- Professional Acupuncture & Physical Therapy1118 East Superior Street
Duluth, MN 55802(218) 724-3400 
Acupuncture
Effortless Healing: Can Imbalances Clear up on their Own?
Short answer: Yes.
Long answer: Yes, but…..there are a few things to consider when relying on our ‘natural propensity towards health’. The most important of which is entropy, the second law of thermodynamics, a disorderly force we must contend with. It runs counter to the organizational efforts of nature, but also works in balance with them, in yet another dynamic expression of yin and yang.
Entropy is played out in living systems as the natural deterioration of the body. As we age past mid-life our body tissues and physiological systems gradually lose their vibrance. Structure and function suffer, as entropy takes over in the process of decay necessary to the cycle of life. So, where we are in the stages of development/decline in life is a big determining factor for the ability to self-heal.
How much entropy are we up against? Imbalances have a much better chance of resolving themselves while we are young and more in the yang (growth) phase of our life versus the yin (decline) phase. Severity of disease or injury also dictates the level of counter-entropy efforts needed.
Regardless of age, however, and even the severity of our condition, we can still tap into our innate healing energy under certain conditions. And yes, some of those conditions can be practically effortless, depending on how you look at it.
One condition is: stop doing the things that are pushing your body into a state of entropy. Don’t keep eating toxic food, don’t keep putting yourself in overly stressful situations (as much as you can control it), in other words: don’t keep banging your head against the wall.
The other condition is that your qi must be strong. In TCM terms, qi IS that natural healing force. It is that spark of life that organizes chaos into form and function. Qi can be supported by even minimal efforts such as adequate sleep, meditation, or simply sitting quietly in a restful but conscious state.
While some of us call it qi, others think of it as the inborn system of self-preservation. Zhigou Wang, a biomedicine researcher from China, breaks down the ways the human body resists entropy into 4 processes: self-organization, self-defense, self-healing and anti-wear and tear.
Self-organization can be witnessed in the miracle of development, the way a single cell matures into a full grown organism. Scientists at Tufts university looked at this miracle in early stages of tadpole development. In doing so they documented a perfect physical representation of the organizing power of qi: patterns of visible bioelectrical signals outlining and directing the development of the embryo.
Self-defense includes our immune system, inflammatory response, endogenous antioxidants, the stress response, autophagy and apoptosis (the destruction and removal of sick cells).
Self-healing includes compensatory mechanisms like the increase in heart rate that occurs to compensate for slow circulation due to heart damage. This is also the category of cell/tissue renewal. Think of a wound healing, or a broken bone that seems to magically repair itself over time. When a large number of cells are destroyed, surrounding cells replicate to make new ones. Self healing also happens on a molecular level with DNA repair. There is a natural editing process at work correcting damaged or mutated DNA. Finally, anti-wear and tear is simply the daily process of upkeep necessary to mend minor internal injuries that arise from continued use of the body’s tissues.
And while these self-preservation mechanisms can help to slow or even reverse the degradation of our living system, there are no guarantees (well, except eventual death).
Effortless repair and renewal does happen, even in seemingly miraculous ways, but every little effort to support this process gives us a better shot at healing, and a better chance at enjoying the best quality of life. Acupuncture is one of the best tools for supporting all aspects of this self-preservation system. It has been shown to strengthen immunity and regulate inflammation , aid in tissue renewal, and even DNA repair. It does this because it supports the driving force of this self-preservation system, that spark of life, that intelligent bio-electrical energy that organizes and directs our growth and healing: or as practitioners of Chinese medicine have called it for millennia: qi.
Yes, it takes effort to call and make an appointment but once you are on the table you can relax and allow Heidi to support your own effortless healing abilities. The gentle placement of needles at various acupuncture points will free up the flow of your own qi-driven self-preservation system.
Menopause & Acupuncture: Easing the Transition
Menopause, for some women, is a welcome transition to the post-reproductive phase of one’s life. However, it has gotten a bad rap due to the symptoms many women experience while their bodies adjust to the changes. From a Chinese Medicine perspective, it is the inability of the body to adjust it’s energies gracefully to this new phase that causes symptoms, not the menopause itself. A gradual transition over time in a healthy individual will be less likely to induce the struggles commonly associated with menopause such as hot flashes, weight gain, dryness, sleep problems and mood swings. (Irregular periods, while inconvenient, are not necessarily considered a problem in this view, but par for the course of change leading up to true menopause).
Menopause is medically defined as the absence of a period for 1 year. Up until that point, the changes are considered peri-menopause: a slowing down of the reproductive faculties of the body. The struggles mentioned above can begin during peri-menopause, as early as a women’s 40’s and can last into her late 50s. During this time, the ovaries start making less estrogen and progesterone (the hormones that regulate menstruation). These hormonal changes are the reason for the hot flashes that tend to be the main complaint of women approaching menopause. The hot flashes in turn can disrupt sleep, leading to further imbalances and mood swings. The hormones also affect the metabolism, which can lead to weight gain and body changes. Vaginal dryness is also related to the declining hormones.
In simplistic terms, these hormonal changes can be seen in TCM as a decline in yin, leading to a yin-yang imbalance. Yin refers to the cooling, calming, moisturizing influences of the body, and when deficient can lead to heat, dryness and nervousness or irritability. Acupuncture (and TCM lifestyle guidance) can help to re-calibrate the yin-yang balance to ease this transition.
A year-long NCCIH-funded study involved 209 peri-menopausal & menopausal women age 45–60 who had at least four hot flashes per day. Researchers found that acupuncture significantly reduced symptoms of hot flashes, anxiety, sleep issues and memory loss by as much as 36.7 %. The improvements persisted at least 6 months after treatment.
Another study compared menopausal symptoms of 70 women, after half of them had 6 weeks of regular acupuncture. In the acupuncture group there were clinically significant improvements in occurrence of hot flashes, night sweats, and other physical and emotional symptoms.
And even for women who are abruptly pushed into menopause, such as after a hysterectomy or ovariectomy, whose symptoms tend to be more severe, acupuncture (along with ear-acupuncture!) has been shown to reduce their (generally more intense) hot flashes as well.
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is the western medical approach to menopause for severe symptoms brought on by hormonal changes, but comes with serious risks and is not for everyone. Acupuncture has the power to rebalance the body’s energies when life transitions challenge our stability and is a great alternative or complementary therapy for any woman entering this new phase of life.
The shift into menopause can be much smoother with a little assistance from your local acupuncturist, but don’t wait until symptoms are severe. Call today at (218) 724-3400 to bring more balance into your personal journey!
Can Acupuncture Help With Diabetes?
Did you know that acupuncture can be a powerful ally for people who have various types of Diabetes?
It’s true…let me explain how an acupuncturist views the common condition.
Although Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine use different methods to treat common diseases, both approaches also agree on many things. Western medicine considers diabetes melletis as a disease of blood sugar metabolism.
Diabetes is caused by either or a failure of the cell’s ability to accept insulin and dump toxins into the blood or the pancreas is not able to produce adequate insulin to lower blood glucose.
According to TCM, Xiao Ke or “wasting and thirsting disease” is divided by the patient’s symptoms into upper jiao, middle jiao and lower jiao. We’ll discuss more about this further in the article.
Diabetes, according to Western Medicine is divided into three general categories (ADA, 2018):
- Type 1—pancreatic beta cell autoimmune destruction is usually diagnosed in children.
- Type 2, adult onset functioning, yet progressive beta cell destruction autoimmune markers along with insulin resistance.
- Gestational diabetes is hyperglycemia during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes usually resolves itself following delivery of the baby.
According to TCM, Xiao Ke or “wasting and thirsting disease” is divided by the patient’s symptoms and also divided into 3 general categories:
- Upper Jiao – The upper jiao is when the lung isn’t able to descend moisture to the rest of the body.
- Middle Jiao – The middle jiao is “spleen not able to transform and transport” to the rest of the body.
- Lower Jiao – Stomach may also have excess fire or deficiency thus unable to digest food. Liver yin deficiency, creating fire may also be a culprit. Lower jiao involves kidney yin. Yin is the body’s ability to cool, ground, it’s substance and associated with water. When yin is deficient, it creates heat in the body, and consumes the body’s fluids. Diabetes Meletus is excessive glucose, heat, inability to ground in TCM.
TCM physicians use the patient’s case history, looking at the patient’s tongue and feeling the patient’s “pulses”. “Reading” the pulse, isn’t counting beats. The pulse shows nine organ and channel conditions– the “climate” of the body. The practitioner can feel such as heat, cold, damp, excess, deficiency and phlegm which indicate how to best treat the patient. TCM therapy has seven aspects. Treatment is specifically individualized to harmonize climate and imbalance.”
Similarities:
Both Western and Eastern focus on diet, weight loss, and exercise to treat diabetes. Both use medications, nutritional supplements or herbs to reduce blood sugar and improve cellular respiration.
Differences:
Western medicine uses a “one size fits all” approach. Everyone with a diagnosis of adult onset diabetes type 2 starts off with metformin. The A1C is measured after three months, then the medication is adjusted, or other medications are added. If the A1C isn’t within normal limits, insulin may be added. According to Western medicine, the pancreas is diseased.
TCM uses differential diagnosis developed over 3,000 years. Urinating sugar illness is called Tang Niao Bin. Diabetes is also called “Wasting and Thirsting” disease, “Xiao Ke”. Diabetes Mellitus is caused by heat, dampness and phlegm. An acupuncturist will ask to see your tongue, feel the pulses in three positions and three levels. The TCM physician considers a detailed patient history, including past illness, emotional trauma and injuries important to determine the best treatment. Treatment is specific to each person. Diabetes Mellitus can be caused by disharmony in the upper body, middle or lower body. Diabetes isn’t a “one size fits all”, but a symptom of a deeper problem (Guo, 2014).
Though there are many TCM patterns for this condition , which pattern below best describes your symptoms?
Upper Body:
1. Lung Heat Injuring Fluids. This can be caused by childhood exposure to secondhand smoke, recurrent lung infections caused by viral or bacterial pathogens, often the pathogen has not been completely eliminated. Cigarette smoking dries the lung mucosa, destroying delicate cilia, depositing carbon into lung tissue.
The patient experiences asthma, excessive thirst, dry mouth and tongue, hacking dry cough, sometimes producing a sticky phlegm. Treatment: cool lung, descend lung qi. One formula is Bai Hu Ren Shen Tang (White tiger decoction). Diet would include pears, rice, mei men dong, sha shen tea, asparagus, mulberry leaf, marshmallow root tea. Formulas may include Mai Wei Di Huang Wan and Sha Shen Mai Men Dong Tang.
Middle Body:
2. Excess Stomach Heat. Changes in diet and lifestyle usually clear this up. Excessive consumption of alcohol, too much hot and spicy food, over-eating, too much red meat, too much highly processed food, dairy, and food allergens. The person feels famished, heartburn after eating or at night, experiences constipation and dry stools, and elevated blood sugar. Pumpkin has been shown to lower blood glucose, avocados, one half gallon of water per day, sha shen tea, and lots of green vegetables. Beef is neutral in temperature and consumed in moderation, thus reducing heat and nourishes yin. Formulas prescribed may include Bai Hu Jia Ren Shen Tang, Shen Ling Bai Zhu San, Zeng Ye Tang.
3. Liver qi deficiency (Hazlehurst, 2016) : Blood sugar usually is higher with stress. Some of the other symptoms include flank and chest discomfort, hypertension, red eyes, visual disturbances, short temper, irritability, depression, migraines, heartburn. When liver qi is not flowing, the liver qi energy tends to rise. Exclude fried, dairy, alcohol, sodas. Diet includes green leafy vegetables, olive oil and lemon juice, lemon water, dandelion, chlorella, and beets. Formulas used to treat this pattern include Xiao Yao San, Yi Guan Jian and Chai Hu Shu Gan Tang (Guo, 2014).
Lower Body
4. Kidney Yin Deficiency (Zheng, 2011): Yin is the body’s ability to “cool” itself, it is substance, anchoring and grounding. Kidney energy is called Dan Tian “life force energy”. If the “Dan Tian fire” is too high, fluids are evaporated, blood thickens, and energy raises. The patient experienced low back achy pain, knee pain, unmeasurable low grade feverish feeling in the afternoon. Often patients complain of night time urinary frequency, elevated blood pressure, hearing difficulty, and elevated glucose.
Treatment: Diet with fish, sea vegetables, dark green vegetables, pork, dark beans, bone broth, miso soup, vitamins and minerals, and one half gallon of water per day is commonly prescribed. Herbal treatment includes Liu Di Huang Wan, Da Bu Yin Wan, and Zuo Gui Wan.
TCM offers many treatment options to control diabetes. This article details a few suggestions. Please contact your primary care physician or us at (218) 724-3400 to find what is best for you.
Resources:
- American Diabetes Association. (2018). Classification and Diagnosis of Diabetes: Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes-2018. Diabetes care, 41(Suppl 1), S13–S27.
- Gökhan, S. Hotamışlıgil et al. (April 24, 2019). “The short-chain fatty acid propionate increases glucagon and FABP4 production, impairing insulin action in mice and humans,” Science Translational Medicine, April 24, 2019, DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aav012
- Hazlehurst, J. M., Woods, C., Marjot, T., Cobbold, J. F., & Tomlinson, J. W. (2016). Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and diabetes. Metabolism: clinical and experimental, 65(8), 1096–1108.
- Guo, J., Chen, H., Song, J., Wang, J., Zhao, L., and Tong X. (July 14, 2014). Syndrome Differentiation of Diabetes by the Traditional Chinese Medicine according to Evidence-Based Medicine and Expert Consensus Opinion. Article ID 492193.
- Zheng, A.S.D. (2011). Essentials of Chinese Medicine. Internal Medicine 2nd Edition. Pgs 281-289. Bridge Publishing Group. ISBN: 978-0-9728439-8-0.
Winter’s Archetype: The Philosopher
Picture that quintessential cozy winter scene: curled up with some deep thoughts and a cup of tea by a fire while an evening snowfall paints the landscape out a frosty window. This is the ultimate haven of winter’s archetype: the philosopher. Winter is about the inner journey, and the philosopher represents that journey through calm but discerning introspection. They value thought over action in the quest for truth and are not afraid to go into the dark recesses of the mind to find it.
In Chinese Medicine, winter is the season of extreme yin. Yin represents the receptive energies that balance the active nature of yang. Yin themes include stillness, contemplation and darkness. Also, yin is associated with cold and constriction. Winter is kidney time in TCM and its corresponding element is water. The kidneys are considered the root of our life force, a battery that holds our primal charge. The kidneys also regulate water metabolism in the body and help to keep the fire element in check. Water is an essential source of life associated with the personal and collective unconscious, as well as wisdom and perseverance.
The philosopher archetype embodies important aspects of kidney energetics and water symbolism. In TCM, Kidneys relate to the health of the bladder, bones, brain and reproductive system. We may see issues in these systems if the water element and therefore kidney function is out of balance. A healthy philosopher, or ‘water-type person’, will typically have strong bones, wide hips, and a bright mind. In a balanced state, the philosopher is determined and persistent (yet flexible) like water. They willingly traverse the depths and hidden corners like water in caves or subterranean streams or the dark reaches of the ocean. They are naturally curious and inquisitive. Out of balance they can tend toward exaggerated introversion, fear and suspicion. Fear is the emotion associated with the kidneys, but the flip side of that (and power of the philosopher) is the courage to face the truth of ourselves and the world.
We all, as microcosms of nature, personify the different seasonal elements. Some of these archetypes resonate stronger at different times, though we may notice, in ourselves and others, a general tendency towards a specific one.
Do you resonate with the Philosopher?
Are you…
*self-sufficient?
*scrutinizing?
*appreciative of alone time?
*devoted to truth?
*sometimes susceptible to feelings of fear and isolation or aggressive suspicion? (depending on patterns of deficiency or excess)
*willing to persevere?
With every elemental archetype it is vital to find and nurture the balance necessary to express and experience the best traits of each one. This winter, one way to support your water element is with quiet reflective moments, and a cozy safe place to go inward and explore the mysteries of life. Your inner philosopher will reward you with truth, strength and vitality.
Visit us on 205 W. 2nd Street, Suite 502, in Duluth for more kidney/water element support this winter, including diet and lifestyle tips to balance your unique seasonal and constitutional needs!
A Healthy Forecast: How the Weather Affects our Health
We’ve probably all heard motherly advice at some point reminding us to bundle up in cold weather so we don’t “catch a cold”, or hear grandpa accurately predict a storm when his hip starts aching. Or how about getting a case of the winter weather blues? Even in the western world we recognize a relationship with nature in terms of environmental conditions. Changes in temperature, sunlight, barometric pressure, and humidity all play a role in this relationship.
When it comes to the weather and our health, many in the west automatically think of how season changes and extreme weather can aggravate symptoms of asthma and allergies, but weather-related health concerns go far beyond seasonal allergies and asthma. Changes in barometric pressure can affect joints (like Grandpa’s hip), and cause headaches.
Headaches can also be caused by heat and dehydration, so summer adventurers beware (bring lots of water!). High humidity can intensify heat too as it limits our ability to cool down through sweating, potentially leading to hyperthermia and heat stroke.
Cold weather can tighten muscles causing body pain. It also constricts blood vessels leading to an increase in blood pressure and increased risks of heart attack and stroke. While blood pressure tends to be higher in the winter, any temperature extreme, hot or cold, can affect heart function.
Sunlight is another aspect of weather that has a lot of influence over our health. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is often associated with the colder, darker fall and winter months. The reduced sunlight alters our melatonin and serotonin levels, potentially leaving us with disruptions in sleep and mood.
Ancient Chinese Medical texts describe a similar relationship between humans and their environment, though the wording and understanding of the nature of the environmental conditions differs slightly.
In TCM there are 5 main “climates” or environmental influences related to our health.
These are: COLD, HEAT, WIND, DAMP, DRYNESS
(summerheat, associated with late summer, is actually considered a 6th climate)
These potential causes of illness described in Chinese Medicine sound like weather patterns themselves and are considered external influences in origin but can penetrate to have effects on the body and create what we can think of as internal weather. We can also be more prone to their influence based on our constitution and lifestyle, (and can even manifest these ‘climates’ internally without external exposure).
Any extremes with these various conditions can allow pathogens to enter, if our self-protective energy and efforts are weak, and leave us vulnerable to infections, such as with colds/flus.
They can also go deeper in the body to directly affect the organs, with symptoms presenting throughout the body in the respiratory, digestive, urinary, reproductive, nervous, musculo-skeletal systems and skin.
Wind is understood as the biggest trouble-maker as it often combines with other influences to wreak havoc in the body. It can affect the joints, bring on skin rashes, or cause a spell of dizziness, among other issues. Cold can kill the digestive fire; combine that with a damp invasion and you can experience bloating and/or nausea. Heat and dryness, on the other hand, can injure the blood and yin fluids of the body causing symptoms such as fever, restlessness, scanty painful urination, brittle hair and excessive thirst.
Chinese medicine takes a more preventative approach to these issues by addressing imbalances before they express as more severe symptoms. There is also a focus on the integrity of the defensive energy of the body as well as the body’s ability to handle transitions with stability. Knowing our bodies will be continuously exposed to the challenge of seasonal weather changes and potential extremes of climate conditions, we can prepare accordingly.
Don’t wait for an internal weather emergency to call for an appointment, get in asap to strengthen your resilience to external weather conditions, balance out your internal climates and assist you in transitioning season to season with ease and well-being! Contact us at (218) 724-3400 to make an appointment
Ressource to expand on climates