Licensed acupuncturist Kaitlin Shaner at Abalone Acupuncture in San Francisco

About Kaitlin Shaner, LAc.

My path to acupuncture began with my own healing. Shortly after moving to Los Angeles for undergrad, I started experiencing debilitating migraines that seemed to come out of nowhere. Conventional medicine offered little relief, so I turned to acupuncture — and within just a few sessions, the migraines were gone. That experience opened a door I never knew existed, and I've been walking through it ever since.

Growing up as a millennial, I've watched my generation bear the weight of the opioid epidemic and a healthcare system that often reaches for a prescription pad before exploring other options. I know that weight personally — I've lost friends to addiction, and that grief has never left me. My deepest motivation for becoming a licensed acupuncturist is to offer my community something different — a safe, effective, and holistic path to healing that treats the whole person, not just the symptom.

I believe that movement and food are medicine, and that art and community have the power to heal. I believe we are born deeply connected to the earth and her seasonal rhythms — and that somewhere along the way, that connection is lost. My role as an acupuncturist is to help you find your way back. I meet you where you are, listen to your story, and work with you to build a treatment plan that honors your unique needs — guiding you, step by step, toward balance with your own natural rhythms so you can live as the brightest, healthiest version of yourself.

I believe your body has a remarkable capacity to heal. I'm here to help you facilitate that. One of my greatest joys in this work is supporting women as they step into motherhood — walking alongside them through one of life's most profound and transformative journeys. As an acupuncturist, I enjoy treating fertility, labor induction, menopause and other gynecological concerns, dermatology, facial rejuvenation, acute and chronic pain, migraines, anxiety, depression, insomnia and working with adolescents. I am trained in cosmetic facial acupuncture, tui na, cupping, gua sha, microneedling, Japanese scalp acupuncture, Sports medicine and herbal therapy. I have a passion for community medicine and education and find great joy in empowering my patients to incorporate herbal therapy into their daily lives.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time in the ocean, dancing, spinning on the aerial hoop, cultivating my green thumb and creating herbal remedies.