(December 5, 2025)

There are some people who quietly become the fabric of a place over time.
At i spa, Deb was one of those people.

For many years, Dr. Debra Bebell cared for patients here with the kind of attention and compassion that can’t really be taught. She poured herself into her work and patients because it mattered to her on a soul level. Showing up for others was who she was. People trusted her. They felt comfortable with her. She had a way of making patients feel heard, understood, and genuinely cared for from the moment they sat down with her.

Deb came to acupuncture after spending 15 years in critical care nursing, and that experience shaped the way she treated people. She understood both the clinical side of care and the human side of it. Her approach always reflected the belief that healing should support the whole person, not just symptoms on a chart. She earned her nursing degree from Keuka College in New York and later became a licensed Acupuncture Physician through the Florida Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine in St. Petersburg. Since 1998, she served the Tampa Bay community and became a strong advocate for integrative and holistic wellness. She loved educating people about Chinese medicine and often spoke at workshops, wellness events, and community programs throughout the area.

But titles and credentials only tell part of the story.

Anyone who knew Deb knows she brought more than experience to i spa. She brought steadiness, humor, honesty, and kindness. She truly cared about people, and she gave that care freely every single day. Her patients felt it, and so did all of us who worked beside her.

She was an integral part of building i spa from day one, helping shape not only the care our patients received, but the heart and spirit of the clinic itself. Her presence, her voice, and the way she cared for people will continue to be felt here in countless ways, as will her loss. We miss her deeply, and we are incredibly grateful for the time we had with her, the care she gave to this community, and the example she set for all of us.

And if Deb were here, she would probably remind us to keep taking care of ourselves and each other, to slow down once in a while, to find moments of peace where we can, and to keep moving forward with kindness, compassion, and a little more grace. Knowing Deb, she would also fully expect us to actually listen this time, too. 😀