Sheila Guarnagia, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl.Ac., Dipl.C.H., holds a B.A. in Biology from Smith College, a Master of Acupuncture from the New England School of Acupuncture, and completed a three year program in Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine with renowned Master Herbalist Sharon Weizenbaum, L.Ac.  Sheila is certified by the NCCAOM as a Diplomate in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbology. She has worked and published in the fields of ecological and medical research and completed over 4 years as an apprentice home birth midwife in Arizona.  Since 2004 she has studied Appalachian Folk Medicine with Phyllis D. Light, AHG, and Traditional Western Herbal Medicine with Matthew Wood, M.Sc., AHG. In 2018 Sheila completed the Eagle Condor Council Healing Intensive, went on pilgrimage to the Sacred Valley of Peru, and is now initiated as a lineage carrier of this traditional Andean Spiritual Healing modality. She carries the Fourth Level Teaching of the Teqse Ñust'as and offers initiation rites for these Cosmic, Elemental Healing Powers of Nature. In 2021 she helped to create the Flaming Pearl Mystery School, a community committed to the reverential conservation, study, and application of the esoteric wisdom traditions and technologies of our Ancestors. 

 Drawing on over three decades of experience as a research biologist, herbalist, and naturalist, home birth assistant, natural childbirth educator, lactation guide, and mother, and incorporating spiritual guidance informed by Sacred Indigenous Wisdom traditions, Sheila offers a level of comprehensive care which translates into a vital, holistic, and empowering experience for her clients. She provides nurturing and informative support for women concerned about fertility issues, miscarriage, pregnancy, childbirth and lactation, postpartum issues or menopause, and can assist them in achieving rejuvenation and revitalization from these potentially draining events. She works with children, teens, and men who wish to access their full health potential, and achieve and maintain well being and balance through all stages of life. Assisting families in discovering their pathway of health is especially important work as balancing constitution and lifestyle is so essential for radiant health and longevity of both individuals, families, and our community.

Sheila provides holistic health care rooted in the Traditional Asian Medicine paradigm to the Greater Roanoke Valley community with an office at The bea-ing center for Holistic Health at 1420 3rd Street SW, Suite 204, in the Historic Old Southwest neighborhood of Roanoke. She offers Traditional Asian Medical therapies including Chinese and Japanese acupuncture styles, Traditional Chinese and Western Herbal Medicine, dietary therapy according to the Five Flavors Theory, and medical Qigong, and integrates spiritual healing technologies from her training in Andean Nature Mysticism. Her area of specialty is women’s health care, with a particular emphasis on providing support for menstrual disorders, fertility, healthy pregnancy, natural childbirth and lactation, postpartum rejuvenation, raising healthy children, and healthy menopause.

The following details are provided on the therapies offered by Sheila Guarnagia, M.Ac, L.Ac.:

Acupuncture - differential diagnosis and treatment applying Chinese and Japanese styles of palpation, tongue and pulse analysis, and needle insertion and manipulation with sterile, single use, filiform acupuncture needles and adjunctive therapies;

Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine - treatment by formulation of unique herbal combinations which are balanced specifically for the individual’s pattern of imbalance, constitutional tendencies, and acute or chronic influences;

Traditional Western Herbal Medicine - treatment by formulation of unique herbal combinations which are balanced specifically for the individual’s pattern of imbalance, based in part on Appalachian Folk Medicine;

Dietary therapy according to the Five Flavors Theory - Traditional diets can provide deep nourishment, enhance longevity, and support health and healing when applied with attention to the idiosyncratic needs of the individual.  Asian style pattern differentiation provides the guidance to accurately assess dietary needs or restrictions for best results;

Medical Qigong - treatment using movement, gentle tuina manipulative techniques, and transmission of Qi and instruction in specific techniques and exercises prescribed for individuals to aid in treatment of their unique pattern of imbalance;

Andean Nature Mysticism - strategies, tools, and practices learned from the beautiful Paqos, the indigenous Nature Priests, of the Andes Mountains of Peru and Bolivia, that can assist in healing of Mind/Body/Spirit issues.

In addition to these therapies offered, Sheila has experience as a home birth midwife and labor support, childbirth educator, and lactation guide, she has studied Hatha Yoga, and she constantly researches the issues of natural and healthy immunity, local food sourcing and sustainable farming, the effects of modern technology on health and wellness, metabolic fitness, and whole food nutrition and cooking.