Today, I’m interviewing Dr. Deborah Ma (aka Dr. Deb)  of Puzzle Acupuncture in San Francisco. Dr. Deb is a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and a licensed acupuncturist with over 17 years of clinical experience. Her journey in medicine began at the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine—the world’s top TCM university—where she earned both a medical degree and PhD. She spent a decade working at Beijing United Family Hospital, China’s premier private hospital, where she collaborated daily with OB/GYNs, neurologists, and pediatricians.

Most of us move through life with a long list of things we should be doing. But “shoulds” aren’t values. They’re often inherited expectations passed down from family, culture, community, or workplace norms. And when those expectations guide our choices more than our inner compass does, we end up feeling disconnected, resentful, overwhelmed, or unsure of who we are and what we want.

In this first installment of Tiny Cottage Therapy’s new Holistic Healing Interview Series:

Discover how naturopathic medicine supports mental health by addressing the body’s root causes. We speak with Dr. Kirstin Uncur, ND, a naturopathic doctor specializing in mental health, hormone balance, and chronic fatigue. Dr. Uncur shares how understanding the body’s communication—through digestion, inflammation, and nutrient balance—can transform emotional wellbeing.

In a world where the news never sleeps and updates flood our phones by the minute, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information we’re expected to process each day. From breaking headlines to trending topics, the constant stream can leave us feeling anxious, exhausted, and emotionally drained.

But here’s the truth: your brain wasn’t designed to take in this much information at once.

Summer is a time of vibrancy, warm weather, and lots of sunshine. With the longer days, it can be the ideal time to add in a handful of new self-care activities.

There’s something about being on vacation that feels so different from everyday life.
We breathe deeper.
We laugh more.
We feel (at least temporarily) free from the pressure to be productive, polished, or on top of everything.

If you experience high-functioning anxiety, you might be familiar with the feeling of always needing to be on. You’re constantly pushing yourself, overcommitting, and staying busy—because slowing down feels uncomfortable, even impossible. But what if slowing down was actually the thing that helped the most?

What to expect when starting therapy

I want to start by reassuring you if you feel nervous, apprehensive, or anxious about your first therapy session, that’s super normal. Starting therapy (especially for the time first time) can be really scary and take a lot of courage. I want to commend you on your steps to even get to this point.

Spring is a time of renewal and growth, which makes it the perfect time to start new routines.

I wish I could fool myself into thinking that taking care of my overall wellbeing does not include finances. I want to pretend I can just live in a world where money doesn't matter. However…

Take a moment to think about how you've talked to yourself today, or even in the last hour. Were you kind?

When we live according to work & school schedules it is easy to forget that we live in a naturally cyclical world. With all of our modern conveniences, it is understandable that we fail to remember our lives are affected by the moon phases, the tides cycles and daylight hours. At its core, seasonal living is…

The idea is not that reading or listening to books replaces person to person therapy but that it offers another way to explore ourselves and receive insights from others. It can be an opportunity to explore different points of view and more diverse experiences.

My body was trying to send me signals, “we are not okay,” “we need more care,” “something needs to change.” My high stress environment caused me…