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LotusBlog
What are the Different Styles of Acupuncture?
Figuring out what Acupuncture is and what it can do for you can be confusing enough for the average person, but then figuring out what type or style of Acupuncture and what type of practitioner to go to can add confusion to that. So who or what style to choose?
Most Acupuncturists (you will typically see the designation of L.Ac after their name) in the United States practice Acupuncture that has come from China. Acupuncture has been present in the United States dating back to the 1800's, but began to be more widely known in the United States starting in 1972, when a journalist traveling with Richard Nixon received acupuncture as part of his treatment for an appendectomy in a Chinese hospital. After this experience the journalist wrote a story for the New York Times about how effective the therapy was.
Most of the Acupuncture schools in the United States teach Acupuncture that has come from material that has been brought over to the West from our relationship with China. TCM style acupuncture (Chinese Medical Acupuncture) is taught in three to four year schools where students learn not only about Acupuncture but also about Western biomedical treatments, diseases, pharmacology, and in most cases, herbal medicine. There is a two to three year clinical rotation that is either done…
What is CranioSacral Therapy?
CranioSacral Therapy (CST) is a gentle but powerful method of healing. Your craniosacral system is a deep, protective layer of your body, and houses the cerebrospinal fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord as well as the membranous structures that protect your central nervous system.
But what does this mean? Imagine your body as a computer. When you are feeling stressed, overwhelmed, in pain, or just feel like the "on" switch has been flipped on for too long, CranioSacral therapy is able to "reboot" you and get you to a place of rest. This restful place is excellent for processing your backlogged material, mainly pain signals, headaches, and a wide variety of stressors. Most people fall asleep or feel as if they are floating during the session.
What else can CranioSacral therapy do? When your body has to deal with stress and trauma, it has to compensate, creating tension and restriction throughout the body, as well as the tissues that form around the brain and spine. This change can cause your central nervous system, as well as other body systems to not perform to peak efficiency. By gently working with this system, that tension and restriction will be alleviated, giving your body a chance to come to a new sense of balance and ease.
What does a CranioSacral Therapy session…
Can Acupuncture Help with Hot Flashes?
Researchers have found that Acupuncture over a several week period was successful in reducing the amount of hot flashes in menopausal women. Throughout the study, women reported that both the number of hot flashes as well as the severity were reduced by upwards of 30%. This is especially significant for women concerned with the safety and efficacy of HRT (hormone replacement therapy) which has been found to have significant side effects, including possible increase of certain types of cancer as well as heart disease.
Recently, this study has been getting national coverage by Diane Sawyer and ABC News, although the concept of treating hot flashes and menopausal symptoms is of no surprise to those who practice Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. In my Evanston clinic, I have successful seen women through this phase of life, naturally balancing and lessening symptoms like hot flashes, irritability, anxiety, and mood swings, sleep issues, and fatigue.
The Treatment of Pain Syndromes, Part 1
Why am I in pain? This question is common enough in my practice, and for some the answer is clear, but for a lot of patients coming to me there is frustration in not knowing the source or reason for the pain. Even more frustrating is often people have gone to countless medical doctors, alternative health providers including acupuncturists and massage therapists, counselors/mental health professionals, and physical therapists and their pain continues to persist. Perhaps you are one of these people. Often people who have been through this cycle of care that has not given them results feel a sense of depression about their condition, and think that it is something that they have to deal with for the rest of their lives. And for a small percentage of people, this can be true. But for most people, reduction of pain levels or even living without pain is possible, even if it has been present for years.
The most common reason for pain is overuse or misuse. This is true for a wide range of people, from those in manual labor jobs, where muscles are working at or beyond peak capacity, as well as for those in desk jobs, where muscles are in pain due to being hunched over a computer or desk all day and not getting enough time to counteract the slumped position.
For the group of people who…
Rethinking your Resolutions
I, like many people today have thought about what changes I would like to see for the next year, and over the past few weeks have discussed with many of my patients changes that they would like to see in their lives as well. While good intentions abound, commonly we are too strict, too drastic about what we would like to see from ourselves in coming up with these resolutions. I would like to see your (and my!) resolutions work, so perhaps it is time to think about what is possible from yourself and what you can truly achieve.
If Chinese Medicine has taught me anything, it is that moderation in all things is necessary and the key to a long, healthy life. Aristotle is first credited with the phrasing of "everything in moderation" and this is truly the key to lasting, life-changing resolutions. Perhaps that resolution of cutting a food or food group out of your life or going on a crash diet isn't necessary.
The key to the chocolate/cheese/carb/food (or whatever you have decided to cut out of your life) dilemma is to eat enough of what you are craving and then stop when you are no longer craving the item. It sounds simple, right? I know that such a concept is so simple that you perhaps would not even consider it. But try this- the next time you are sitting down with a big bar of…
The Secret Benefits of Massage Therapy
Every day, I see people who are in pain, exhausted, and feel as if they are pushed to their limits on a daily basis. Although many people know massage is good for pain and will seek out a massage therapist when they are actively in pain, it is my job to teach people that massage should be a part of their monthly (if not more often, depending on the situation) routine for physical and mental well-being.
Nowadays it seems pretty common knowledge that massage is beneficial for the physical body. The ability of massage to increase circulation, reduce waste from musculature, increase nutrient flow, improve muscle tone, and most of all reduce pain response in the body is generally why people initially come to see me.
But there are several benefits of massage that often get overlooked. The first benefit is simply that it is an hour or hour and a half out of your day that is solely focused on you. Time solely focused on you without distraction is often overlooked in our society, and I frequently get both men and women in my office with very hectic lifestyles, kids, etc. who spend time on everything else and everyone else but themselves. This lack of "me" time can result in compromised immunity, headaches, and other stress related disorders. A massage should be a time of relaxation,…