To The Point

Spring, 2007 #1

Hi, this is my first newsletter. In it, I will try to keep you up-to-date on Chinese Medicine and new information from my practice. I hope you will find this knowledge useful and interesting.

In this issue:

Oprah Discovers Acupuncture…

The results are in! On her 2/13/2007 show, Oprah (with a bit of a queasy attitude) tries a few needles herself and invites an acupuncturist to work with Angela, a pre-selected member of her studio audience. After a dozen needles were put in targeted places, Angela returns to the stage to report on how she feels.

"I'm on cloud nine," she says. "I feel rejuvenated. The pain that I had was a constant radiating pain, and I don't feel it. Literally, I don't feel it. I feel wonderful."

Angela says she's ready for more acupuncture treatments, too. This is good because Daniel says she'll need a few more sessions to really cure her shoulder. "The key is to have a few treatments back-to-back-to-back so it builds up on itself," he says. "Eventually she'll have no pain at all."

Dr. Oz Comments on Acupuncture…
Just a few years ago, many Western doctors would have written off acupuncture and other "alternative" medicines. Now, Dr. Oz says acupuncture could make sense for Angela. "Here's the irony—acupuncture has been around for 2,500 years in China. There are a billion people in another part of the world who use these therapies."

"But let's broaden the discussion, because it's not just about acupuncture," Dr. Oz says. "The reason I'm so excited and passionate about alternative medicine is … [because it is] the globalization of medicine."

Alternative medicines, Dr. Oz says, deal with the body's energy—something that traditional Western medicine generally does not. "We're beginning now to understand things that we know in our hearts are true but we could never measure," he says. "As we get better at understanding how little we know about the body, we begin to realize that the next big frontier … in medicine is energy medicine. It's not the mechanistic part of the joints moving. It's not the chemistry of our body. It’s understanding for the first time how energy influences how we feel."

The Red Eye Jumps on Board…
In the 3/29/2007 edition of the Chicago Tribune Red Eye, Jason Steele writes, “Cupping, is the method of applying acupressure to the muscles by creating a vacuum next to your skin. And no, it doesn't hurt. In fact, it's kind of relaxing; I almost fell asleep because I was totally at ease.

Cupping helps ease pain and tension and is supposed to realign and balance the flow of vital energy or life force called chi. Some people report it makes them a bit randy, presumably because it refreshes your body and mind, including your libido.e tension in my back and shoulders were gone after the treatment and I felt ejuvenated. Plus a little jazzed up.

The only problem is that I looked like I had been attacked by a giant octopus. My boyfriend, Brad, found the giant hickeys less than attractive. The cupping did wonders for my back, but it did nothing for my love life.” Maybe Jason should stick to needles.

Citysearch.com

Citysearch.com is a popular online site where you can review practically anything and anyone. I would greatly appreciate it if you would take a few minutes and go to www.citysearch.com and write a review of your work with me.

Acupuncture

I hate pills. The whole premise sucks. I take a pill to mask the pain that is actually a signal by my body that something is wrong. I still will take pills when necessary, but it just doesn't work for me to pop a pill when I have a significant ache or pain. That thinking led me to try out acupuncture and I have never regretted it.

I never thought acupuncture would be a polarizing topic. When I casually mention a recent visit to my acupuncturist, people's reactions often have little to do with acupuncture itself. Open-minded or adventurous people say "Cool, I've always wanted to try that." Cynics say "Jeez, what is wrong with western medicine?" and roll their eyes. Others might wonder out loud "How can needles sticking into my skin make me feel better?" in disbelief. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I am not out to convince anyone they should drop what they are doing to go get stuck by needles. But perhaps some education and information are in order before you rush to judgment when you hear someone utter "acupuncture".

The crucial decision point about whether you can accept acupuncture as a viable medical treatment rests with your opinion about your body and its makeup and composition. What do you think of your body at its core? For me it seems pretty clear that people are energy. I don't see how that is not obvious. Bodies have physical compositions that are manifestations of energetic compositions.

At this point, half my friends will tune me out. "Energy, hahaha" I can hear a few say in my head as I type this. Something about discussing energy and the body causes people a lot of discomfort. To me this is a sign that the topic has hit a nerve with the person; Perhaps they have always felt wondered about human's relations to energy but were too nervous or embarrassed to discuss it. Maybe they mentioned something about meditation or yoga once and got made fun of. I don't know. I do know that when I mention acupuncture, and then say how it heals and removes energy blockages, 50% of my conversation mates at that point start to look at me with a mixture of bemusement and skepticism.

Let's say you are still with me at this point. You think it is perfectly viable that energy within the body is a prime factor in your physical health. We are not alone. In most Asian countries acupuncture flourishes as a standard medical practice. How does a typical acupuncture session work?

The acupuncturist starts with a thorough interview of the reasons you are visiting. This is nice, because you get to discuss all your symptoms. Some (not all) western doctors assume they know what is best for you before you even get done explaining your situation for going to see them. I get so ticked when that happens! After the interview process, the acupuncturist looks at your tongue. The tongue stays internal to your body the majority of the day, so the practice examines the signs of your most internal body part that can be viewed easily. Heavily coated tongues or tongues with random unique textures give the acupuncturist signs of your health.

Next comes the needles. The Chinese have mapped out the energy flow throughout the body. These maps are your energy meridians. Certain points on your body correlate to specific areas. For instance, I saw the acupuncturist for treatment of my sciatic nerve. She would put needles in different spots of my left wrist and hand, in order to clear up pain and trauma in my right hip and butt. It literally showed dramatic improvement the moment she put the needles in. Before the needles, when I would lean forward to touch my toes, I could only get to mid-shin until the pain and tightness were too much. And this is from someone who was able to stand on their palms prior to injury. After the needles got put in my wrist, I could bend forward significantly further because the pressure and pain had lowered substantially.

When all the needles are in all the spots, it is time to lay back and relax to music. I generally have about 25 needles in various spots on both hands and wrists, feet and shins, and a bunch on the crown of my head and in my ears. Sometimes every pin prick hurts initially, sometimes I don't even know they are in. Once I am left by the acupuncturist to zone out for 30 minutes, that is when the mind trip can occur. The energy starts whirling around your body for the first few minutes. Make no mistake about it, there is "something" that I physically feel, zooming all around. It can be quite intense, once or twice I thought I was going to blast out of my head...which is interesting yet startling. Other times your body gets a rhythm going, where the energy keeps swooshing up and down from head to toe. Or maybe I click out and have to get woken up by her re-entering the room. It is never the same experience, but something is definitely happening because of the acupuncture. I am not sure entirely how it happens, but all of that energy movement leaves me with improved symptoms of whatever it was that ails me. And if it is all just in my head, who cares, it is my psycho-somatic trigger and still works.

Acupuncture is not some new agey science where the benefits "manifest themselves in the future" and not immediately noticeable - far from it! I have used it to heal my sciatic nerve. It has improved my digestion significantly (no further detail needed on that). It has made me more calm, focused, and energized.

Tips for Preventing Allergies and Colds

It’s springtime. Flowers are blooming, the sun is shining and the brisk spring breeze is scattering seeds … pollen, and dust. Allergy season has begun.

While many over-the-counter medications offer temporary relief, an increasing number of allergy sufferers are exploring natural allergy remedies that have longer lasting results and none of the troubling side effects associated with Western drugs.

Natural medicine, herbs, and diet can alleviate or prevent allergies and asthma in four ways:

  • Controlling inflammation of air passages
  • Dilating air passages
  • Thinning mucus in the lungs
  • Preventing food-allergy reactions that can trigger respiratory allergies and asthma
  • How can you incorporate these benefits into your life?

Try acupuncture and TCM. TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) has been used to treat allergies for hundreds of years. Several studies have confirmed that acupuncture and Chinese herbs can be helpful for allergic conditions such as asthma, eczema, and food allergies.

In a study published in Allergy, 52 people with allergic rhinitis were randomly assigned acupuncture treatments and Chinese herbal tea or sham acupuncture and herbs for sex weeks. Nearly 85 percent or the people receiving the real acupuncture and herbs had 100 percent or significant improvement of their symptoms, versus 40 percent of those getting the placebo treatment.

Things you can try yourself...
Spice it up: Spicy dishes can thin mucus secretions and clear nasal passages. Try adding ginger, cayenne pepper, onions and garlic to your foods.

Eat the right fat: Omega-3 essential fatty acids can counter the formation of chemicals that cause inflammation of the air passages. Good natural sources include flaxseed oil and salmon.

Eat yogurt and increase fiber: Food intolerances seem to be connected with seasonal allergies. A healthy and active colon can decrease food sensitivity, which can, in turn, lighten the burden on your immune system and may reduce the impact of seasonal allergies. For maximum colon health, increase the fiber in your diet and eat yogurt. The active cultures in yogurt can restore the balance between good and bad bacteria in your gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In a study conducted at the University of California, patients who were fed 18 to 24 ounces of yogurt a day experienced a decline in their allergic symptoms by 90 percent.

Miso Soup with Scallions - A cure for the common cold
Did you know that Miso Soup with Scallions is actually an ancient Chinese herbal remedy for colds?

In 300 AD, famous herbalist, Ge Hong, wrote about Miso Soup with Scallions in a book called, Bei ji zhou hou fang or Emergency Formulas to Keep Up One’s Sleeve.

The soup is suggested when you feel the onset of a cold – at the beginning of a headache, stuffy nose or slight fever.

Recipe for Miso Soup, Serves 4

Ingredients:
6 cups water
3-4 Tablespoons Aka Miso or red soy bean paste (usually sold in the refrigerated section)
3-5 green onions stalks, chopped

Directions:
Dissolve the miso in a little bit of boiling water (about 2 tsp.)
Bring water to a boil in a saucepan and add the miso & scallions.
Simmer for 5-10 minutes.
Remove from heat top with green onions and serve.
Variations: you can add various other ingredients to make a more substantial soup, such as tofu, fresh mushrooms, cooked shrimp, snow pea sprouts, cooked rice noodles, or paper-thin slices of fresh ginger.

Chinese Astrology- Year of the PIG

For all - A year of goodwill. It will be an excellent climate for business, and industry in general will prevail. People will be more free and easy on the whole and the complaisant attitude of the Pig will generate a feeling of abundance. But in spite of the favorable auspices here, like the Pig we will hesitate, waiver and undermine our own abilities when opportunity calls.

For people born under the sign of the Pig - You are born under the sign of honesty, simplicity and great fortitude. You are gallant, sturdy and courageous, and will apply yourself to an allotted task with all your strength. Others can rely on you to see it through. Outwardly, you may appear rough-hewn and jovial, but under the surface is pure gold. ZODIAC CHART

Please feel free to get in touch with me.
You can contact me by:
Phone: 312-399-5098
E-mail: tcm007@rcn.com
Web site: www.tcm007.com

Thank you for your continued support and be healthy.

Some of the above information was taken from Oprah.com, acufinder.com, the Chicago Red Eye and scottdblog.com