Traditional Chinese Medicine

Is Acupuncture Safe Post-Covid? 4 Things Your Acupuncturist Wants You to Know Before You Book Your Appointment

To say that 2020 was a stressful year is putting it mildly. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, many people put checkups and other medical procedures on hold, including acupuncture treatments. If you are more than ready to get back to your treatments, here are four things your acupuncturist wants you to know about their safety procedures in this new normal. And if this does not answer all your questions, please feel free to ask. Your acupuncturist wants you to feel safe and secure as you return for your first appointment. continue reading »

Acupuncture for Healthy Weight Loss

In the United States, an estimated 300,000 people a year die from obesity.

In several studies over the last five years, researchers have shown patients who receive regular acupuncture treatments see faster weight loss results than those who do not. In each case, the acupuncture treatments were combined with dietary and lifestyle changes also aimed at weight loss, but the patients who got acupuncture saw better results than those who focused on dietary and lifestyle changes alone. continue reading »

Acupuncture for Mother’s Day

What better way to celebrate and support the mothers in your life this year than with an acupuncture appointment?

As a one-time mother’s day gift, acupuncture is a relaxing, revitalizing hour all for herself.

As a regular part of her health routine, acupuncture can keep her from getting sick frequently and offer a holistic treatment option for a variety of women’s health issues.

Not convinced? Here are four ways acupuncture supports women’s health and would make a great gift for any mom or woman you want to celebrate this May. continue reading »

Regrowth: Spring and Traditional Chinese Medicine

Three thousand years ago, when Chinese medicine was first being practiced, there was no light or electricity. No way to mask the darkness of winter. No way, either, to ignore the longer, warmer days of springtime. Because it is such an ancient practice, a lot of the wisdom of Traditional Chinese Medicine comes from a time when people spent much more time outside, paying attention to the natural world around them. continue reading »

Acupuncture for Diabetes

More than 34 million Americans have diabetes, and approximately 90 percent of them have type 2 diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Type 2 diabetes, while its exact cause is unknown, develops when the body becomes resistant to insulin or the pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin. Because of this, treatment often involves taking “insulin sensitizers” or medication that helps the body increase its sensitivity and therefore ability to process insulin, keeping the blood sugar from getting too low. Unfortunately, this medication often causes side effects, including weight gain and anemia. continue reading »

5 Acupoints for Anxiety You Can Administer Yourself

“At a time when people are so conscious of maintaining their physical health by controlling their diets, exercising, and so forth, it makes sense to try to cultivate the corresponding mental attitudes too.”

– HH the Dalai Lama, 1963

It can be easy to forget how much our mental state can affect our physical well-being. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, that connection is evident in the treatment strategies, but it is also true that when we are feeling bad, we don’t always think to look at our minds. It works both ways. continue reading »

Acupuncture Wrapped: An overview of some of the most exciting discoveries in 2020

As we enter a new year, it is natural to want to look back on the last one. As humans, we have the gift and the hurdle of marking time, so it can feel helpful to recall memories we want to hold on to or look for lessons we can take with us.

To that end, here are three categories in which research into the type, application and efficacy of acupuncture saw significant advancements in 2020, findings that will certainly help guide us as we move forward. In a year that saw so much focus on our health, these findings offer some good news in the fields of pain management without opioids, migraine headaches, and insight into why it is that acupuncture is effective as an anti-inflammatory. continue reading »

Intention setting in the new year

It’s that time of year again: the time when many of us engage in the practice of setting a new year’s resolution.

It seems, though, that hand-in-hand with new year’s resolutions is the prediction of inevitable failure. That as soon as you pick a resolution, you won’t actually make it through the whole year sticking with the new behavior, or that by the third week of January the resolution will be out of sight, out of mind. So, I wanted to offer some tips on how to join in the tradition in a way that might foster more success, by incorporating some wisdom from traditional Chinese medicine. continue reading »

Winter and your Kidneys

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, health is achieved by living in balance with nature and the seasons. Winter, the season of the Water Element, is the season for slowing down, reflecting, and conserving our resources. We all feel this tendency, but we don’t always listen to our bodies. In Western culture, being active is rewarded and expected. We feel compelled to keep up the hectic pace that is typical in our daily lives.

This season is associated with the kidneys, bladder, and adrenal glands and the time of year when these organs are most active, accessible, and even vulnerable. They are more receptive to being restored, nurtured, and energized. At the same time, it is also when they can become easily depleted. continue reading »

You’re Getting Sleepy…

Enjoying Naps in the Winter Season

Most mammals are polyphasic sleepers, meaning that they sleep for short periods throughout the day. For humans, days are divided into two distinct periods, one for sleep and one for wakefulness, which is a monophasic sleep pattern. However, this may be a product of living in an industrialized world and not the natural sleep pattern of humans. In many cultures, young children and elderly take naps midday. Our bodies are programmed for two periods of intense sleepiness a day: between 2 and 4 am and 1 and 3 pm. Unfortunately, despite our biological vestige, we are having to consolidate our sleep into one long period. continue reading »

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