Erika Prinz Freed, MS, L.Ac.
Licensed Acupuncturist, PA & NY
pain management & Women’s Health specialist
Certified in acu-Facial Renewal™,
micro-needling and Breathwork meditation
Erika has twelve years of hands-on experience as a practitioner of Traditional Medicine. Her goal as an acupuncturist is to help individuals to transform their health, get out of pain, and achieve long-term wellness.
She was born and raised in West Chester, Pennsylvania and attended college at The University of Richmond, Virginia. She then moved to New York City where she earned her Masters in Acupuncture from the Tri-State College of Acupuncture in 2012 (now the Pacific College of Health and Science). Since opening her private practice, she has studied in China and Nepal, and has been voted "Best of Chester County” in the Alternative Medicine category of the 2023 Daily Local New’s Reader's Choice Awards, and named as one of the top twenty best acupuncturists in New York City by Expertise for eight consecutive years (2022 - 2016).
Erika became an acupuncturist because Traditional Medicine helped her heal from a debilitating chronic injury due to a lifetime of ballet and dance. Acupuncture was the only modality that got her out of pain, and helped her transform her less than healthy lifestyle. Her eye-opening, life-changing experience as a patient sparked her passion to help others tap into their body’s natural ability to heal and reach their optimal potential.
Through her signature approach that blends expertise and knowledge with intuition and empathy, Erika is able to offer the medicine, tools and guidance to create lasting changes in health. Read on for her full story!
“I’ve been told I have “magic hands” more times than I can count— but treatment is more than addressing the acupuncture points and body parts that are calling for attention. It’s a dance of perception, deep listening, emotional intelligence, skillful touch and grace.”
my story & credentials
My life experiences continuously inform my practice of medicine. From 20 years of understanding the body through dance, and suffering from debilitating chronic pain; to traveling through fertility, birth and mothering as a more mature mama, I have both struggle and richness to access our work together.
As a former ballerina, body awareness and physicality has been a part of my life since childhood. A serious dance injury that left me unable to walk stopped me in my tracks in my 20’s — but it was the blessing that led me to acupuncture. I sought out treatment as a last resort, without expectations.
To my surprise, it was the only modality that really made a difference.
Not only did I experience long-lasting pain relief from the treatments, I immediately resonated with the holistic and compassionate approach to healing. It was the first time a healthcare practitioner listened to everything that was going on and looked at me as a person, not just an isolated injury.
I was hooked, and I was impassioned. I chose to leave my hard-earned career in business and marketing to pursue the path as healer. In 2009, I embarked upon my Masters of Science in Acupuncture (MS/Ac) at the Tri-State College of Acupuncture and earned my graduate degree in 2012.
Since then, I have completed post-graduate training in China at the China Beijing International Acupuncture Training Center, a World Health Organization (WHO) affiliate, where I earned advanced certification in acupuncture and moxibustion. I have studied and served as volunteer medical staff in the Humla region of Nepal, and studied Five Element Acupuncture. I am also certified in Constitutional Facial Renewal™ and Breathwork Healing, a powerful active meditation technique, with David Elliot.
I am currently pursuing advanced studies in women’s health and fertility and passionate about supporting and guiding women through the journey of motherhood.
advanced credentials
Classical Chinese Medicine studies with scholar and practitioner, Timothy Aitken.
Five-Element Acupuncture and Leon Hammer Pulse Method studies with internationally renowned scholar & author, Lonny Jarret.
Advanced Certification from the China Beijing International Acupuncture Training Center, a World Health Organization (WHO) affiliate, earning advanced certification in acupuncture and moxibustion. Program entailed treatment in Beijing's leading hospitals.
Medical service volunteer with The Humla Fund, in which we provided vital health care to residents of the most remote and underserved area of Nepal and completed studies in Classical Acupuncture.
Certified in Constitutional Facial Renewal™, under the tutelage of Mary Elizabeth Wakefield, one of the leading proponents of facial renewal techniques.
Certified in Breathwork Healing with David Elliot and Erin Telford.
Graduate degree: Tri-State College of Acupuncture (now Pacific College of Health Sciences).
Undergraduate: Bachelor of Business Administration, University of Richmond, Virginia.