Mallory Carlson, L.Ac.

About

  • Pronouns: She/her

  • Occupation and Specialty: Licensed Acupuncturist

  • Location (Clinic/hospital): Natural Care Center of Woodbury

  • Location (City): Eastern Suburbs

  • Offers Telehealth: No

  • Contact Information: Naturalcarewoodbury.com, 651-232-6830

  • Bio: Mallory received her Masters of Acupuncture from Northwestern Health Sciences University. She is licensed with the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice and board certified by the NCCAOM.

    Mallory has several years of practice in a number of different clinical settings and has an array of knowledge about various types of health concerns. She is skilled at treating many musculoskeletal issues, both chronic and acute, and headaches/migraines. She also enjoys treating mental/emotional issues (anxiety, grief, depression, life transitions), women's health issues and GI disorders.

    Mallory's calming presence will help you feel at ease as soon as you walk into the treatment room. She has a gentle needling technique and compassionately communicates what you can expect both during and after treatment. She recognizes that your body is it's own greatest healer, and she is available as an assist to help facilitate the healing process.

Approach to care

  • What does it look like for you to provide care to patients in larger bodies? How is, or isn’t, your approach different from how you care for patients in smaller bodies? If you work with children, how is or isn’t your approach different when working with children?

    I treat fat people the same as I would treat a smaller bodied person. If there are extra accommodations needed like a seated or side-laying position in order to make them comfortable for treatment, I have the capability of providing my services in those positions. I maintain a body positive attitude and hold sympathy for fat folks when they choose to express sentiments about living in a larger body, but I do not broach this subject myself other than to ask basic health questionnaire questions such as appetite, etc.

  • What is your perspective on how weight is or is not related to health?

    Weight *can* play a role in health, but I do believe in health at any size. Skinny does not equal healthy. Certain conditions or pain issues can arise when a person carries more weight on their bodies, but I don’t ever suggest that weight is the only reason for their condition. I look at a person with a holistic lens.

  • Finish this sentence: “Fat people are…” 

    Fat people are just people. I don’t discriminate.

  • How do you, your clinic, and the healthcare system you work in use BMI (i.e BMI cutoffs for accessing certain services, BMI on charts and printouts, etc)? Is this flexible?

    We do not take weight or discus BMI at all.

  • If a patient declines to be weighed, how do you and/or your staff proceed?

    N/A - we do not take weights.

  • If a patient declines to discuss weight loss, nutrition, and/or exercise, how do you proceed?

    I respect their boundary and invite them to let me know if they wish to discuss it in the future.

  • What does the physical accessibility of your office space look like? What kinds of accommodations are present for people in larger bodies? Are there things you wish were in place that are currently not? 

    We are on the ground level, no stairs. I have two treatment rooms, one room has a hydrolic table that I can lower to make it easier to get onto, the other room has extra extenders on the sides to accommodate a wider body, and also can adjust to a seated position for those sitting is more comfortable for.

  • What do you do to allow fat people to feel comfortable and welcome in your office? 

    Warm smiles, positive attitude. I do not mention their weight, does not get discussed unless the patient brings it up. I am a fat person myself, and I believe this alone makes other fat people feel at ease. I’ve been discriminated against for my body size in other healthcare settings, and make certain that I treat all my patients with absolute respect.

  • If you’d like to use this space to talk about any identities (gender, race, size, sexuality, etc.) you hold and how this relates to your care, please do so. 

    I am inclusive of all races, genders, sizes, sexualities.