Ryan Selove, Dipl.Ac., L.Ac.
Ryan Selove is an acupuncturist and wellness practitioner whose path to Chinese medicine grew from fifteen years of deep personal immersion in Qi Gong, Tai Chi, and the healing arts of the East. That journey has its roots in his undergraduate studies at George Mason University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Integrative Studies with a concentration in Consciousness and Transformation, an academic foundation that reflects the same holistic worldview he brings to the treatment room today. He later deepened that perspective with a Master of Business Administration in Sustainable Innovation from the University of Vermont, cultivating a systems-level understanding of health, community, and lasting change. Guided by the conviction that physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being are inseparable, Ryan ultimately found in acupuncture a way to share those connections with others on a far greater scale.
That calling led him to the Virginia University of Integrative Medicine (VUIM) in Vienna, Virginia, where he undertook a rigorous four-year graduate program, earning his Master of Science in Acupuncture. His clinical training spanned the VUIM Student Clinic as well as the INOVA Peterson Life with Cancer Center in Fairfax, Virginia, where he treated patients, caregivers, and staff navigating serious illness. It was an experience that deepened his understanding of what it means to offer effective care with gentleness and presence.
During his training, Ryan spent nearly two years observing and assisting Dr. Hon Lee, a Chinese Medicine Doctor in Herndon, Virginia. Dr. Lee, himself a student of the legendary Dr. Richard Tan, practiced distal needling and the Balance Method of acupuncture. Working alongside him gave Ryan his first and most formative exposure to the Balance Method system, the same approach that sits at the heart of the work at Central Virginia Wellness Institute.
After graduating and passing the national acupuncture board examinations, Ryan earned his credentials as a Diplomate of Acupuncture and a Licensed Acupuncturist in the state of Virginia. He then began focused training in the Balance Method under the direct mentorship of Dr. Edward Vernon and joined Central Virginia Wellness Institute as an Associate Acupuncturist. He continues his studies as a part-time student in VUIM's Doctor of Acupuncture program.
Beyond the clinic, Ryan is a teacher of Qigong and Tai Chi and a facilitator of Gong Fu Tea Ceremony, practices he regards as natural extensions of the same healing philosophy he brings to his acupuncture work. Before acupuncture, he served as a volunteer coordinator and public educator with Virginia State Parks and the National Park Service, roles that reflected his lifelong love of the natural world and his gift for building meaningful community. Outside of work, he can be found exploring local parks and trails, practicing Tai Chi and meditation, sharing tea, playing and listening to music, and spending time with family and friends.