New Associate Announcement
I’m honored to welcome Aaron Deterding, L.Ac. to Backupuncture of Denver. Aaron is a graduate of Colorado Chinese Medicine University, where he earned a Master of Acupuncture with a specialization in Chinese Herbal Medicine. His focus is treating pain, mood, PTSD and internal medicine issues (including gut, immune, respiratory, internal organ and autonomic issues), through acupuncture and TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) including herbs, moxa, tuina, cupping, diet and comprehensive lifestyle changes.
Aaron’s path to acupuncture began with an early aspiration to practice medicine. After earning his bachelor’s degree in chemistry with a pre-med focus, he chose another form of service: eight years in the Army as an Aviation Officer during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
After serving in the military, Aaron's commitment to service extended to the public civilian sphere. In Denver, he led strategic operations for Denver Public Schools, where he built the district's first comprehensive map of the supports reaching its highest-need schools and launched a program that saved the district over $100,000 a year. As an Urban Leaders Fellow in the office of then-Senator Mike Johnston, he developed policy aimed at expanding college access and breaking cycles of poverty in underserved communities. In addition, Aaron has founded two grassroots organizations, one reimagining urban mobility to make city streets safer and more equitable, the other engaging fellow military veterans around public policy and civic life, and he has served as a charter member of an equity working group dedicated to addressing institutional racism within Denver's schools.
Across all of it runs the same thread that now defines his clinical work: a belief in caring for the whole community. He is particularly eager to work with veterans or others affected by violence and trauma in their battle to regain their wholeness.
Aaron and I first became acquainted while we both were lobbying the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies to allow acupuncturists to achieve a clinical facilitator license under the Natural Medicine regulations, and so like me he is also interested in assisting those who are using psychedelic medicine, including TCM and acupuncture to synergize with microdosing as well as preparatory and integration treatments for those doing psychedelic macrodoses or ketamine therapy. Currently he assists psilocybin journeys as staff at Numia Healing Center.
In Aaron’s own words:
My aspiration to practice medicine began in high school, but after earning my bachelor's degree in chemistry (pre-med) in 2003, I felt called to serve my country and joined the Army as an Aviation Officer during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. After 8 years of service, I decided to return to civilian life, but the scars of my service, both mentally and physically, were not so easy to walk away from. In search of alternatives to pharmaceuticals and other traditional Western care, I discovered acupuncture and herbal medicine in 2015. The positive impact these therapies had on my well-being were so profound that I decided to return to my passion for healthcare as a practitioner, centering on the ancient traditions of Eastern medicine, as I continued my own healing journey.
My life’s work has always been dedicated to serving others, and I look forward to continuing that mission in service to the health and well-being of my clients.
We’re grateful to have Aaron joining the clinic, and we’re excited for you to meet him. He is available to book July 14th with hours on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Open house to be announced shortly.