By Kristina Stucki, reporter

Melissa Wickey, owner of Wayfinder Wellness in Surina Business Park, and doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, has a philosophy on healing that’s the same for communities as it is for bodies – harmony is the answer.

“Community is a sign of the health of the world, and a region,” she said. “We need to know who’s around us, and what gifts people have. Everyone has gotten so insular, especially since covid. We need opportunities to be together. We need to learn from each other and listen to one another—it takes the pressure off of feeling like you have to carry everything by yourself.”

These thoughts around community parallel Wickey’s ideas about the body, and how important it is to see things holistically rather than separately or symptomatically. Early on in her training, she was planning on going to medical school. But after being introduced to Tai Chi and then later massage, she realized that the Western idea of focusing so narrowly on one piece of the puzzle at a time didn’t align with her experiences of human healing and connection.

“Once I switched to chinese medicine, I loved that the philosophy was not just about putting a magnifying glass on the problem itself,” Wickey said. “It’s about zooming out, trying to understand the relationships and trying to tune into the harmony of the body. Come back to center, come back to harmony. That’s what it means to be healthy.”

And that’s what Wickey has worked to help people accomplish during her career as an acupuncturist and on the island as a healer of multiple modalities. Her studio, Wayfinder Wellness, is a refuge for body and soul that offers acupuncture, massage, tai chi, spiritual counseling and wilderness therapy.

Community acupuncture, where Wickey treats multiple people at the same time, is the perfect intersection of wellness for the island and wellness for the body.

“It’s only $45 and it’s the best,” she explained. “All over the world, acupuncture is practiced in a group setting. It’s a lot more cost-effective, space-effective.”

In community acupuncture sessions, which take an hour and 15 minutes, Wickey uses chinese diagnostic methods to create a treatment plan for each person individually and then rotates among the four semi-private spaces she’s set up to perform acupuncture, rest and massage.

Wickey’s community focus shined its light back onto her and her family last year during a major health crisis. Her husband, Matt, developed a sudden and unexplained infection in his leg that had him fighting for his life. Wickey had to face the prospect of losing her husband and raising her young boys alone.

“Everybody came together to support us when Matt was going through his life-threatening infection,” she remembered. “It brings me to tears and makes me realize how rare and special this place is. We all know one another. I have clients, Matt’s in the fire department. We could palpably feel the love and support.”

The community raised almost $17,000 in support for the family in their time of need – which was the only way Wickey was able to regain her footing in the wake of the crisis.

“There are a million Thank Yous that I feel like I still haven’t been able to give,” she said. “Every single outreach and gesture buoyed us up and made it so we are here today. Happy, healthy… feeling just humbled by the magnitude of love and support in this community.”

Wickey’s studio continues to grow as she adds more offerings and classes. She offers tai chi on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10 a.m., community acupuncture, individual acupuncture, individual massage therapy and is working on bringing back the pole-dancing classes.

“Healing isn’t this hardcore masculine thing,” she said. “People heal through sensuality, pleasure, through movement, and feeling good. When you start to relax on a regular basis and really learn what you have to let go of, then you have access to all these parts of yourself that give you vitality and really make your life wonderful. I’m so happy to facilitate some of that in my spaces.”

The name of her studio reflects what, through the community of people and interconnectedness of body, she hopes to do for herself and others: find the way.

“Wayfinding is the process of figuring out how to find your next island, with your relationship with the wind, the stars, the sky,” she explained. “You have a connection with the world that speaks to you inside and shows you the way. There’s an element of faith and connection, but also of skill and cultivation. You know, it’s not just granted – you have to be shown a couple of things and practice. And then, you can find your way.”