Let's talk about stress

In my previous blog entry on painful periods, I suggested eliminating stress around the time of your period, or, for that matter, in your life. One of my readers brought up a good question about stress: 

"The sneaky thing about stress is that most of us have been so stressed for so long that we think it's a normal state of being (especially if we're surrounded by similar people). Some individuals, like you, are lucky enough to learn to slow down early on and others realize it late in life when their body "screams" with chronic illnesses. How would you advise people to reflect on and accurately assess the level of stress in their lives so that they can make necessary changes?"

Awareness is the first step. Pay attention to where you feel stress in your body. Do you tend to feel tension in your stomach, neck, shoulders, head, low back? What causes you to feel these areas tighten, ache, or burn during the day? Is it driving in traffic, fighting with a close family member or spouse, certain scenarios or people at work? Try to zero in on the specific events that cause your head to ache, nausea to rise, or adrenaline to surge, and ask yourself if there are any measures you can take to avoid or eliminate these triggers. For example, what about riding your bike to work instead of driving, or leaving slightly earlier or later to avoid rush hour? Often there are simple changes you can make to adjust stress levels, even slightly, that will make a big difference.

When I'm talking with patients, often they will consider unpleasant symptoms "normal." Some examples include:  gas and bloating after eating, frequent tension or sinus headaches, seasonal allergies, PMS symptoms, light-headedness when hungry, fatigue, insomnia, and so on. These are the whispers I was talking about. These are not normal symptoms to be experiencing on a regular basis. This is your body giving you its first warning. Listen! 

9 times out of 10, if your body is still at the whisper stage, and hasn't started screaming yet, reducing stress will help diminish your symptoms significantly. Here are some great ways to de-stress: 

• Lavender: Get a little vial of lavender essential oil from the health food store and always keep it with you. Dab a drop under your nose with a cotton ball or tissue. Or sprinkle a couple drops on your pillow at night before you go to sleep. Lavender instantly relieves anxiety and promotes a feeling of calmness and relaxation. Plus, it smells good! (Above is a photo I took of a field of lavender in Northern California. I took all these photos of Hearst Castle, Sonoma, Occidental.)
• Foot bath: In the evening, an hour or two before bedtime, fill a large pot with hot water and soak your feet for 15 to 30 minutes. In Chinese medicine, your Spleen, Liver, and Kidney meridians begin at your feet. Warming these channels will help you feel more relaxed and sleep more soundly. 
• Dr. Bach flower remedies: Find these flower essences at any health food store. Spend a few minutes reading through the descriptions on each bottle, and find the flower essence that is right for you. Put a few drops in your water bottle for the day, or simply put a couple drops beneath your tongue. The formulas are clear, odorless and tasteless and they are known to improve your emotional state of being. Rescue Remedy is their most popular formula and is wonderful for anxiety in adults, children, and even pets. 
• Think happy thoughts: Most of us have gotten WAY too tolerant of negative thoughts making themselves at home in our heads. Practice prevention and think of things that make you happy. Think of a time in your life, or a person, or a thing--anything--that brings a smile to your face. Focus on that feeling, and try to make it grow. See just how good you can feel. Feel it in your arms and hands, chest and stomach, legs and feet. Do this exercise as often as you can. You will create an energetic environment in your body and mind that will not be able to host negative thoughts (or disease). 
• Write it down: If there's something stressful you simply can't stop thinking about, write it down. Get a spiral notebook and start journaling. You'll be surprised how satisfying it will feel to "get it all out" and you may come to some enlightening conclusions in the process. If you're afraid of someone seeing what you've written, find a safe place to keep your journal, or dispose of the pages after you've written them. 
• Schedule time for yourself: "Free time" doesn't mean "available time." If you're anything like me, you fill your schedule to the gills. Before saying "yes" to everything that comes your way, take a minute and evaluate your free time for the week. Block out some time that's just for you. During this time, make sure to do something that makes you happy: take a walk, listen to a favorite album, watch an old favorite movie, give yourself a facial or pedicure. Do something that feels nurturing and relaxing. 
• Eat mindfully: Make eating a healthy ritual. It is important not to eat and feel stressed at the same time. This is how food allergies get started! Avoid stressful discussions or thoughts during mealtime. Put on pleasant music, light a candle, or cut some fresh flowers. Get out the matching salt and pepper shakers, the cloth napkins, the nice dishes--whatever makes you happy. Eat slowly, and focus on the feeling of eating good food that is nourishing your body. 
• Acupuncture: Getting an acupuncture treatment puts your body in a deep state of relaxation and is known to significantly reduce stress and anxiety. Regular acupuncture treatments can help your overall feeling of well-being. 

Advanced stress-awareness tip: Look for the literal, underlying message, too. For example, if you are having digestive issues, ask yourself, what am I having trouble "digesting" in my life? Or, how am I nourishing or not nourishing myself mentally, emotionally, spiritually? Write about the symptoms you are experiencing, and then see if the description reminds you of something else going on in your life. 

Above all, be kind to yourself. You deserve to feel happy and relaxed all the time. 

Tips for painful periods

When I was a kid, my mom always stressed the importance of listening to my body:  "Obey the whispers, or you will hear the screams."

So true, Mom.

This may sound ridiculous, but recently I realized how stressed out I am. Well, actually, my period told me. (Sorry, guys.) Honestly, my period has never been a walk in the park, but it was starting to feel more like a walk down a dark alley with a gun pointed to my head.

So, I began to investigate. I had no other choice--the scream was deafening. "Okay, Body, I hear you. What is it you want to tell me?" (I promise, I'm almost done with this metaphor.)

I'll save you the long, drawn-out gab fest my body and I had, and I'll summarize. Basically, it told me to SLOW the heck down.

In Chinese medicine (there it is!), stress causes your qi to stagnate. Qi stagnation, particularly Liver qi stagnation, is one of the main causes of painful periods in women.

If you are experiencing painful cramps or irritability before your period, here are some quick tips to help smooth out your Liver qi:

• The week before your period, only consume moderate amounts or completely avoid red meat, dairy, salt, sugar, alcohol and caffeine. These foods lead to constraint of Liver qi which will make your PMS symptoms worse. 
• Get moving! The Liver is responsible for the smooth flow of qi throughout the body. We can help the Liver do its job by participating in mild, consistent exercise. Walking briskly five times a week, for 30 to 40 minutes, yoga (not hot yoga, it will drain your yin too much), and tai chi are great examples. 
• Drink a mug of warm water with fresh squeezed lemon juice every morning. The sour quality of lemon is known in Chinese medicine to address and relieve the Liver.  
• Stress is the number one cause of Liver qi stagnation. This may sound obvious and impossible, but I'll say it anyway, try to eliminate stress as much as you can around the time of your period -- and, for that matter, in your life. 
• And, of course, make sure to get regular acupuncture treatments and a Chinese herbal prescription from your acupuncturist that will specifically address your symptoms. Acupuncture is known to help regulate women's cycles and diminish PMS symptoms significantly. This I can tell you not only as an acupuncturist, but from personal experience. 

Coincidentally, Liver is related to the element Wood, which corresponds to the season of Spring! And here we are on the cusp of this beautiful season, full of new energy poking up through the ground.

I took these photos last summer in the Redwood Forest, while studying the powerful presence and nature of Wood with my Five Element class.

Welcome Spring, keep your Liver happy, and listen to the whispers.

Happy Chinese New Year!

In peaceful tranquility quiet your mind, then empty and erase your mind of thoughts.
Written by the grand master and doctor Mu Wee Dang at the age of 91. 

For some sound Chinese medical advice from Gwyneth Paltrow's acupuncturist, check out her weekly newsletter:  Goop

Humble pie

Had me a slice of it recently. After my visit with Dr. Cao over the holidays, my stubborn symptoms persisted. In the middle of a sleepless, fevered night, sitting up on the couch, coughing so hard I was seeing spots, I knew something was seriously wrong. I made the decision to call a doctor first thing in the morning.

This was a big step for me. I normally don't go to the doctor. Ever. I grew up with my mom who is an alternative healer, and now she is also an acupuncturist. My whole life, I took herbs and hot baths instead of antibiotics.

I remember when I was about 13 years old, my gym teacher suggested I get tested for exercise-induced asthma. My mom took me to the doctor, and the poor thing tried to give me a steroid inhaler. My mom refused, saying steroids would do more harm than good, and then whispered to me that we would try some herbs instead. The doctor actually cried. I think she thought I was being raised by wolves.

My mom was always adamant that we have health insurance. Just in case. But, for everyday maladies--physical, emotional, and spiritual--we had much more effective tools at our disposal.

On New Year's Eve morning, as I frantically googled doctors and clinics in the neighborhood, I couldn't help but feel a little defeated. Why didn't Chinese medicine take care of it? Why couldn't I heal myself without western medicine? I'm an acupuncturist for Pete's sake! I have all the tools at my disposal. Darn it.

The PA listened to my lungs and told me I had pneumonia. Two thoughts went through my mind: "Pneumonia!? Really!?" And, "At least it's a dragon that out-smarted my Chinese medical sword, and not some rookie beast." Okay, not in those words exactly.

I took everything she gave me -- the inhaler, the hard-core antibiotics, even the prescription strength cough syrup with codeine so I could finally get some rest. Nothing holistic about it, I was desperate to feel better and to stop rescheduling my patients. It's funny, I think most people come to alternative medicine as a last resort, after they've exhausted all western medical options. I'm the complete opposite.

But I did start to feel better. Within 8 hours. After being sick for two weeks, this seemed like nothing short of a miracle. I have never been so grateful for western medicine in my life.

As a former pre-med student / medicine woman's daughter / acupuncturist, I am reminded how important it is to combine healing modalities to achieve optimum health. I have always believed this to be true, but never more so than I do now.

Now that I am completely recovered, thanks to western medicine and Chinese herbs, I am insanely grateful for my health, and my sense of compassion is renewed for people who are sick.

This has been one of the coldest winters we've had in Colorado. An ounce of prevention is truly worth a pound of cure. Take it from me.

1) Wear a scarf! In Chinese medicine, Wind enters the body through the nape of the neck and the lower back, which then turns into Wind Cold and Wind Heat, otherwise known as the common cold or flu. Keep these areas covered during the winter.

2) Don't over-extend yourself. Conserve your energy. In Chinese medicine, your qi (or energy) sinks inward and downward during the winter. Get in touch with your inner bear and enjoy hibernation mode.

3) Eat right. Sugar is scientifically known to compromise or temporarily shut down your immune system. Do your body a favor and minimize your sugar intake during winter months.  

5) Stay warm. In Chinese medicine, it is true that you actually get a cold from being out in the cold. Those old wives knew what they were talking about.

A dose of my own medicine

I have developed a whole new appreciation for health and disease over the past week. After pulling it together for the holidays, I finally met the couch last Saturday, and haven’t moved far from it since. That is, except for my big adventure yesterday to visit my former professor, and Chinese medical doctor, Dr. Cao. From past experience as a patient and student, I knew I was in for an authentic experience.

            “It just isn’t the same to needle yourself,” I told him while I was lying on his treatment table. He nodded and wisely smiled. He propped me up with pillows to lessen my cough, handed me a bottle of dark brown liquid and told me to drink it, unwrapped a carton of Chinese herbal lozenges. He positioned 3 heat lamps around me and felt my pulse, looked at my tongue. After quickly identifying my condition, he began burying needles in several obscure acupoints. I’m not gonna lie, it hurt like hell. Traditional Chinese Medicine, as it is practiced in China, is much more aggressive than the Chinese medicine we practice in the States. We Americans are, to but it bluntly, total wussies.

            But I toughened up and kept my eye to the finish line:  feeling better. If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that Dr. Cao is truly a master in our profession, and he knows exactly what he’s doing. I have never seen anyone work with more precision, unwavering skill and concentration. Not to mention wisdom and integrity.

            Dr. Cao came back several times to re-stimulate the needles, just as the intense sensation had subsided. I winced and he said, “Sorry, has to be strong.” Before and after the treatment, he also performed Tui Na (Chinese massage) that nearly had me clinging to the ceiling. (Again, wussy.)

            I immediately felt better after the treatment, and I told him so as I handed him a tip, which he adamantly refused. He wrote me a prescription for a raw herbal formula, and I thanked him. This was the moment I had been looking forward to… and dreading.

            Raw herbal decoctions are hands-down the most effective way to take herbs, as opposed to powder, pills, or capsules. However, the trade-offs are that it’s time-consuming to prepare, it smells awful and tastes worse. I sometimes fantasize about having a full raw herbal pharmacy, but then I always stop and ask myself, “Would any of my patients actually do this? I don’t know if I would!”

            Well, prepare a raw formula I did. (It’s been awhile.) And I re-discovered a certain satisfaction in the making of your own medicine.

Cheers to your health!

Drumroll please...

The new treatment room!

Come experience the coziness.

Immortal Palace is expanding

Lots of exciting things happening at Immortal Palace! Finally got a sign out front, for starters. Thanks to Lisa Rundall--designer extraordinaire--and her awesome dad.

Also, thanks to the recent success of an Immortal Palace Groupon, I have rented out a second treatment room. Right now, it just looks like a pile of furniture in the corner, but I am going to have it set up by Friday.

Speaking of Friday... Immortal Palace will be open for Tennyson Street First Friday Art Walk. 


Stop by this Friday, December 4th from 6 to 9pm to check out the new treatment space, sip a plastic cup of wine (very classy), and admire new resplendid glass pieces from artist Susan Mattson, and whimsical lamps by artist Lisa Rundall. (Lisa also makes gorgeous jewelry!)

Receive your coupon for $15 off your first acupuncture session at Immortal Palace. They expire at the end of the month, so don't miss out!

Also, there is a new business moving in downstairs from Immortal Palace called Grassroots. They are a coffee shop, art gallery, and medical marijuana dispensary, and they hope to be open sometime in the next month or so. I especially like the new paint job they did on the building!

Hope to see you Friday!