Acupuncture Sanctuary

For Referrers

For GPs, specialists and allied health

When your patient asks about acupuncture, here is who you are sending them to.

I’m Ada Sobieszczuk: a registered acupuncturist, Chinese herbal medicine practitioner and Chinese massage (tuina) practitioner. I have been in private clinical practice for 20 years, and an ACC treatment provider since 2008, and I teach other practitioners. I take time with your patient, explain things in plain language, and write to you after the first appointment.

How to referCredentials and training

Why you can refer with confidence

RegisteredChinese Medicine Council of New Zealand (CMCNZ), since its inception in 2023, in acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine and tuina.
ACC provider since 2008Years of treating accident and injury claims, including five years working alongside osteopaths.
20 years in private practiceIn clinical practice in Auckland since 2007, with bodywork from the start.
Pathology-literateI read lab results and understand pathology. Member of the Australasian College of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM).
Teacher and mentorTeaching since 2009, and keynote speaker at the Acupuncture New Zealand conference five years running.

At a glance

First appointment
90 minutes
Follow-ups
60 minutes
Letter to you
After the first appointment, with your patient’s consent
ACC
Up to 12 sessions over 12 weeks, with treatment starting within a year of injury. A GP or osteopath lodges the initial claim.
Fees
ACC-subsidised and private rates are on the pricing page.
Clinic
47a South Lynn Road, Titirangi, Auckland 0604
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday

Where I can help your patient

Injury, pain and restriction

The sinew channels (jing jin, 經筋) are classical acupuncture’s tendino-muscular channels: continuous lines through muscle, tendon and fascia. They correspond closely to the myofascial lines described by Thomas Myers, a long-time student of Ida Rolf, in Anatomy Trains.

I use movement to find where a restriction sits, then treat that line with acupuncture, tuina, cupping, gua sha or moxibustion. My hands-on foundation is a tuina internship at the Beijing Massage Hospital, a hospital dedicated to massage.

Chronic and long-standing conditions

Many of my patients have already been through investigation and treatment and want skilled, sustained support alongside their medical care. I am trained in functional and nutritional medicine through ACNEM.

If something falls outside my scope, I will say so, and I am glad to talk it through with you so the patient gets what is best for them.

Stress and emotional load in the body

I use Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), a communication and behaviour-change framework, and Ericksonian conversational hypnosis, a language-based approach, when they suit the person in front of me.

This work is complementary to mental health care. My training was long-form, supervised and in person, not short seminars.

How I work with your patients

  1. 1
    Time and presence. The first appointment is 90 minutes, so there is room for the whole story. I stay in the room for the entire treatment.
  2. 2
    Education. I enjoy teaching people about their own health. I explain what I find in plain language and give practical diet and lifestyle advice.
  3. 3
    Autonomy. I work in the spirit of rangatiratanga, supporting each person’s autonomy and self-determination.
  4. 4
    Between visits. Patients can email me between sessions, and I share resources for use at home.
  5. 5
    Communication with you. With the patient’s consent, I write to you after the first appointment. You and I are both here in service of the same person.

Credentials and experience

Twenty years in private practice, on a foundation of formal training

The full continuing professional development record is on its own page. These are the essentials.

  • Chinese Medicine Council of New Zealand (CMCNZ): registered since the Council’s inception in 2023, working to the standards of clinical competence, cultural safety and ethical conduct set under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance (HPCA) Act 2003.
  • Professional bodies: a member of a professional body throughout my career, currently Acupuncture New Zealand (AcNZ), and of the Australasian College of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine (ACNEM) since 2020. I was President of the New Zealand Institute for Chinese Medicine in 2016–17.
  • ACC: registered treatment provider since 2008.

  1. 1998 – 2008

    Formal training

    • BSc (Hons) Traditional Chinese Medicine, Middlesex University, London, completed 2004, with supervised clinical placements including an NHS pain clinic and a placement at hospitals in Beijing
    • Tuina internship, Beijing Massage Hospital (2006–07): 400+ hours in hospital, treating up to ten patients a day, in adult, geriatric and paediatric tuina. I studied Mandarin at the Beijing Language and Culture University at the same time.
    • Diploma of Therapeutic Massage with Neuromuscular Therapy certificate, Wellpark College of Natural Therapies, Auckland (2008)

  2. 2007 – present

    Private clinical practice in Auckland

    I arrived in Auckland in 2007 and began working with people straight away, first with massage and tuina, then registered to practise acupuncture and an ACC provider by 2008. I have been in private practice ever since.

    • ACC provider for acupuncture and tuina within a multi-disciplinary practice, working alongside osteopaths (New Lynn, 2010–15)
    • Acupuncturist in a randomised controlled trial of acupuncture and live birth rates in women having IVF, led by Associate Professor Caroline Smith of Western Sydney University (2011)
    • Director, Acupuncture Sanctuary, Titirangi (2014 to present)
    • Ongoing postgraduate study in nutritional and environmental medicine (ACNEM), pathology testing, ethics and safe practice

  3. 2017 – present

    Classical acupuncture

    Classical acupuncture is lineage-based. It is passed from teacher to student through a continuous line of transmission and clinical apprenticeship, and it works with the complete system of channels: the primary, sinew, luo, divergent and extraordinary channels. My teachers are Sean Tuten, Ann Cecil-Sterman, who has published the textbooks on this system, and Master Jeffrey Yuen.

    • 2017: Treating Sinews: the Tendinomuscular Channels, with Ann Cecil-Sterman
    • 2021–2023: Classical Acupuncture Mentorship with Sean Tuten (online), with an advanced clinical practicum in Melbourne
    • 2024: six-month mentorship with Ann Cecil-Sterman: 24 weeks, 248 contact hours, 132 CEUs, with 1:1 mentoring
    • Further study in pulse and tongue diagnosis, dietary therapy and herbal medicine

  4. 2009 – present

    Teaching and mentoring

    I have taught throughout my career, and teaching is now a core part of my work.

    • Lecturer, Wellpark College of Natural Therapies (2009–2011): Chinese medical philosophy, acupressure and applied tuina for massage diploma students, and clinical and coursework assessor
    • Study groups for acupuncturists from 2020, as Director of Chinese Medicine CPD New Zealand, and ongoing mentoring of practitioners as they apply classical principles in clinic
    • Weekend workshops in Auckland since November 2025: nine so far, on pulse diagnosis and each class of channel (sinew, luo, divergent and extraordinary), with 14 CPD hours per weekend, and a second cohort opening in 2027
    • Keynote speaker, Acupuncture New Zealand conference, five years running (2022 to 2026)
    • Training in teaching itself: Heartbeat: Foundations in Training and Leadership with Amy Bell, five days live (September 2026)

  5. 2025 – 2026

    Communication and coaching

    Live, supervised certifications with Amy Bell in Melbourne.

    • NLP Practitioner (22-day immersive, 180+ hours) with Ericksonian Conversational Hypnosis and Life Coaching; NLP Master Practitioner
    • Advanced Life Coach (360+ hours), Embodied Leadership and Enneagram Coach

Languages

I can work with your patient in their own language

EnglishFluent
FrenchProficient
PolishProficient
MandarinBasic

I was born in Poland, grew up between Melbourne and Europe, and trained in London and Beijing. If your patient would be more at ease in Polish or French, please tell me when you refer.

ACC and safety

ACC

ACC covers up to 12 acupuncture sessions over 12 weeks, provided treatment starts within a year of the injury. A GP or osteopath lodges the initial claim, and acupuncturists cannot lodge it. Once ACC approves the claim, your patient can book with me directly.

Safety

I use single-use disposable needles only, so there is no risk of cross-contamination. As a CMCNZ-registered practitioner, I am accountable for my hygiene and patient care, and I keep my practice current with safety guidance for acupuncture.

How to refer

Three steps, no paperwork

  1. 1
    Let your patient know, or contact me. No formal referral is needed. Your patient can book online or phone, or you can call or email me with any questions first.
  2. 2
    A 90-minute first appointment. Time for the full history, an examination and a first treatment.
  3. 3
    I write to you. With your patient’s consent, you receive a letter after the first appointment.

Book onlinePhone (09) 816 8000Email me

Acupuncture Sanctuary · 47a South Lynn Road, Titirangi, Auckland 0604 · Monday, Tuesday and Thursday