And how often do you practice joy and living joyfully?

Ask anyone diagnosed with heart disease this question and you will likely receive a swift answer that reflects an evaluation of (their) whole life, from relationships to environment to mental state.
The issue of heart health has become a large issue in my life as I have recently witnessed both my parents struggle with this disease that leaves a peculiar perspective on living and dying, for those who suffer with the disease, but also for the family supporting them (and acknowledging the congenital implications). Someone with an acute heart condition will feel ‘an impending sense of doom’ to the point where all they can think about is death and dying (this is a classic medically acknowledged symptom).

In Chinese Medicine, Joy is the emotion associated to the energy of the Heart. Imbalance of the heart energy can manifest as sleep issues, memory issues, anxiety, palpitations, shortness of breath, feeling startled or agitated, inappropriate sweating, and behavioral issues such as feeling bitter, or displaying sarcasm or teasing.

A lack of joy in life may be reflective of heart health, and conversely, living joyfully can strengthen your heart energy and muscle.

These days, cardiovascular health is a large issue. Recent research concludes that heart disease is the leading cause of death among women in every major developed country. Adding to the epidemic is the frequent occurrence of obesity and diabetes, which often coexist.

And then there is high blood pressure that is commonly being over-treated and over-diagnosed in a society that is high-stressed (and not living joyfully). Yet, public awareness remains disturbingly low.
Researchers found that only 53 percent of women polled would call 911 if they suspected they were having a heart attack.

Healthy Helpful Options

Acupuncture can significantly impact anyone with the above mentioned symptoms. Over time, acupuncture can balance the energy in every aspect of your life, even for those with more acute symptoms. For those with a family history of heart issues but experiencing minimal or no symptoms, it is ever-important to receive treatment for preventative purposes while you are healthy; this will keep the body, mind, and spirit strong, so if illness does occur, you can recover quickly and completely.
Allowing your body to FEEL rested and calm can be accomplished by receiving acupuncture. Restful sleep is critical to good health.

Arteriosclerosis (hardening/stiffening of the arteries) can be largely prevented or reversed by diet and lifestyle factors. In fact, the famous Nurses’ Health Study, which followed more than eighty-four thousand women for more than fourteen years, showed that the risk of arteriosclerosis is very low in women who get regular exercise, don’t smoke and eat a low-glycemic diet that minimizes simple carbohydrates (sugar and starch) and trans fats and contains plenty of the right kind of fats (such as omega-3 fats).

Weight-bearing exercise can be very helpful for heart health because it lowers insulin resistance dramatically. It increases lean muscle, and because lean muscle mass has a higher metabolic rate than fat, it helps to burn excess body fat and thus lower the risk of heart disease. Women who perform such exercise live an average of six years longer than those who do not. Your goal should be to exercise five or six days per week for at least thirty minutes. The best fitness regimen includes strength, flexibility, and endurance so chose activities that cover each of these.

If you smoke, quit! Smoking is responsible for 55 percent of the cardiovascular deaths in women less than sixty-five years old because smoking greatly increases oxidative stress in every cell of the body. In the Nurses’ Health Study, smokers had four times higher relative risk of total coronary artery disease than women who never smoked. But in women who stopped smoking, the relative risk immediately decreased to 1.5. Two years after stopping smoking, the risk dropped to that of a woman who has never smoked.

If you don’t already have a pet, consider getting one. It’s well documented that the presence of a pet lowers blood pressure and is relaxing. Studies on the health benefits of pets backs up the idea that our hearts are touched and healed, quite literally, by the unconditional love that animals can bring to our lives. People have been found to have lower heart rates and lower blood pressure when they are with their pets. If you can’t own a pet yourself, volunteer at an animal shelter or visit other people’s pets.

Finally, the number and diversity of your friends and associates also contributes to heart health or lack of it. Women with greater numbers of children and too many demands on their time combined with a lack of emotional support have been shown to be at greater risk for heart disease. But women who perceive that their families are supportive are at lower risk. In fact, studies show that if you perceive that you are valuable and powerful in the world and have choices, then your heart will be more apt to work optimally. But your risk for heart disease increases if you feel that you have no autonomy.

Understanding your heart is the most important way for you to prevent or recover from heart disease. A healthy and functioning cardiovascular system is closely related to the regular expression of joy and creativity.

Just last week, a married couple was at the front-desk; she requested a financial summary for 2011 because she misplaced a few invoices. Upon receipt of the print-out her husband glanced at the summary (typically the wife handles the payments), and he said something like “Whoa, that really added up!”  She replied calmly, “Can you imagine how high our healthcare expenses might have been if we WERE NOT coming regularly for Acupuncture?”

The expression holds true for many people here at One Earth, because Community Acupuncture offers financial flexibility and preventative care where our current healthcare system fails.

The goodness of Acupuncture needs to be available to you as often as you need it; I remain dedicated to providing excellent care in a nurturing environment. Additionally, I will continue to offer personal suggestions that can help you along the way.Here are a few tips to incorporate into your healthy lifestyle for the new year:

• Find the joy in quiet time. Distractions console us but they also make us miserable! Shut off your cell phone, power down the PC, turn off the TV. Go for a long walk and ‘forget’ your phone. It is important to rest your brain, your spirit and your nervous system. Some large corporations are forcing employees to shut-down their phones and computers and are finding that their employees become more productive. Try it.
• Eat seasonal foods like Mung Beans – enjoy in soups or made into glass noodles, mung beans are versatile; they are used in Chinese Medicine to clear heat and toxins from the body, relieve water retention and calm the nerves. And herbs like Cinnamon and Ginger are very warming and help digestion.
• Lemons are an excellent source of Vitamin C, especially important this time of year when we need to keep our immune system strong. Use lemon in water or tea (hot or chilled) to break-up phlegm in your throat from sinus drip, but also to moisten a dry mouth or throat.
• Make yourself the priority. In the chaos of work and family schedules, make sure you PLAN time for yourself on a regular basis.
• Acupuncture, herbal medicine and dietary therapy all aim to correct the stresses we put our bodies through every day. Maintain equal portions of work, rest and play, as well as a nourishing diet and emotional flexibility – imbalance leads to excess, in the form of weight management issues, water retention, sluggishness, poor skin and hair, and poor sleep.

The process is the product. There are so many challenges in life and impressions from others that impact our being – but creating your own health employs a self-discipline that carries within the seeds to help you grow, bloom and flourish.

Ninety-Five percent of the people who come to One Earth Acupuncture, visit due to pain and suffering. Illness can be viewed as an opportunity to reset and redirect one’s life. Yet our culture labels us with a disease that most carry as a burden. Mechanical procedures and pills minimize our spirit and compromise our sense of feeling whole and well.

The greatest reason to live is to feel good. Once you allow this positive perspective into your consciousness, you allow a transformation to occur in your health and wellbeing. Fortunately, more and more Americans ARE discovering the tremendous benefits associated with Chinese Medicine.

Personally I enjoy the livelihood I have chosen; I believe those who have met me see the comfort and joy I carry-out in my work. Without great attention to my own health, (as an acupuncturist) I would be unable to maintain proper care for others. I am glad to share the benefits of acupuncture and Chinese Medicine to help YOU FEEL GOOD again.

My husband and I have been using acupuncture for over 15 years – we originally started when my husband was diagnosed with cataracts and we wanted to get the best care to support his vision. It wasn’t long before we realized that acupuncture and Chinese Medicine really contributed to our WHOLE health, not just (his) eyes. We were very happy to meet Evelynne and receive care at One Earth, she is very attentive to our needs and effective at her craft. We are especially grateful that she offers affordable acupuncture as we are on a fixed-retirement income – our health insurance won’t cover acupuncture, but at One Earth we can pay out-of-pocket and manage that in our budget. If I were to say what acupuncture does for me? I would say BALANCE – with regular treatments I feel balance consistently, you know as we age there are many ups and downs, and getting acupuncture helps me to really feel centered. In addition, I have to say that it is a huge comfort knowing Evelynne is available for us when we have a crisis. – Reverend Mother JoEllen Werthman, Bucks County, PA

If you stop to think about it, your body and a garden are both reflections of nature. Nature’s seasons can be observed in witnessing the cycles of a flourishing garden – sprouting, growing, maturing, ripening, harvesting and returning back to earth. This is a continuous process, an endless and eternal cycle.

Similarly, we have our own seasons – birth, growth, maturity, aging, and dying. Our cycles fluctuate daily, monthly, annually, and seasonally for the rest of our lives. When an acupuncturist attempts to understand these fluctuations, she takes into consideration the complex relationships of the body’s inner eco-system. With this understanding and knowledge, an acupuncturist can help you cultivate a bountiful and fruitful harvest of health.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been used for thousands of years and employs a holistic model that treats the WHOLE person – body, mind and spirit. TCM (which includes acupuncture) concentrates on ongoing wellness, versus simply treating symptoms. Acupuncture is not a ‘quick fix’; instead it provides you with the tools and knowledge to nourish your body. The premise of health (as discussed in earlier posts) is to plan for living well by making wise lifestyle choices.

True health is more than just not feeling sick. It means that you are functioning at your highest possible level (naturally without the aid of medication/narcotics or stimulants such as nicotine, sugar and caffeine). True health is when your body is in harmony, your mind is alert, and your spirit is calm. You have the energy to get the most out of life. Each aspect of your whole self is strong and balanced. Regular Acupuncture treatments help you achieve and maintain this level of wellness.

Following is a more detailed description of the body as a whole, in TCM terms.

According to TCM, the body is governed by five solid organs: the heart, kidney, liver, spleen and lung. These organs take on the primary responsibility for the major tasks. Each organ governs assigned internal functions, as well as the pathways of qi (pronounced ‘chee’), known as the acupuncture channels or meridians. The relationship of the organs and meridians is what gives life to the body, like the oceans and the continents of the world – currents and land mass meet and flow together, but each occupies its own territory.

In TCM, the kidney store ‘jing’ (a dense form of qi, essence that gives us life), while the heart houses the shen (spirit/mind). The kidney includes managing fluid metabolism, but further governs the will, growth, development, reproduction, regeneration, the bones and marrow, the lumbar region, ears and teeth. Problems such as delayed growth, ringing in the ears, infertility, low back pain, apathy or despair are viewed as deficiencies in the kidney network.

In addition to moving the blood, the heart controls the higher functions of the central nervous system, including internal and external perception and communication.

The liver stores and governs the blood, tendons and nerves, as well as the volume, pressure and circulation of qi and blood, temperament and judgment – ultimately unfulfilled desire can result from being over-stressed, which stagnates your Liver qi.

The lung governs respiration, circulation and distribution of moisture and qi, and maintains the skin and other defensive boundaries of the body.

The spleen assumes responsibility for digestion, assimilation, distribution of fluids, maintaining stability, density and viscosity of tissue and fluid. It generates muscle and flesh, and holds the blood within the proper boundaries of the vessels.

Each of these organ systems has its own function, yet one cannot function apart from the whole.

Tony Bennett

PART 1 OF A 3-PART SERIES

The distinctive voice of American singer Tony Bennett is recognized by all of today’s generations who love music. I recently heard him say, responding to the news of the death of a fellow musician at age 27, that ‘life is about living long [enough] so that you can enjoy it’.

It is wise to look to our elders for advice about living, for indeed they have pearls of wisdom based upon experience. Much like Chinese Medicine which has been around for thousands of years – it has much wisdom, experience, and has helped countless numbers of people ‘live well and enjoy’.

‘Enjoying’ is an important attitude for sustaining long life, but we need to recognize that our lifestyle choices affect our general health; that ‘living and enjoying’ doesn’t require excess but most certainly should be tempered .

Extremes often lead to pain, either physical or emotional. At the same time, it is difficult to enjoy life when you are in pain. That’s why balance – in life, in lifestyle, and in health – is so important.

Like most Americans, you may not think about your health until you feel sick or out of balance, but preventative care is one of the simplest ways to take charge of your health and ‘live to enjoy’.

Balance and moderation hold different meaning for each of us and certainly we each have preferences in regard to how we like to find balance. The choice of using acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers a natural, effective approach to preventative treatment. In Chinese theories of Acupuncture, one of the most fundamental concepts is that of ‘qi’ (pronounced “chee”). There is no equivalent word or phrase for qi in English – it is often mistranslated as ‘energy’ – the Chinese character for qi originated with three horizontal brushstrokes, representing water vapor rising to form clouds. So qi originally meant something like mist – something moving, not quite solid. Qi has also been translated as breath, atmosphere, function, knowing –how, and connectivity.

One of the best ways to describe what Acupuncture does is to say it moves qi. When an acupuncturist inserts a needle, she is usually trying to “get qi”. To the patient, it feels like something distinct from pain, more like “something happening”; the sensation can be described as fullness, pressure, tingling or a dull ache. Acupuncture is not like other forms of medicine. Plainly, to an acupuncturist, all forms of pain or illness means that things have gotten stuck: somehow, qi is just not moving. It is out of balance. Qi means knowing-how; getting (moving )qi means helping the body remember to do what it knows how to do [Lisa Rohleder et. al.].

I have met many people who seek Acupuncture for pain relief, even as a ‘last resort for help’….and once they find relief, they discontinue Acupuncture because they feel “better”. I normally counsel them to continue a course of TCM (on a less intensive basis). Sometimes they heed this advice; often they don’t. If they don’t, they risk reverting back to the imbalances which caused the acute problems we’ve just addressed.

For these individuals especially, maintenance care is critical to support a healthier tomorrow. To me, it’s an example of a kind of a false sense of security that many Americans feel when it comes to their bodies. We are often reactive with healthcare instead of proactive.

For example most people believe that they eat right and think that they exercise enough and logically, they assume that if they get sick, their doctor will make them better.

Implicitly, we transfer responsibility from the individual to the so-called ‘health care system’.

I feel it’s a serious issue. Except (perhaps) for acute, emergency conditions (where the individual may or may not play a role), individual responsibility is critical in every other aspect of health: health promotion, wellness, disease minimization, and treatment of complex diseases. This is true in Western medicine, and even more so in TCM.

Taking time for wellness involves healthy eating, exercise, proper rest, and balanced enjoyment that helps you to manage stress. Acupuncture plays an important role in wellness and preventative healthcare as it stimulates your body’s natural ability to heal itself. It treats the whole person—physical, emotional and mental—simultaneously. Some immediate results of treatment include reduced anxiety and depression, an improved sense of well being, relaxation and improved sleep. The long-term benefits are improvements in overall health, balance and wellness, and potential resolution of chronic health problems. In the instances where medication is a necessary medical treatment, be sure to question the terms of use including duration, dose for your constitution, interaction with not only other medications but lifestyle choices such as food and physical activity.

Taking time for wellness doesn’t just result in better health today – it can affect your future – so make the wise choice to invest in your body, mind and spirit.

Please let me know your comments and ideas about planning for wellness.

Importantly we need to take extra precautions to protect ourselves during this radiant summer season. Summer is a time for fun and games; however, it also holds risks such as heat exhaustion, heat stroke, skin cancer, food poisoning and even tetanus.

Enjoy your fun and healthful summer!

Sunlight, as we know, can be either helpful or destructive to our health, depending on our exposure level. The ultraviolet rays of the sun are a natural sterilizer, killing bacteria and fungus on the skin as well as promoting the production of vitamin D, a substance essential for bone health. It can also stimulate the immune system, raising the levels of natural killer cell activity. Too much sun exposure, however, can cause skin damage and more serious conditions such as skin cancer, heat stroke, dehydration, and suppressed immune function. To maximize benefit from the sun, limit direct exposure to thirty minutes or less daily, within two hours of sunrise or sunset.

It is critical to understand the early signs of heat exhaustion that can creep up if we do not stay well hydrated.  Know the signs for yourself and also your children and the elderly.  Symptoms may include light-headedness, dizziness, fatigue, weakness, headache, nausea, and sometimes vomiting and cool, clammy, pale skin.

While it is extremely important to drink plenty of fluids, to stay in the shade, and reapply sunscreen throughout the day, these measures alone are not enough. The intake of proper nutrients can aid in optimizing your health during these hot summer days. However, how do you know what foods are beneficial in the summer time?

It is well noted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that one should eat in accordance with the seasons. This theory, derived from the ancient healers who followed the Laws of Nature by observing the patterns of the season, led them to eat and live accordingly.

Summer is perceived as the time when energy is abundant and the mood is high. This season is about expansion, growth, activity and creativity. Succulent fruits and brightly colored, leafy vegetables that are grown during this time reflect this principle, and so should our daily consumption of foods. Foods that are in season are usually displayed at the local farmer’s market. Organic fruits and vegetables that are on sale at the supermarket is also a good gauge as to what is currently in season.

Another guideline to follow this season is to eat foods according to their energetic qualities. Chinese Nutrition offers different dimensions in food analysis than Western Nutrition. Chinese Nutrition does not focus on counting calories, carbohydrates, fats, proteins and other biochemical natures of food. Rather, it classifies food according to its energetic temperature, taste, ability to moisten and strengthen, calm the mind and reduce accumulations. There are five temperatures of food to consider – hot, warm, neutral, cool and cold. The hot and warm temperatures dispel cold and warm the body. It includes foods such as ginger, garlic, chicken and lamb. The cool and cold properties clear heat, reduce toxins and generate body fluids. Cooling foods include a wide variety of vegetables, fresh fruits and juices. As you can perceive, the types of foods that should be incorporated more into the summer diets are cooling foods. For those salad lovers out there, this is a good time to enjoy a light refreshing summer vegetable or fruit salad. Have you ever noticed during those hot summer days, all you crave is a light and cooling meal? Your body is trying to tell you something!

The following is a list of foods that can help prevent dehydration and alleviate thirst – Watermelon, Apricot, Cantaloupe, Grapefruit, Lemon, Orange, Tomato, Asparagus, Sprouts (alfalfa, mung bean), Bamboo, Beets, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Chinese Cabbage, Corn, Cucumber, White Mushroom, Snow pea, Spinach, Summer Squash ( Zucchini), Turnip, Watercress, Millet, Pearl Barely, Mung Bean,  and Lentil.

Other helpful tips for the summer season:

Keep a pitcher of water with slices of lemon and/or cucumber around the house for you and your family to enjoy.  Blend some watermelon with water to make a delicious watermelon juice drink.

Cook with small amounts of spicy or pungent spices to balance the cooling properties of foods.

Eat in moderation. Over consumption of any food, especially cooling foods, can lead to food stagnation and phlegm accumulation, which leads to sluggishness and possibly diarrhea.

Do not leave your food out for too long. The hot weather tends to increase food spoilage.

Stay away from dairy, heavy, greasy, fried foods.

Keep in mind that these are general summer nutrition tips for everyone. It is important to acknowledge that you are your own unique individual. Your diet should reflect this principle regardless of the season.

And don’t forget to consult your physician or pharmacist about important side effects of medications that may affect your water metabolism, exposure to sun and/or food addition to your diet.

One patient’s experience:

“I started acupuncture with Evelynne in the summer of 2010.  I have a recurring problem with eczema, mostly only in the summer.  I have had the problem for years and tried MANY topical medications (and even some pills) but none gave me relief.  The itching in my scalp was very intense and most embarrassing I would occasionally get a rash on my face.  Evelynne had told me that ‘acupuncture is a PROCESS’ and during my first visit I had a lot of hope; I admit that the results were not immediate and after about 6 treatments I was kind of disappointed.  But flash forward 1 year, after steady treatment I am ecstatic that I have had no itching or rash!”  – Kris P, age 38

Evelynne’s note:   Acupuncture has been known to help with a wide variety of disorders including eczema. Herbs in conjunction with acupuncture can have a more powerful effect in treating the root of the cause. If your eczema tends to be dry, red, and itchy an acupuncturist would label it as a “wind heat” problem; if your eczema is moist, oozing fluid, red, and itchy we would see it as a “damp heat” problem.

Often eczema develops at an early age in conjunction with allergic asthma. What’s interesting is that the Chinese Lung — not to be confused with the actual organ-lung – is related to the skin. The Chinese Lung is linked to the pores and the Chinese Kidney is said to nourish and moisten the skin.   Acupuncture will both treat your symptoms as well as treat the underlying causes of your condition.  Duration of treatment will depend on each individual case.

Anyone, from atheletes to invalids, can reduce cravings and binge-eating if you bring your metabolism into balance. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) which includes Acupuncture, employs a remarkable system of pattern diagnosis that enables a trained professional to understand differences in your particular constitution, or physiological patterns.  Once you are properly diagnosed, the practitioner can apply a series of treatments that will balance your particular physiology and strengthen your digestive system which will in turn, help your metabolism and appetite while eliminating unhealthy food cravings or patterns of over-eating.

People are always looking for the next solution or the latest phenomena in hopes of achieving their dietary goals, but TCM has many advantages that offer long-lasting benefit:

• Good Digestion: Over time, irregular eating habits take their toll on digestion.  Symptoms like gas, bloating, heartburn, constipation or diarrhea are all signs that the digestive system is out-of-balance.  Once these symptoms are eliminated and proper digestion resumes, then your body can get the proper nutrients from food so you feel less hungry.
• Relaxation: feeling at-ease and calm is one of the leading affects of Acupuncture. Research has proven that Acupuncture naturally releases endorphins that calm and relax the body – this is the singular most important strategy in dealing with stress, anxiety and frustration which all trigger emotional eating, overeating and bingeing on fattening foods.
• Eliminate Cravings: Just as Acupuncture has been proven to help cravings from addictive substances such as alcohol and tobacco, regular treatments can also curb food cravings.  Acupuncture has been shown to elevate levels of serotonin, encephalin, and dopamine (all hormones which make people feel satisfied from eating).  In other words, acupuncture results in pleasurable brain chemistry without the adverse affects of something like sugar.

Poor eating habits and being overweight are cofactors for many diseases.  Remember, there are no quick fixes to ‘beating that craving’ or losing weight (note: we become more curvaceous naturally as we age, in most cultures this is quite healthy and attractive!).

Self-care techniques are important to learn and maintain as a discipline so that your health is long lasting – this can be as simple as adding a 10 minute walk and a cup of green or oolong tea to your daily routine.  Most important of all, your commitment to making changes in your lifestyle will have a dramatic and positive effect on your health.  At One Earth Acupuncture, I will counsel you on making and maintaining these changes.

One patient’s experience:

I’m a 57-year old man who’s struggled to control my weight all my life.  I love sweets and fatty foods.  I’m also a binge eater:  I learned early in life never to keep sweets around the house, and to buy small packages of ice cream or cookies.  Once I opened a package, I would invariably finish it in one or two sittings, whatever the size.

Invariably, too, I would eat too much at meals.  Even when I wasn’t hungry, I would find myself eating “seconds” and “thirds” seemingly out of habit.

When I was younger, and my clothes started to get too tight, I could simply work out a little more and watch my diet to lose a few pounds pretty easily.

In college I generally wore a 36-38” waist (I’m 6’3”).  For most of my adult life, from age-30 on, I wore 40”.   Starting in my early 50s, my waistline grew to 42”, then swelled to 44”.  I went on Atkins about 5 years ago, and brought it back down to 40”.   Then I went on blood pressure medicine.

None of my “old tricks” worked.  My waistline seemed to be growing inexorably.  I tried working out much more: I did become fitter, but my waistline kept growing.  This summer, when my 44” pants got too tight, I was looking at buying a 46” wardrobe for the first time in my life.

Instead, I went to One Earth Acupuncture.

Within a couple of treatments, I found I could control my eating better than ever before.  I didn’t give up specific foods, I just tried to eat less.  I found I could eat until my appetite was satisfied, and no more.  Gone were the gratuitous extra helpings.  For the first time in my life, I could open a chocolate bar and make it last over 4 days instead of wolfing it down in one sitting.  And I no longer crave the foods that used to haunt me:  without any sense of deprivation, I find myself rarely eating ice cream any more.

In 9 months, I’m now back to a 40” waistline, and confident that I’ll get to 38”.  I don’t feel deprived; in fact, I’m enjoying my food more than ever.  By not trucking around an extra 25 or 30 pounds, I’m enjoying the activities I love – fishing, hiking, cycling – more than I have in years.

– Michael Goldstein, Trenton

As many as one in 10 Americans are affected by allergies or allergic rhinitis (a complex of symptoms characterized by seasonal or perennial sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, tearing eyes or sore throat in response to airborne allergens).  There are three main types of seasonal allergies including spring type, summer type and fall type, however, it may occur in some individuals without regard to season (called perennial allergic rhinitis).  Statistics illustrate that most people with allergies have a history of being treated with repeated antibiotics as children, as well as eating a diet high in sugars and sweets, dairy products and fruit juices.  Stress may also play a part in the condition.

While allergies can put a damper on the joys of Spring, it is important to understand that natural relief in the form of Acupuncture can be long lasting.  Unlike medications that have multiple side-effects and decreased effectiveness over time, Acupuncture helps to balance the body in a manner that improves an individuals’ general immune response.

Acupuncture is excellent at treating symptoms of allergies. Many symptoms are located above the neck – head stuffiness, headache, itchy eyes, etc. This means the energy is not flowing smoothly from the head into the rest of the body, and vice versa. All the yang meridians flow from the hands up to the head, or from the head down to the feet. By opening the energy channels in the neck and shoulders, complete circulation allows for improved overall balance in the body.   Acupuncture also treats symptoms very locally: by placing small, sterile needles right on points of pain or symptoms like the head or side of nose, allowing the stuck energy to dissipate and move more smoothly throughout the body.  Patients are often amazed at the immediate relief they feel following an Acupuncture treatment.  In fact, most patients who utilize Acupuncture long-term to treat allergies report a 95% reduction in symptoms.

Acupuncturists treat very specifically and individually, making sure the underlying cause of allergies, and any other symptoms, are cleared. When the body is in balance, symptoms disappear and health is restored. This is the main benefit of acupuncture: bringing a person into balance so that the body may heal itself of any ailment physically, mentally or emotionally.

These feelings have a major impact on our health and productivity. Although heart disease and cancer will kill more Americans, depression has become the most disabling of nonfatal conditions in the United States and worldwide. Clinical depression is diagnosed in 16 to 18 million Americans each year. Countless others will suffer from unhappiness that hasn’t reached the level of clinical diagnosis – it is described as ‘feeling blue’, having physical symptoms such as confusion, pain, fatigue or sleeplessness.

Many things in life lead to ‘feeling depressed’, including lost love, financial woes, pain, injury, illness, loneliness, and the aging process, only to name a few. But in fact most often people report having no specific reason for feeling down. They just feel depressed.

In my own journey I have experienced loss and hopelessness. In fact, I witness it on a regular basis. For me, it is Chinese Medicine that provides the most relief when I become out-of-balance; during an acupuncture treatment I experience deep relaxation as my grief and stress vanish away.

For this reason, and witnessing the healing process of many patients, I firmly believe in “the body’s incredible capacity to heal”. I live and work in a place of hope, a place where fear can truly transform into a teacher, to restore the brain, renew the body, mind, spirit and motivation for life. This is a perspective that is critical to making the journey through depression, whether it be forcibly or gently, to mobilize one’s body and spirit to become ‘unstuck’ and happier.

There are many means to assist in finding your unique place of hope. These include acupuncture, Chinese Herbs, good nutrition (eating whole foods), exercise, guided imagery, deep breathing, spiritual practice, or a creative outlet like music and art.

In some instances, talk therapy with a professional counselor can be essential.

Some practical advice is to make your environment at home brighter; get outside; socialize; and exercise regularly.

According to James S. Gordon MD, author of Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven Stage Journey Out of Depression, ‘Depression is not a disease, the end point of a pathological process. It is a sign that our lives are out of balance, that we’re stuck.’ The book is an extremely useful guide that includes educational information and practical advice toward harmony and happiness.

Traditional Chinese Medicine, which includes acupuncture, provides a unique approach that addresses your personal imbalances both physically and emotional. Unlike pharmaceuticals, acupuncture offers relief without side effects. Combined with other methods mentioned above, your life will become brighter and more hopeful.

When I started my career, Traditional Chinese Medicine was about the last vocation I would have entertained.  My first professional position was in engineering.  After several years in manufacturing, I took a position in sales.  Then a good friend experienced her first Acupuncture treatment, and insisted I try it.  At the time I thought ‘there’s nothing wrong with me’, so I ignored her advice.  I waited several months before scheduling a visit, more out of curiosity than need.

After two or three treatments I discovered profound relief from stress that I hadn’t realized was bothering me.  I was able to achieve a state of relaxation and calm during treatment, something that I’d lost over time.

That’s when I made a decision learn more about the art and science of Acupuncture.  Not only was I attracted to the mind-body-energy system of Chinese medicine, but I also wanted to find an alternative to a sales career that was draining my vital energy.

I changed many habits: eating healthier foods, exercising more regularly, practicing deep breathing, and seeking additional treatment from a chiropractor and a massage therapist.  Ultimately I made the connection that my physical being and emotional being were closely knit, and when I incorporated all these practices into daily living, I felt balanced and happy.  And when I experienced hardship or pain, I was able to recover more quickly.  Eventually, I decided to study Chinese Medicine full-time and completely changed my career path.

Today, I enjoy serving the community and sharing the many benefits of Traditional Chinese Medicine as I experience the rewards of balanced living in my own life, and see the lives of my clients improve.

When you achieve more balance in living, most often you experience joy that allows you to more fully evolve and contribute to others.  Please share with me those things that bring more balance to your life.