A Note About This Course

20 years of supporting people heal from depletion has led me to realize that the foundations of health are built upon three core parts of our life. The manners in which we eat, sleep and socialize determine the foundations of our health and well being. I built this course after years of teaching patients how to make friends with nourishment. The best supplements and medicine in the world are no substitute for healthy, well sourced meals,—especially for people living with chronic inflammatory or autoimmune patterns.

When your body feels unpredictable, cooking and eating become terrifying. You can do “everything right” and still feel off. You can follow a protocol perfectly and still feel confused. Over time, that kind of effort can erode the most important resource you have: trust in your own body.

This cohort isn’t here to add more pressure or more rules.

I made this course to give you something steadier: a way of cooking that your body can actually receive,  a rhythm you can return to. I have designed this course to be calm and simple, practical and approachable.

I’m not interested in applying mental models or theoretical protocol. I’m interested in what is real and what will work to help you heal.

20 years of experience with chronic disease—both clinically and personally—has proven to me that healing  begins when we stop chasing the next answer and start rebuilding the basics: nourishment, digestion, regulation, and the ability to respond to symptoms without panic or shame.

That’s what this course is for.

The Way I Teach

This course is designed around a few principles that I return to again and again:

1) Symptoms are information

Symptoms are not failures. They’re signals.

They tell us something about load, capacity, timing, and what your system can actually handle right now.

2) Calm pacing matters

Many people try to heal with intensity (usually the same intensity that got them sick…)— restriction, supplements, urgency.

With fragile systems, speed is stress. We work slowly enough for the body to integrate smoothly.

3) Discernment over dogma

I’m not here to recruit you into a diet identity.

You’ll learn principles that help you think clearly, test gently, and adapt intelligently—without fear.

4) Practice is a place to return

We’re not chasing perfection.

We’re building repeatable rhythms—simple meals, simple preparation, and a steadier relationship with food over time.

5) The kitchen is a training ground

Cooking can become a form of regulation.

Not because it’s romantic—but because it’s real. Heat, timing, simplicity, repetition. That’s where trust rebuilds.

Why This Cohort Exists

There are plenty of courses that offer information.

But most people struggling with autoimmune illness don’t need more content—they need a way to apply what they already know without overwhelm.

I am bridging the gap between:

- “I understand what I should do”

- “I can do it—consistently—in my real life.”

That’s why this experience is a combination of:

- A complete recorded curriculum (for structure and clarity)

- Live Cook With Chen sessions (for real-time adaptation and practical skill)

Real learning happens standing at your stove, deciding what to do with the ingredients you actually have—in the present moment, in a body that you care about.

What Makes This Different

This is a guided kitchen experience, with an acupuncturist who has no formal cooking training other than loving to eat high quality nourishing food. Rather than a list of skills, these are the techniques that I have used to help my family achieve the highest states of health and shared nourishment.

Real-time cooking mentorship

Questions answered while the food is on the stove.

Substitutions explained in context.

Pacing demonstrated—not just described.

Anti-shame, anti-dogma environment

No food shaming. No purity culture. No performative rules about the right and wrong things to eat.

A steady return to coherence

A relaxed steady pace of learning and engaging with food.

A rhythm your nervous system can relax into.

Long-term autonomy

The goal is for you to leave knowing how to cook for yourself—without second-guessing every choice.

Who This Work Is For

This cohort is for you if you’re focused on eating for your health and you feel tired of:

• conflicting dietary advice
• rigid protocols that don’t fit your life
• fear-based food rules
• constantly wondering whether you’re “doing it right”

You don’t need to be a skilled cook.

You don’t need perfect compliance.

You just need a willingness to learn slowly, practice consistently, and treat your body with respect.

A Few Important Notes

This course is educational and experiential in nature.

It is not medical diagnosis or treatment, and it does not replace medical care. We do not promise cures, timelines, or outcomes.

If you are experiencing urgent or severe symptoms, please seek appropriate medical support.

Within this course, we work with what’s practical: building skills, reducing overwhelm, and helping you establish nourishment rhythms that support steadier vitality over time.

Where to Begin

If you feel drawn to this, trust that impulse—but take it slowly.

• View the Cohort Details
• Join the Eastern Scholars Letters (quiet notes you can return to)

If you have questions about fit, pacing, or support, reach out. We’ll help you get oriented.