Create Lasting Resolve to Reach Your Goals with Acupuncture

The start of the new year is a time of looking back at what we have achieved in the past year and looking forward to the future. This period of remembrance and resolution may be challenging but it is both productive and rewarding. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help achieve the change you seek as it assists in illness prevention, stress relief, minimizes aches and pains, improves energy and nurtures balance. This calm and clarity strengthens your resolve as you take the next step in achieving your goals.

Here are a few ways that Acupuncture can help you achieve your goals:

Lose Weight
Losing weight is the most common New Year’s resolution. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help you reach your goal weight and maintain it by promoting better digestion, smoothing emotions, reducing appetite, improving metabolism, and eliminating food cravings–all of which can help energize the body, maximize absorption of nutrients, regulate elimination, control overeating, suppress the appetite and reduce anxiety.

Get in Shape
Renewed enthusiasm to exercise in order to enhance fitness levels, train for a competition, or lose weight can come at a painful price for those who try to do too much too quickly. Recent studies show that acupuncture effectively treats sports injuries such as strains, sprains, musculoskeletal pain, swollen muscles and shin splints.

Eliminate Stress
Stress reduction is always on the top ten list for New Year’s resolutions and for a good reason; it is often the cause of illness and deterioration of health. Numerous studies have demonstrated the substantial benefits of acupuncture in the treatment of stress, anxiety and lowering blood pressure. In addition to acupuncture, Oriental medicine offers a whole range of tools that can be integrated into your life to keep stress in check.

Improved Quality of Life
If pain is keeping you from living life to the fullest, acupuncture can help as it has no side effects and can be helpful for all types of pain, regardless of the cause or where it is located. Increasingly, people are looking for more natural approaches to help relieve painful conditions instead of relying on medication. In addition to reducing pain, acupuncture also hastens the healing process by increasing circulation and attracting white blood cells to an injured area.

Call today to see how Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine can help you keep your resolutions and prepare for the year ahead! 

Healthy Brain Habits

Keeping the goals we have set for ourselves in addition to outlining and completing the tasks needed to accomplish those goals can be overwhelming. Here are a few steps you can take to help optimize brain health and sharpen your memory:

Eat More Produce – Studies that focus on food and memory show that the more produce you eat, the better. One 25-year Harvard Medical School study of more than 13,000 women showed that the participants who ate relatively high amounts of vegetables over the years had less age-related decline in memory. Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, and leafy green vegetables had the biggest effect on helping women retain their memory during the course of the study. In another study, the phytochemicals, anthocyanin (found in berries of all colors and cherries) and quercetin (found in onions, kale and apples), actually reversed some of the age-related memory deficits in laboratory animals.

Take Care of Your Heart – A healthy heart makes for a healthy brain. Because oxygen and nutrients are carried in the blood stream, anything that impedes blood flow will starve those all-important brain cells. Review your blood pressure and cholesterol level. Know your numbers and if they are elevated, take immediate measures to bring them down.

Get a Good Night’s Sleep -When we sleep, the brain has time to recharge. Studies show that 7-8 hours of sleep a night helps to strengthen memory. Practicing good sleep habits helps keep the brain and the rest of the body functioning at its best.

Exercise – Regular physical activity has been shown to decrease the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease by about half. Exercise increases blood flow to the brain and helps regulate blood sugar levels, both of which improve brain function and memory. Aim for 30 minutes a day.

Challenge Your Brain – Keep your mind active and challenged. Brain function decreases with age. Studies show that cognitive exercise can improve blood flow to the brain. Spend at least 15 minutes each day on a mental exercise such as a crossword puzzle, journaling or learning a new language in order to slow memory loss.

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In This Issue

Mental Clarity Boost

 

Feeling a little foggy? Having trouble concentrating?

Massage acupuncture point Du 20 for some mental clarity.

Du 20 is located on top of the head, midway between the ears. It is used to clear the mind and improve focus.

Stimulate the point with your index finger 35-40 seconds for a quick “brain boost.”

The Will Power Connection

 

Is there a body/mind connection to will power?

According to the principles of Acupuncture and Oriental medicine there is. Will power, or “Zhi,” is said to reside in the kidneys and the state of the Kidney Qi directly correlates to the fortitude of our will power.

In Oriental medicine, disease prevention begins with a protective layer around the exterior of the body called wei qi, or defensive energy. If you catch colds easily, have low energy and require a long time recuperating from an illness, your wei qi may be deficient.

Nourishing Qi can help greatly enhance the body’s ability to thrive in times of stress, aid in healing, prevent illness and increase vitality. According to Oriental medicine, recharging your battery and regeneration of vital energy, Qi, will help you live, look and feel your best!

Alleviate Your Stress with Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine

 

As a normal part of life, stress enables us to get things done. If left unmanaged, stress can lead to emotional, psychological, and even physical problems. Stress causes a disruption in the flow of vital energy, or Qi, through the body. These energetic imbalances can throw off the immune system or cause symptoms of pain, sleep disturbances, abnormal digestion, headaches, menstrual irregularities, aggravation of already troublesome health conditions and, over time, more serious illnesses can develop.

Stressful situations that last over a long period of time can create an ongoing low-level stress that puts continual pressure on the nervous system, increasing activity, and can cause the overproduction of hormones. The extra stress hormones over an extended period of time may wear out the body’s reserves, lead to fatigue, depression, a weakened immune system, and a host of serious physical and psychological ailments.

Some signs of stress overload include:

- anxiety or panic attacks
- feelings of constant pressure, hassled and hurried
- irritability and moodiness
- physical symptoms such as stomach problems, headaches, or even chest pain
- allergic reactions, such as eczema or asthma
- problems sleeping
- overindulgence in food, alcohol, smoking, or drugs
- sadness or depression

Stress is often the cause of illness and the deterioration of health. Finding a release valve for your stress can help you stay healthy. According to Oriental medicine, stress, frustration, and unresolved anger can play an important part in throwing the immune system off and allowing pathogens to affect the body. Through acupuncture, these energy blockages can be addressed. Acupuncture points can help energy flow smoothly, and alleviate not only the symptoms of stress and anxiety, but the stress and anxiety itself.

Numerous studies have demonstrated the substantial benefits of acupuncture in the treatment of stress. Acupuncture improves circulation of blood throughout the body, which oxygenates the tissues and cycles out cortisol and other waste chemicals. The calming nature of acupuncture also decreases heart rate, lowers blood pressure and relaxes the muscles.

In addition to acupuncture, Oriental medicine offers a wide range of tools and techniques that can be integrated into your wellness plan to keep stress in check. These tools include Tui Na, Qi Gong exercises, dietary therapy, meditations and acupressure that you can administer at home.

While it isn’t always possible to remove the external forces causing stress, the ability to effectively deal with stress is a choice. Take time for yourself to cultivate the energy you need to handle your stress more skillfully and effectively.

If you or someone you know is experiencing stress or a stress related disorder, contact us for more information about how acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help you regain peace of mind, regulate your immune system and stay healthy and schedule an appointment today!

 

Acupuncture Gives Hope to Patients with PTSD

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a severe type of anxiety disorder. PTSD results from a person witnessing or being involved in a traumatic event that causes intense fear, helplessness or horror, such as, a natural disaster, rape, childhood abuse, a tragic accident, or war. Signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder typically begin within three months of a traumatic event but can, in some instances, occur years after the event.

Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder include:

1. Intrusive memories – flashbacks and nightmares of events

2. Avoidance and numbing – feeling emotionally numb, hopelessness about the future, avoiding anything that is a reminder of the precipitating event.

3. Hyperarousal – increased anxiety, irritability or anger, self-destructive behavior (e.g., excessive drinking), and an exaggerated startle response (jumping at sounds)

Acupuncture as Treatment for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

In the last couple of years, acupuncture, has been getting more attention as a treatment for PTSD, particularly from military and veterans since soldiers post combat are at a high risk for suffering from PTSD. The results from acupuncture are hopeful. Time and again, acupuncture has proven to be an effective modality for treating the symptoms of PTSD.

Acupuncturists Without Borders (AWB), a group that previously provided relief to the survivors of the earthquake in Haiti and hurricane in New Orleans, launched The Military Stress Recovery Project. This organization provides free acupuncture treatments for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as their families. Treated military personnel have reported improved mental clarity, less anxiety, and a reduction in stress.

There are good precedents for the use of acupuncture to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. Walter Reed Medical Center, a military hospital, has begun to investigate acupuncture as a viable treatment for returning veterans.

Researchers at the University of Louisville School of Medicine conducted a clinical trial examining the effects of acupuncture on the symptoms of PTSD. They analyzed depression, anxiety, and impairment in 73 people who had been diagnosed with PTSD and found that acupuncture provided treatment effects similar to group cognitive-behavioral therapy. Both acupuncture and cognitive-behavioral therapy were superior to the control group. Additionally, treatment effects of acupuncture and group therapy were maintained for 3 months after the end of treatment.

Why does acupuncture help the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder? Correctly placed needles help the body re-regulate itself from the effects of stress, PTSD, depression and anxiety. In turn, this allows the individual to focus on their activities and enable them to deal with daily events.

Source: Hollifield, M., Sinclair-Lian, N., Warner, T., and Hammerschlag, R. “Acupuncture for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial.” The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, June, 2007 V195(6):504-13.

 

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Treatment of Neurological Disorders with Acupuncture

A neurological disorder refers to a problem with the nervous system, which is a complex, sophisticated system that regulates and coordinates the body’s activities. Nerve pain can arise from trauma, inflammation, stroke, disease, infection, nerve degeneration, exposure to toxic chemicals, and nutrient deficiencies.

Nerve pain is usually a sharp shooting pain or a constant burning sensation. Typically occurring in the same location with each episode, it can often be traced along the nerve pathway. Sometimes weakness or impaired function in the affected area occurs and the skin may be either overly sensitive or numb.

Some common neurological disorders acupuncture treats include:

Peripheral Neuropathy – damage to the peripheral nervous system, which transmits information from the brain and spinal cord to every other part of the body. Neuropathy caused by diabetes often affects the feet.

Trigeminal Neuralgia – facial pain, sometimes called Tic Douloureux, affects the trigeminal nerve which is responsible for impulses of touch, pain, pressure and temperature sent to the brain from the face, jaw, and gums.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome – also known as median nerve entrapment, it occurs when swelling or irritation of the nerve or tendons in the carpal tunnel results in pressure on the median nerve.

Headaches – Headaches that can be treated with acupuncture include migraines, tension headaches, headaches occurring around the menstrual cycle, sinus headaches and stress-related headaches.

Acupuncture and Oriental medicine have been found effective as a conjunctive therapy for several neurological disorders and in treating pain and inflammation.

If you or someone you know is suffering from a neurological disorder or nerve pain please contact us for more information or to schedule an appointment! 

Acupuncture Treats Peripheral Neuropathy

Peripheral neuropathy describes damage to the peripheral nervous system, which transmits information from the brain and spinal cord to every other part of the body. In most cases, peripheral neuropathy is secondary to conditions such as diabetes, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, alcoholism, nutritional deficiencies, AIDS, or poisoning from heavy metals, chemotherapy, or various drugs.

Other causes include direct physical injury to a nerve (trauma), penetrated injuries, fractures or dislocated bones, pressure involving superficial nerves (ulna or radial) which can result from prolonged use of crutches or staying in same position, tumor, intraneural hemorrhage, exposure to cold, compression or entrapment (i.e. carpal tunnel syndrome), radiation or atherosclerosis.

Symptoms of peripheral neuropathy may include:

- numbness or insensitivity to pain or temperature
- burning, tingling, or prickling sensation
- sharp or burning pain
- cramps
- extreme sensitivity to touch
- loss of balance and coordination,
- muscle weakness
- muscle wasting
- paralysis

Oriental medicine teaches that peripheral neuropathy is due to dampness moving to the limbs, where it obstructs the flow of Qi (energy) and blood within them. The treatment is twofold, to treat the underlying factor that is causing this dampness to accumulate and to directly facilitate the circulation of Qi and blood in the affected area. By improving circulation, the nerve tissues of the affected area can be nourished to repair function and reduce pain.

Peripheral neuropathy is a symptom for many different patterns of disharmony within the body. Acupuncture and Oriental medicine aims to treat each individual uniquely depending on what caused the neuropathy and how it manifests.

Do you or someone you know suffer from peripheral neuropathy? Contact us today to find out what acupuncture and Oriental medicine can do for you!

Relief for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

One of the most common job-related injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is responsible for the highest number of days lost among all work-related injuries. With more than two million visits to physicians’ offices and approximately 465,000 carpal tunnel release operations each year, it is the most frequent surgery of the hand and wrist.

Acupuncture is extremely effective at treating carpal tunnel syndrome, eliminating the need for surgery or the use of anti-inflammatory drugs or corticosteroids and recent studies suggest that acupuncture may be more effective than corticosteroids when it comes to treating carpal tunnel syndrome.

What Is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?

The carpal tunnel is a narrow passageway in the wrist made up of ligaments and bones. The median nerve and the tendons that connect the fingers to the muscles of the forearm pass through this tightly spaced tunnel. Carpal tunnel syndrome, also known as median nerve entrapment, occurs when swelling or irritation of the nerve or tendons in the carpal tunnel results in pressure on the median nerve. The median nerve controls sensations to the palm side of the thumb and fingers, as well as impulses to some small muscles in the hand that allow the fingers and thumb to move.

Symptoms usually start gradually, with frequent burning, tingling, or numbness in the palm of the hand and the fingers, especially the thumb, index and middle fingers. The symptoms often first appear during the night. As symptoms worsen, people might feel pain, weakness, or numbness in the hand and wrist, radiating up the arm during the day. Decreased grip strength may make it difficult to form a fist, grasp small objects, or perform other manual tasks. If not properly treated, carpal tunnel syndrome can cause irreversible nerve damage and permanent deterioration of muscle tissue.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome with Acupuncture

From an Oriental medicine perspective, carpal tunnel syndrome is seen as a disruption of the flow of Qi and blood within the area and is associated with cold, dampness or wind penetrating the muscles and sinews of the wrist. In addition to reducing swelling, inflammation, and pain in the wrist, acupuncture addresses any headaches, neck pain, shoulder stiffness and sleeping problems that often accompany this condition. Your treatment may also take into account underlying conditions that contribute to the development of carpal tunnel syndrome including obesity, rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid problems, diabetes, and hormonal changes due to pregnancy and menopause.

If you or someone you know suffers from carpal tunnel syndrome, please call to find out more about how acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help you.

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In This Issue

Foods to Boost Brain Health

 

Boost your brain’s overall heath and enhance its day to day functioning by including these foods in a healthy well-balanced diet.

Blueberries - Well known for their role in improving motor skills and overall learning capacity, blueberries are rich in antioxidants that are great for boosting your brain and helping to reverse the effects of aging on the brain. Most berries contain fisetin and flavenoid, which are great for improving your memory and allowing you to easily recall past events.

Fish - Omega-3 rich wild salmon, tuna, and herring help brain function by providing more oxygen, allowing it to retain new information while remembering old information. It also coats neurons with good fat, allowing them to move easier through the brain. Eating one serving of fish a week can decrease your chances of getting Alzheimer’s.

Leafy Green Vegetables - Vegetables such as cabbage, kale, spinach, collards, turnip greens and others are rich in vitamins, folate, and iron, all of which are essential for memory recall and increasing cognitive activity.

Nuts/Seeds - Rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, folate, vitamin E, vitamin B6 and zinc all of which allow you to think more clearly. Choose seeds and nuts rich in thiamine and magnesium, which are great for memory, cognitive function, and brain nourishment.

Whole Grains - Rich in folate, thiamine, vitamin B6, and zinc, the nutrients found in whole grains increase blood flow to the brain, improving the quality and quantity of brain function and recall.

Trigeminal Neuralgia

One of the largest nerves in the head, the trigeminal nerve is responsible for impulses of touch, pain, pressure and temperature sent to the brain from the face, jaw, and gums. Characterized by a sudden, severe, electric shock-like or stabbing pain felt on one side of the jaw or cheek, these periodic attacks of pain generally last a few seconds and may be repeated one after the other.

The exact cause of trigeminal neuralgia is not known; however, physical nerve damage and stress can trigger painful attacks. Damage may also be the result of a biochemical change in the nerve tissue itself or an abnormal blood vessel compressing the nerve as it exits from the brain. In almost all cases, an excessive burst of nervous activity from a damaged nerve causes the painful attacks.

Acupuncture is considered a safe, adjunctive therapeutic option in patients with trigeminal neuralgia especially before invasive intervention is done.

Acupuncture for Arthritis

May is National Arthritis Month and there’s no better time to take action. If you suffer with arthritis, acupuncture can help.

Arthritis is one of the most pervasive diseases in the United States and is the leading cause of disability. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every three Americans (an estimated seventy million people) is affected.

For most people, arthritis pain and inflammation cannot be avoided as the body ages. In fact, most people over the age of fifty show some signs of arthritis as joints degenerate over time. Fortunately, arthritis can often be managed with acupuncture.

What is Arthritis?

Arthritis is not just one disease; it is a complex disorder that comprises more than one hundred distinct symptoms and can affect people at any stage of life. Two of the most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. While these two forms of arthritis have very different causes, risk factors and effects on the body, they share a common symptom—persistent joint pain.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis in the United States. OA begins with the breakdown of joint cartilage, resulting in pain and stiffness. Commonly affected joints include the fingers, knees, hips, and spine. Other joints affected less frequently include the wrists, elbows, shoulders, and ankles. When OA is found in a less frequently affected joint, there is usually a history of injury or unusual stress to that joint. Repetitive injury and physical trauma may contribute to the development of OA. If you have a strenuous job that requires repetitive bending, kneeling, or squatting, for example, you may be at high risk for OA of the knee.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, systemic inflammatory disorder that may affect many tissues and organs, but principally attacks synovial joints. Inflammation of the joint lining, called the synovium, causes pain, stiffness, swelling, warmth, and redness. The affected joint may also lose its shape, resulting in loss of normal movement.

Eastern View of Arthritis

In Oriental medicine, arthritis is called “Bi Syndrome.” Bi Syndrome manifests as pain, soreness, or numbness of muscles, tendons and joints. Arthritis is treated according to which type of Bi Syndrome it falls into:

1. Moving (Wind) Bi Syndrome: Pain in the joints is widespread and moves from one area of the body to another. This is often accompanied by fever and chills.

2. Stationary (Damp) Bi Syndrome: The pain is localized and does not move. The body and limbs feel heavy and there is numbness and swelling.

3. Painful (Cold) Bi Syndrome: Severe pain in one part, or over one half of the body which becomes worse with cold and diminishes with warmth.

4. Heat Bi Syndrome: The flesh is hot, the area of pain is red and swollen, and the pain increases upon contact.

The type of Bi Syndrome the arthritis falls into will determine which acupuncture points and other treatment options will be utilized. The purpose of acupuncture is to trigger your body’s innate ability to self heal. Treatments take all of your symptoms into account and are aimed at balancing the energy within the body, increasing the flow of qi and blood to the affected area, bringing down swelling and inflammation, relieving pain, and helping to prevent re-occurrence of the arthritis.

If you have arthritis and would like to learn more about how acupuncture can help, call now for a consultation.

Studies on Acupuncture for Arthritis

Studies show that acupuncture can stimulate the production of hormones that reduce pain and inflammation.

In a German study, 3,500 people with osteoarthritis of the hip and/or knee received 15 sessions of acupuncture combined with their usual medical care. The results showed that the patients that had acupuncture had less pain and stiffness, improved function and better quality of life than their counterparts who had routine care alone. The improvements occurred immediately after completing a three-month course of acupuncture and lasted for at least another three months, indicating osteoarthritis is among conditions treated with acupuncture.

Another study, published in the journal Pain, looked at the effects of acupuncture among 40 adults with osteoarthritis of the knee. Among the patients in the study, those who had a daily acupuncture session for 10 consecutive days reported greater improvement in their pain compared with patients who received a “sham” version of the therapy.

Resources:
Pain Online, December 15, 2009.
Arthritis & Rheumatism, November 2006; vol 54: pp 3485-349