Integrative Wellness · Village Health Center

Acupuncture &
Assisted Stretching

Two powerful healing modalities — traditional acupuncture and guided therapeutic stretching — working in concert with chiropractic and massage to restore your body's full potential.

Schedule a Session 562-429-4446
40+ Years of integrative
wellness practice
2 Licensed specialists
under one roof
1 Destination for
whole-body healing
Our Philosophy

"True healing is not the absence of pain — it is the harmony of systems working as one. At Village Health Center, every modality speaks to the others."

◆ ◆ ◆

Dr. Raymond Tropeano, D.C. · John Tourkolias, L.Ac.

Traditional Medicine · Ancient Wisdom

Acupuncture at
Village Health Center

Classical acupuncture rooted in thousands of years of Chinese medicine, practiced with precision and care by our licensed acupuncturist — John Tourkolias, L.Ac.

Your Acupuncturist

Meet John
Tourkolias, L.Ac.

John Tourkolias is a California-licensed acupuncturist (L.Ac.) co-located at Village Health Center's 5406 Village Road location in Long Beach — where his name appears on the building's exterior signage alongside Village Health Center.

Working in close collaboration with Dr. Tropeano, John provides traditional acupuncture as a natural complement to chiropractic adjustments and massage therapy — creating a genuinely integrative care experience that treats the whole person, not just isolated symptoms.

JT

John Tourkolias

Licensed Acupuncturist · L.Ac. · California

Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner offering acupuncture therapy at 5406 Village Road, Long Beach — same building as Village Health Center, listed on exterior signage.

Acupuncture session at Village Health Center — fine needles placed with clinical precision, patient at ease in warm, softly lit treatment room
Traditional Acupuncture

John Tourkolias, L.Ac. · 5406 Village Road, Long Beach

Conditions & Benefits

What Acupuncture Addresses

Acupuncture works by stimulating specific points along the body's meridian pathways — restoring the natural flow of qi (vital energy) and triggering the body's own healing mechanisms. Clinical evidence supports its effectiveness for a wide range of conditions.

Chronic Pain Neck & Back Pain Headaches & Migraines Sciatica Arthritis Stress & Anxiety Insomnia Sports Injuries Carpal Tunnel Digestive Issues Fibromyalgia Neuropathy TMJ Disorders Post-Surgical Recovery
The Science & Tradition

How It Works

Fine, sterile needles are placed at precise anatomical points to stimulate nerve fibers, reduce inflammation, and encourage the release of endorphins and neurotransmitters. The result is a cascade of physiological responses that promote pain relief and healing.

  • Stimulates the central nervous system to release natural pain-relieving chemicals
  • Reduces inflammation and promotes circulation to injured tissues
  • Relaxes muscle tension and spasms — particularly effective when combined with chiropractic care
  • Regulates the autonomic nervous system, reducing the physiological effects of stress
  • Promotes deeper, more restorative sleep without medication
  • Accelerates tissue repair following injury or surgery
Your First Visit

What to Expect

Your acupuncture session is tailored to your specific health history and goals. Here is what a typical visit looks like at Village Health Center.

01

Initial Consultation

John Tourkolias conducts a thorough intake — reviewing your health history, current symptoms, lifestyle, and wellness goals. Traditional Chinese Medicine diagnostic methods (pulse and tongue assessment) complement your intake to build a complete picture.

02

Personalized Treatment Plan

Based on your intake, John selects the precise acupuncture points and modalities suited to your condition. Treatment plans are coordinated with Dr. Tropeano's chiropractic recommendations for maximum synergistic effect.

03

Needle Placement & Rest

Ultra-fine, sterile single-use needles are gently placed at treatment points. Most patients feel little to no discomfort. You rest comfortably for 20–40 minutes as the treatment takes effect — many patients find the session deeply relaxing.

04

Post-Session Review & Integration

Following treatment, John reviews your response and may coordinate with Dr. Tropeano to schedule complementary chiropractic or massage therapy on the same day — maximizing the benefit of your visit to Village Health Center.

Same-day appointments are often available.

Book Acupuncture
5406 Village Road, Long Beach CA — brick building exterior with signage for Village Health Center and John Tourkolias L.Ac.
Our Location

All Under One Roof

Village Health Center and John Tourkolias L.Ac. share the same building at 5406 Village Road in Long Beach's Village neighborhood — as evidenced by the exterior signage. This co-location is not coincidental; it is by design.

Dr. Tropeano and John Tourkolias have structured their practices to work in concert — enabling patients to receive chiropractic, massage, and acupuncture care in a single appointment block, without traveling between providers.

Address 5406 Village Road, Long Beach, CA 90808
Phone 562-429-4446 · 562-222-5620
Hours Monday – Friday · 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Therapeutic Movement · Guided Flexibility

Assisted Stretching

Guided by a trained therapist, assisted stretching takes your body beyond what you can achieve alone — unlocking range of motion, releasing chronic tension, and accelerating recovery in ways that are simply not possible through solo stretching.

Assisted stretching session — therapist guiding patient through a guided hamstring stretch in a warm clinical treatment room with gold and cream tones
Assisted Stretching

Guided therapeutic stretching at Village Health Center

What It Is

Stretching,
Elevated

Assisted stretching — also called guided or facilitated stretching — is a hands-on therapeutic technique in which a trained therapist moves your body through carefully calibrated stretches, targeting specific muscle groups and fascial chains with precision that self-stretching cannot match.

Sessions at Village Health Center are designed to complement your chiropractic care and massage therapy — addressing the muscular and connective tissue components that work alongside the skeletal and soft-tissue treatments Dr. Tropeano provides.

How It Works

Three Pillars of Assisted Stretching

Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation

PNF techniques use the body's own neurological reflexes to achieve deeper, more lasting lengthening of muscle tissue than passive stretching alone — often doubling the effective range of motion achieved in a single session.

Myofascial Release Integration

Guided stretching targets not just muscle bellies but the fascial web that encases them — addressing the root cause of many movement restrictions and the chronic tension patterns that resist conventional treatment.

Therapeutic Sequencing

Each session follows a deliberate sequence — warming target tissues, progressing through ranges, then stabilizing gains. When paired with chiropractic or massage, the sequence is coordinated to maximize systemic benefit.

Integrative Amplification

How Stretching Amplifies Every Other Treatment

A chiropractic adjustment restores joint alignment — but if the surrounding musculature remains tight and contracted, it will pull the spine back toward dysfunction within days. Assisted stretching addresses the soft-tissue component that reinforces and extends the adjustment's effect.

Similarly, massage therapy releases surface tension and promotes circulation — but assisted stretching takes the lengthening process deeper, targeting fascial and muscular layers that hands-on massage cannot fully access. The combination produces results that neither modality achieves alone.

When acupuncture is added to this matrix — calming the nervous system and reducing neurological tone in overactive muscles — the stretching session becomes more effective, and its results more enduring.

+ Chiropractic Care

Stretching lengthens the muscles surrounding adjusted joints, reducing recurrence and allowing adjustments to hold longer — often cutting the frequency of necessary visits.

+ Massage Therapy

Post-massage stretching locks in newly relaxed tissue length and prevents the rebound tightening that can occur as muscles cool — extending the therapeutic window significantly.

+ Acupuncture

Acupuncture reduces the neurological tone that resists stretching. Following an acupuncture session, muscles accept greater length with less discomfort — and the gains are more stable.

I came in for a chiropractic adjustment and left having experienced acupuncture and a stretching session in the same visit. Three months later I'm sleeping better than I have in years. This place is different.

★★★★★ Village Health Center Patient Long Beach, CA · Google Review
Village Health Center · The Whole-Body Difference

One Destination.
Every Dimension of Healing.

Since 1984, Village Health Center has been building toward a single vision: a care environment where chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, and stretching are not separate specialties — they are coordinated instruments of a single, coherent treatment philosophy.

46

Years of Dr. Tropeano's Experience

4

Integrated Healing Modalities

1

Coordinated, Whole-Body Care Plan

Begin Your Healing Journey

Ready to Experience
Integrated Wellness?

Same-day appointments are available. Whether you are seeking acupuncture, assisted stretching, or a coordinated care plan combining multiple modalities, our team is ready to build a treatment approach tailored to you.

◆ ◆ ◆

5406 Village Road · Long Beach, CA 90808 · 562-429-4446

Monday – Friday · 9:00 am – 6:00 pm