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Acupuncture

Summer from a TCM Perspective

Let’s talk about late summer – from an acupuncturist’s view.

The season of the late summer is the time of the stomach and spleen. The summer season actually belongs to the heart, heart and small intestine, the late summer which is that hazy time between summer and autumn. It’s that time when yin and yang feel really balanced. When it’s not too hot, it’s not cold yet, there’s a slight crispness in the air early morning and late evening. It’s a time of perfect balance at the end of summer, and it’s also the harvest time, suggesting that there’s a sense of abundance. You’ll notice, there’s an abundance of food ripening, quite literally one the vine. This is when the earth element is at its peak.

The fascinating thing about the earth element is that it also has a season in between every other season. There’s a little window in between every season where we have ‘late summer’ again, even in-between winter and spring, in between spring and summer, definitely in-between summer and autumn and in between autumn and winter as well. These are little windows in-between every season which are known as late summer, or earth season are times of balance.

This time between seasons is a time of everything coming back to the core – all of your energies coming back into the center, grounding, rebalancing and then ready to go again into a new season which has new opportunities and new challenges. At the time of writing we’re in the earth element now, we’re crossing over from spring into summer. So this is a perfect opportunity for you to come back to your center, spend a little bit of time regrouping, grounding and preparing for what’s coming next in the summer months. When we do this, we give our body an abundance of energy again to work with and do whatever it needs to do to balance itself in the next season. There’s nothing for you to do, just come back to ground zero and give your body a rest. Get grounded in nature, rest up and your body does what it knows it needs to do with the energy. Your acupuncturist will also be able to treat these organs and maximise your ability to recharge these organs in their horary time.

If you are an Earth element constitutional type you can also receive treatment on the Stomach and spleen during their horary time of day. Receiving treatment between 7am and 11 am is the best time to treat these organs. Each organ has its own time of day where it’s at its strongest. The time of day for the Earth element, Stomach and Spleen, is 7-9am, and 9-11am. The old housewife tale says eat breakfast like a king, eat lunch like a prince and eat dinner like a pauper. This is true because the chi is the strongest in the digestive system in the stomach between 7:00 and 9:00AM, and in the spleen between 9:00 and 11:00AM. Eating your biggest meal of the day between these times means you’re going to have optimum digestion, and your body is going to be able to take the most chi from the food and transform it to give your body the most energy available. Eating your biggest meals at the opposite times will have the opposite effect, as there’s the least amount of chi in the digestive system 12 hours later. So between 7:00AM and 11:00AM is when we’ve got the most chi in the digestive system, and then 12 hours later, between 7:00PM and 11:00PM we’ve got the least.

If you want to learn what your element constitutional type is, come on in to my office on W. 2nd Street in Duluth, MN! I may be able to shed some light on this for you.

Mental Balance

Western medicine is catching up now on the fact that there’s a link between the gut and the brain. Chinese medicine has known this for thousands of years. Western thinking can actually complement Chinese medicine and vice versa. Patients with a lot of anxiety and worry can be treated with vitamins, particularly B vitamins. When the Earth element organs of the Stomach and Spleen are weak we crave sugar more. Sugar will compound this problem causing further weakness and an accumulation of dampness. Sugar can interfere with the absorption of certain vitamins – especially B-vitamins which are important for cognitive function and mental health.

Yi, or thought, is the spirit of the spleen. This is why overthinking can weaken the spleen and a weakened spleen can lead to overthinking. As an acupuncturist and meditation teacher I hear patients telling me every day, “I can’t meditate because I can’t switch my mind off or I’ve got too many thoughts.” No amount of trying to control your thinking is going to work. Strengthening the Spleen will help and there are some ways you can:

  • Eat your biggest meal between 7 and 11am.
  • avoid damp, sugary, cold, raw and greasy foods.
  • eat more warming foods, herbs like ginger, plenty of warming soups, cooked vegetables – particularly orange vegetables are really, really, really nourishing for the spleen. And barley, rice and ginger tea etc.
  • Acupuncture
  • Meditation

Overthinking is the mental aspect and worry is the emotional aspect of a weakened spleen. Worry actually knots the chi of the stomach and spleen. So if you’re suffering right now from overthinking and worry, it’s a reflection of the state of your body, the way the chi is moving in your body, in your digestive system and the way your digestive system is transforming energy for other systems. If the emotions are not being heard then that can cause a lot of issues, physically and mentally as well. 90% of what I see coming into the treatment room is emotional in nature, compounded stuck emotion and then all the overthinking and the stories on top that have come from trying to work out why you are feeling that way. Having acupuncture and giving yourself space and time to process your emotions in a healthy way is the best treatment for this. The earth element also thrives on a good routine, eating at regular times, going to bed, getting up at regular times is important. Ideally you want to be going to bed as early as possible, waking up as early as possible and eating your main meal as early as possible for energy, for immunity, for lifelong strong earth element and clarity of mind.

Acupuncture for Male Infertility

When you consider that acupuncture is part of a medical system that has been around for over 2500 years, you have to understand that this medicine has a vast track record for treating a plethora of conditions, including those related to male the reproductive system.

Infertility has become more prevalent in our society over the last few decades. This comes to no surprise, when you consider all the challenges in our agricultural, environmental, social, ecological, economic and therefore overall well-being. Current statistics show that 1 in 6 couples trying to conceive are actually facing fertility issues. And while most people consider infertility to be a female issue, nearly half of all fertility issues are contributed to the male. Nearly 10 percent of all men in the United States trying to conceive are actually suffering from infertility.

Male infertility can be caused by a man’s inability to produce sperm, a medical term known as Azoospermia, or simply decreased number of living sperm Oligozoospermia. Male infertility can also be due to the production of poor quality sperm, Asthenozoospermia, that may be malformed or do not live long enough to make it to the egg for fertilization. We must also take into account genetic factors that can contribute to male infertility.

That’s a lot right? Well, good news! Most cases of male infertility can be treated.

Conventional medicine has come a long way in treating these issues, but the downside can be the costly treatments that often render unsuccessful. This is where Traditional Chinese Medicine, and specifically acupuncture, can be very beneficial and may help without adverse side effects. One study from the Department of Clinical Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University Graduate School, set out to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture as a treatment for male infertility. This study was able to conclude that YES regular acupuncture treatments can “significantly improve sperm motility and sperm concentration”.

If you are experiencing fertility problems, acupuncture may hold the key to help you conceive.

Sources:
Couples & Infertility
A pilot study on infertile men

Stress, Stress Everywhere.

The adrenal glands are two tiny glands that sit on top of the kidneys. They are part of the overall endocrine system that produces hormones that regulate the body. The adrenal glands produce three very important hormones, adrenaline, cortisol and aldosterone. Adrenaline, also known as epinephrine, prepares the body to spring into action during stressful or life-threatening situations. Cortisol helps regulate metabolism and assists the body in responding to stress. And aldosterone helps control blood pressure. When the adrenal glands are not functioning properly, many diseases can develop.

Adrenal fatigue is becoming increasingly common in the United States, despite the fact that most conventional doctors claim there is no such thing. However, excessive and chronic stress can indeed deplete the adrenal glands over time. Even though most Western medical doctors deny adrenal fatigue is a real diagnosis, it is impossible to deny stress plays a factor in how our bodies thrive and survive.

Chronic stress can have serious health implications. Stress causes the adrenal glands to produce excess cortisol and adrenaline, which puts these glands in a constant state of “fight or flight.” This can lead to symptoms such as poor sleep, weight gain, digestive issues and chronic illnesses. Cortisol normally helps the body convert food into energy, while keeping the mind alert and reducing inflammation. This is why many people who are diagnosed with fibromyalgia are probably also clinically experiencing adrenal fatigue and chronic stress.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) provides some of the best tools available to battle chronic stress and adrenal fatigue. Acupuncture is one of the tools in the toolbox of the TCM practitioner. Acupuncture uses hair-thin needles to stimulate acupressure points on the body. Studies have shown acupuncture treatments actually turn on or stimulate the relaxation areas of the nervous system, also known as the parasympathetic nervous system. When the parasympathetic nervous system is switched on, it helps to regulate the heart rate, improve digestion and balance sleep cycles. Many people who get regular acupuncture treatments actually fall asleep once the needles have been inserted.

Moxibustion is another modality commonly used by TCM practitioners. Moxibustion uses the herb mugwort to boost the functions of the adrenal glands and balance hormones. Crushed mugwort is placed on various acupressure points and then lit on fire. There are barriers between the herb and the body to prevent any actual scarring. Over time, moxibustion can help with many of the symptoms experienced by those suffering from adrenal imbalances.

In TCM, the adrenal glands are frequently included or related to the functions of the kidneys. Therefore, many of the points that help balance the adrenal glands are found along the kidney energetic pathways. Thus, by stimulating these acupressure points, the acupuncturist can help regulate the hormones being produced by the adrenal glands. The pericardium energetic pathway also plays a vital role in helping balance the adrenal glands.

With all the excess stress placed on humans today, it is quite feasible nearly everybody deals with some sort of hormone imbalance and adrenal gland weakness. But this doesn’t have to be the case.

Schedule your TCM evaluation with me in Duluth MN to start your journey to wellness.

Effects of Acupuncture on Alzheimer’s

June is Alzheimer’s Awareness Month.

First things first, among adults over 65 years old Alzheimer’s is the disease that is found to cause most cases of dementia. Whereas Dementia is the actual loss of cognitive function so severe it interferes with daily life. Dementia ranges in severity from the loss of memory, ability to think, reason, plan and can even interfere with basic problem solving.

Officially, Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. However, recent estimates show the disease ranks closer to third as a cause of death among older adults, just behind cancer and heart disease. While Alzheimer’s disease and related Dementias are more common among aging adults, it is not a normal part of the aging process.

Alzheimers is a progressive and irreversible disease that slowly destroys not only long term memory, but can disturb basic cognitive function as well. Often those suffering from Alzheimers eventually lose the inability to carry out everyday tasks, and therefore are rendered completely dependent on the help of others. Studies are showing acupuncture can help improve the lives of those who are suffering from Alzheimer’s in a variety of ways.

CUHK Research Indicates Acupuncture can Improve Cognitive Functions of Elderly

The Chinese University of Hong Kong provides us with research on the beneficial effects of acupuncture in adults over 65. Acupuncture can help improve the cognitive functions of adults 65-79 who suffer from Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). And while not threatening in and of itself, MCI has been known to lead to early onset Dementia. While the pilot study was done using a small subject base the findings were conclusive enough to lead to further testing with a much larger test group. One of the lead researchers on the experiment, Professor Albert Leung, said “We are delighted to see that acupuncture treatments help improve the cognitive functions of the elderly. We shall further ascertain its efficacy through our pilot clinical research project.”

Acupuncture Has Long Been Used to Fight Anxiety and Depression

With the loss of cognitive function, so too comes the loss of independence. Displaced feelings of overall fear, loss, and helplessness are not uncommon. These emotions can become so burdensome they may manifest into depression and/or anxiety. One study in particular from Wellesley College evaluated participants who were receiving acupuncture treatments 2-3 times per week for three months. This study was able to conclude that regular acupuncture treatments alone can improve mood and energy among this demographic.

For thousands of years Acupuncture has been an effective treatment for symptoms of mental illness and stress. However until relatively recently there was insufficient scientific evidence to make these claims concretely. But a 2013 study performed by Chinese researchers uncovered preliminary evidence to suggest the scientific reasons acupuncture acts like a natural antidepressant. Since the initial experiments on rats with induced depressive activity further research has come out to substantiate these claims.

With Alzheimer’s and related Dementias becoming an increasingly serious problem for today’s elders it’s certainly worth investigating the options for its prevention. And with more research being done after promising early results, acupuncture should definitely be taken into consideration to offset these diseases. Acupuncture is safe, natural and side-effect free. Ask me for more information.

Sources

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