Spring
March – May
Windows open, plum-blossom tea in the waiting room, and Saturday community mornings come back for the year.
Booked mostFollow-up acupuncture · cupping
Acupuncture & herbal medicine · Westbrook
Quiet needles, old herbs, and time to talk.
A small clinic in a former tea house on Quarry Hill Road. Unhurried acupuncture, cupping and herbal consultations, a sliding-scale community room, and a practitioner who remembers what you said last time.
- First visit
- 75 min · $120
- Community room
- $35 – $55, you choose
- Today
- Open 9 am – 7 pm
The clinic
Three rooms, a dispensary, and a kettle that's always on.
Plum Rain is named for the soft early-summer rain that ripens the plums. It suits the way we like to work: steadily, gently, and without hurrying anyone. Visits start with a real conversation, the needles are fine and single-use, and herbs are weighed out by hand in the dispensary at the back.
Acupuncture and herbs here sit alongside the care you get from your doctor, never in place of it.
The year at Plum Rain
The clinic follows the seasons.
Summer
June – August
The plum rain itself. Cool barley tea, early openings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and the garden door left open between visits.
Booked mostEarly-morning visits · herbal consultations
Autumn
September – November
Chrysanthemum tea and the first fire in the stove. We add Thursday-evening community hours as the evenings draw in.
Booked mostCommunity room · seasonal check-ins
Winter
December – February
Warm wheat bags on every table, ginger tea, and gift cards wrapped in paper we print with the clinic's seal.
Booked mostAcupuncture with moxa warming · gift cards
Treatments & prices
Open a drawer to see what's inside.
Six ways to begin. Every visit is one-to-one unless it says otherwise, and prices include the time we spend talking.
For new patients
First visit
75 minutes$120
A long conversation about how you've been, how you sleep, eat and work, and what you'd like from your visits. Then a gentle look at pulse and tongue, the traditional way, and your first treatment, lying under a warm blanket.
- Fine, sterile, single-use needles
- About 30 minutes of quiet rest with the needles
- A written note of what we did and what we'd suggest
For returning patients
Follow-up acupuncture
50 minutes$90
A short catch-up on the weeks since we saw you, then treatment and rest. Many people come weekly at first and then less often; we'll suggest a rhythm and you decide.
- With the same practitioner each time
- Add cupping, moxa or gua sha if you'd like
- Packages of five at $425
Shared, quiet room
Community acupuncture
40 minutes$35 – $55
Six reclining chairs in a calm room, fully clothed, with a practitioner moving quietly between them. Needles are placed in the arms, legs and ears. You choose the price on the scale.
- Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings
- Roll up sleeves and pant legs; no changing
- Same care, whatever you pay
On its own, or added on
Cupping
30 minutes$60
Glass cups with gentle suction, left still or slid slowly across the back and shoulders with warm oil. Added to an acupuncture visit, it's $25.
- Gentle to firm suction, your choice
- Round marks can last a few days
- Wear something loose to go home in
The dispensary
Herbal consultation
30 minutes$55
A conversation with Mei, then a formula weighed out in our dispensary as dried herbs to simmer, easy granules or tea bags. Formulas are priced separately, usually $15 to $30 a week. We'll always ask what else you take first.
- Herbs from suppliers who test every batch
- Written instructions in plain English
- Refills by phone, picked up or posted
Add to any visit
Moxa warming & gua sha
10 – 15 minutes$20
Moxa is a dried herb, mugwort, warmed near the skin for a slow, deep heat. Gua sha is smooth, rhythmic scraping with a jade tool across the shoulders and back. Both are added at the end of a visit.
- Smoke-free moxa sticks indoors
- Gua sha with plain or scented oil
- Just ask on the day
Sample prices. We give itemized receipts for health savings accounts and for plans that cover acupuncture.
Your first visit
Four quiet steps, no surprises.
-
Arrive, take your shoes off
Ada makes a pot of tea and shows you the room. Wear loose clothes; sleeves and pant legs that roll up help.
-
Talk, for as long as it takes
Your practitioner listens first, privately, in the treatment room. Nothing to fill in online beforehand.
-
Rest with the needles
A few fine needles, a warm blanket and about thirty quiet minutes. Most people drift off; we're right outside.
-
A note to take home
What we did, what we'd suggest next and when. Book again at the desk, or think it over at home.
The community room
Pay what fits your week.
Every Thursday evening and Saturday morning, six reclining chairs and the same careful hands, at a price you choose between $35 and $55. Nobody asks why, and nobody knows what anyone else paid.
- Thursdays 5:00 – 8:00 pm
- Saturdays 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
The middle of the scale: what most people choose.
Request a community chairPractitioners
The hands you'll be in.
-
Mei
Acupuncturist & herbalist · founder
Opened Plum Rain in 2011 and still runs the dispensary. Unhurried, precise and fond of a long conversation; sees patients Tuesday to Friday.
-
Jonah
Acupuncturist
Runs the community room and the Saturday clinic. Gentle with first-timers and anyone a little wary of needles.
-
Ada
Front desk & dispensary
Answers the phone, books your visits, packs herb refills and keeps the kettle on. Knows every tea in the cupboard.
Appointments
Request an appointment.
Choose what you'd like and when suits you. Ada will call or text within one working day to settle the time.
- Only your name and how to reach you: we'll talk about everything else in person
- 24 hours' notice to change or cancel
- Or call (555) 019-2626
Received, with thanks
This is a sample site, so nothing was sent and no appointment was made.
Visit
The old tea house on Quarry Hill.
41 Quarry Hill RoadWestbrook, VT 05000
Parking in the gravel lot beside the plum trees. The 3 bus stops at Quarry Hill & Mill, a short walk up the lane. Step-free through the garden door.
Open Tuesday to Saturday
| Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday | 9 am – 7 pm |
|---|---|
| Thursday | 9 am – 8 pm |
| Saturday | 9 am – 1 pm |
| Sunday, Monday | Closed |
Questions people ask
Does acupuncture hurt?
The needles are much finer than the ones used for injections. Most people feel a tiny pinch or nothing at all, then a dull heaviness or warmth. Tell us if anything feels sharp and we'll adjust it straight away.
Are the needles reused?
Never. Every needle is sterile, single-use and opened in front of you, then disposed of straight after your treatment.
Do I have to take herbs?
Not at all. Herbs are a separate consultation, only if you'd like one. We always ask about any medicines or supplements you take first, and we're happy to talk with your doctor.
How many visits will I need?
That depends on you and what you'd like from your visits. We'll suggest a rhythm after your first visit and keep talking about it; you're never signed up for more than you choose.
Should I eat beforehand?
A light meal an hour or two before is ideal: not hungry, not too full. Wear loose clothes and leave a little time afterward if you can.