Hello, my name is
Dr. Lance Westendarp
Dr. Lance Westendarp ND, LAc
I’m a naturopathic doctor, acupuncturist, and movement educator based in Houston, Texas. My work is rooted in a simple but often overlooked truth: the body does not divide itself into physical, emotional, structural, and energetic parts—so neither should our approach to healing.
Over time, I saw how often people were treated in fragments. Symptoms addressed without context. Injuries strengthened without awareness. Emotional stress managed without considering the body that carries it. I committed to a different path—one that integrates clinical precision, structural understanding, and deep internal awareness into a cohesive practice.
Reconnect with your body.
Heal deeply. Transform your life.
Through an integrated blend of movement, acupuncture, naturopathic care, and mind-body practice, I help people restore vitality, build strength, and return to a more grounded and embodied way of living.
A Personal Turning Point
Before entering medical training, I was teaching yoga and studying at conservatory as a classical pianist. I was living in a highly driven, anxious state—functioning at a high level while suppressing deeper physical and emotional strain.
During that time, I developed severe elbow tendinitis that did not improve despite working with multiple specialists. It was the first symptom I could no longer ignore—though insomnia, digestive disruption, anxiety, and attentional struggles had already been present for years. I simply thought they were things my body did, things to manage and push through.
The injury was what finally brought me to acupuncture, having never worked with alternative or natural medicine before. That’s how I met Brian McKenna.
Over the course of our work together, he came to see not only the injury, but the broader pattern—my rigidity, anxiety, and the fact that I was teaching yoga while struggling to feel at home in my own body. When I mentioned my desire to deepen my study—partly because I was teaching, and partly because pain was beginning to limit my practice—he referred me to Debbie Mills.
I came to her wanting skill—to refine postures, deepen my practice, and become more competent at something I believed I should be good at.
At the time, I still thought I was seeking technique and injury support. What began that way quickly became something far deeper than I anticipated.
She refused to focus on technique alone. She told me she could not meaningfully teach me postures if I did not yet know how to breathe or feel my own body.
She did not focus on making me better at yoga. She focused on teaching me how to feel — and how to heal.
Rather than reinforcing the labels I carried, she challenged my identification with them. She invited me to see that my symptoms were not random malfunctions, but expressions of the life I was living — and the subtle (and not so subtle) ways I had learned to brace against my own experience..
The work was not fast. It required discomfort, accountability, and sustained attention. But it replaced a fragmented understanding of the body with something relational and integrated.
It taught me that healing is not something applied from the outside. It is cultivated through awareness, relationship, and the right degree of intervention.
That experience remains foundational to how I practice today.
I earned dual degrees in naturopathic medicine and Chinese medicine—including acupuncture and herbal medicine—from Bastyr University, one of the few accredited naturopathic medical schools in the United States.
After graduating in 2017, I completed a primary care residency in family medicine, deepening my experience in complex chronic illness and integrative care.
I pursued additional study in orthopedics, sports medicine, and mind-body medicine, recognizing that effective care requires both structural precision and systems-level understanding.
I have also completed post-graduate training in mold and biotoxin-related illness with Dr. Jill Crista.
Diagnosis and intervention matter. But lasting healing requires the right intervention, at the right time, with the right degree of force — and an understanding of the person as more than a diagnosis.Long-term mentorship has shaped my work as much as formal education.
My philosophical grounding was influenced by study with Srivatsa Ramaswami, a direct student of Sri T. Krishnamacharya, whose emphasis on disciplined practice and lineage informed my respect for tradition.
For over two decades, my ongoing study with Debbie Mills has shaped how I approach embodiment, relational depth, and the discipline of personal work.
Brian McKenna — originally my acupuncturist — remains both mentor and colleague, supporting my continued study of Chinese medicine and herbal practice.
Over the past decade, movement has become central to my work. Study with contemporary movement teachers — including Marcello Palazzo and direct students of Ido Portal — has shaped my understanding of movement as a full-spectrum practice of embodied physical education.
I remain committed to learning under teachers who challenge and refine my understanding of the body-mind and its capacity for change.
Closing
The people I work with are often thoughtful and capable, yet carrying more than they appear to on the surface. Some are navigating chronic illness. Others are working through pain, burnout, or performance plateaus. Many sense there is more depth available to them.
If you are willing to look honestly, work consistently, and engage your growth with courage, this work can meet you there.
My role is not to fix you. It is to help you refine perception, build meaningful capacity, and cultivate a relationship with your body that is resilient and sustainable.
I have walked this path myself — guided, supported, and uplifted by my teachers and their teachers. I continue to practice within that lineage. Healing is not optimization — it goes somewhere optimization can't reach.
What my clients say
Lance asks the questions I didn’t realize were missing from my healthcare. He listens deeply and brings Eastern and Western approaches together with real thoughtfulness.
MR
Lance balances care and challenge in a way that feels both intelligent and safe. I regained strength in areas that had felt unreliable for years and trust his guidance completely.
SB
Working with Lance helped me simplify my health rather than add more to it. I felt clearer, more supported, and more confident in my body.
PE
I was initially unsure about acupuncture, but working with Lance quickly put me at ease. He is prepared, knowledgeable, and deeply compassionate, and takes the time to explain his thinking and build a thoughtful plan.
MW
