatic Practitioner, and Reiki Master in the Usui Ryoho lineage. My work brings together Traditional Chinese Medicine, Somatic Therapy, Reiki, Qi Gong, and Shi Liao (Chinese food therapy) through a trauma-informed, gender-inclusive, and LGBTQIA+-affirming lens.

While each modality has its own language, they are all grounded in the same philosophy:

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• Careful listening.

• Discernment.

• Respect for the body's innate intelligence.

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No two people arrive with the same story.

I don't believe healing follows a formula, so neither do my treatments.

The Human Behind the Practitioner

Before healthcare, my path led through photojournalism, floristry, and Applied Theatre. Although they seem very different, each taught me the same thing: how to observe carefully, stay present, and notice what people communicate without words.

Originally from Brisbane, Australia, I immigrated to Canada in 2005 after spending time living in Europe. Today, I'm grateful to call Vancouver Island home.

When I'm not in the clinic, you'll usually find me hiking through the forests with my dog, Fardy Girl, reading philosophy and psychology, or finding small ways to bring a little more playfulness into everyday life.

I believe healing asks for reverence.

I also believe life is far too serious to forget how to laugh.

Education

• Certified Psychosomatic Practitioner — Integrative Psych Institute (Arizona, USA)

• Diploma of Acupuncture — Pacific Rim College (Victoria, BC)

• Reiki Master — Usui Ryoho Lineage

• Western Academy of Photography (Victoria, BC)

Pronouns: She/Her

If our paths cross, I don't expect you to arrive with certainty.

Only curiosity. We'll begin there.