Are You Ready to Thrive?

So you don't like the idea of being needled. That's cool, you won't hurt my (or any other acupuncturist's) feelings! There is always the option of having acupressure performed, rather than acupuncture.

One of the main questions that I get asked about acupressure is if it's as effective as acupuncture. The answer is yes. Acupuncture is merely one method of effecting someone's Qi. There are styles of "acupuncture" where the practitioner holds the needle next to your skin, but doesn't puncture it. There are practitioners who can treat patients from great distances - they don't even have to be in the same room let alone the same city!

One reason acupuncture seems more popular than acupressure is that it's easier. The metal of the needle works like a lightning rod, conducting the healing energy very easily through it. It takes a lot of control and power to be able to conduct the healing energy safely through yourself to your patient. Another reason people tend to prefer acupuncture over acupressure? The psychological effect that needling has. "If I'm being needled, it MUST be stronger than just pushing on my skin."

So, if you're not into the idea of being needled, feel free to talk to your acupuncturist about your preferences. Never is it NECESSARY to needle an acupoint. Acupressure works just as well.

A friend asked today when anger was useful. This got me to thinking. Every emotion exists for a reason. So what is the purpose of anger?

In Chinese medicine, each organ has an emotion, much like each organ has an element associated with it. For anger, the organ association is with the Liver. I discussed some aspects of the Liver and the element of Wood in I'm a Proud Tree Hugger, so we'll be building on those concepts here. Remember that the Liver is associated with Wood. Wood likes to grow and change. Wood so much likes to grow and change that it will grow THROUGH rocks, breaking them in half. Wood will push up sidewalks. Wood is very persistent. It is very driven.

We have these same desires in ourselves. We always strive to better ourselves. We want to get things done, to get that new car, to buy that new house, to get that promotion. So what happens when our aspirations are blocked? We get angry. According to Chinese medicine, the reason we get angry is because our Wood element is unable to do something. It's frustrated.

Think back on all of the times you were angry. Didn't it all lead back to being frustrated because you were blocked? You couldn't have that toy at the store. You didn't get that promotion, but the "undeserving idiot" did. You got cut off in traffic. Interesting, don't you think?

So back to the question "When is anger useful?" Anger is useful, the same as any other emotion. As long as we don't get stuck in any one emotion - it's a part of a healthy experience. Anger (or frustration) can lead to creativity and problem solving. Think about it - some of the world's greatest inventions probably stemmed from frustrations with the current technologies!

Anger or frustration should also help us to better ourselves. The next time you find yourself cussing someone or something out, ask yourself, "Why does this bother me?" And remember that when Wood can't figure out a way to get THROUGH something, it goes AROUND.

He Ku - (pronounced Huh Coo) This point is often used for headaches, but it is also really great for relieving stress. It's located on the back side of your hand on that fleshy area between your thumb and forefinger. Pinch this area using your other thumb and forefinger (one on the back of your hand, the other on the palmar side of your hand) and again massage using gentle circles. Caution: Do NOT massage this point if you're pregnant.

Bai Hui - (pronounced by way) This point is used to help center and ground us. It's located on the crown of your head. You'll find a little divot which is the point! Massage this point, again using gentle circles.

So get massaging, people, and bring on the relaxation

Just about any time you read about a study that was done using acupuncture, you'll hear about how they used "sham acupuncture" as the control. "Sham Acupuncture" is when they needle very shallowly in a location that isn't an acupuncture point. They do this to demonstrate how much of the effect of acupuncture is due to placebo. The addition of a control is integral to the scientific world to demonstrate how a procedure, medication or other therapy is effective beyond the changes that can be due to positive thinking. There's only one problem with this when it comes to acupuncture - there's no way to do fake acupuncture!

In Chinese medicine, anytime you insert a needle, there will be a change in the body, no matter if the point is a "real" point or not. Our energy field isn't limited to these little points on our bodies, those are simply the best access points to our energy.

So the next time you see a study with results that "are only slightly better than sham acupuncture," please read it with a grain of salt. Sham acupuncture is not a true control, and should not be confused for one, when writing the conclusions for a study.

I'm very excited about a patient I've been treating lately. She's very pro-active in her treatments. She was in a horrible car accident a couple weeks ago and called me and her chiropractor FROM THE HOSPITAL to schedule her first post-car-accident appointments! She would have been fine waiting until she got home to call, but she figured she had some time to kill between x-rays and CT scans, why not?

I saw pictures of her car. It was a very bad accident with the front half of her car being completely demolished. She was very lucky to have walked away from the scene. Thank goodness for seat belts and airbags, huh?

We began treatments the day following her accident and twice weekly since (she's following a similar schedule with her chiropractor). She wasn't sore the day after her accident, which is pretty normal - most people don't start experiencing pain for about a week after their accidents! But here's the more surprising part. Other than some back stiffness when she first wakes up in the morning, she's pain-free. Because she sought help early on from her acupuncturist and chiropractor, she is not suffering from the usual injuries that follow car accidents.

If you're in a car accident, consider seeking alternative medical care. There's so much that can be done to prevent the whiplash and back pain from setting in. If you're unable to see someone in time to prevent these injuries, there is still so much that can be done to speed the recovery process.

I don't remember if I found her, or if she found me, but I met Anna Sexton, owner of Greetings That Grow on Twitter.com. Many people (maybe that should be read as most?) on Twitter are business owners trying to spread the word in an easy-on-the-budget sort of way (Heck, that's why I'm there!).

There are lots of interesting ideas out there, but I am in LOVE with Anna's products! She makes greeting cards from recycled paper and infuses them with seeds! On the front is a keepsake photograph. Plant the greeting card and in no time you'll have a living memory in the form of herbs, flowers, fruits or veggies!

I know, I know, I'm straying from my normal topic of acupuncture, here. I just couldn't resist sharing this cool, green way of saying "Thank You!" (or "My Condolences" or "Happy Birthday!" or whatever!)

I've done a lot of hiking. When I was in acupuncture school, a friend of mine and I used to go hiking in the Columbia River Gorge whenever we had a long enough break between classes. Sure, all of our classmates thought we were slacking off. We let them think that. What they didn't know was that we had found the ultimate way to de-stress and allow our energy to flow smoothly so that we could study more efficiently.

What we found was that there was an interesting exchange taking place between us and the trees. Much like the exchange of carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2) that occurs between animals and plants, we discovered the existence of an energy exchange.

In Chinese medicine, the Liver is the main organ that is involved when we feel "stressed out." Stress causes our energy to clump together so that it doesn't move properly. One of the Liver's jobs is to assist in the smooth flow of Qi. In order to compensate for our energy not moving correctly, our Liver beefs itself up to try to handle the bigger load. What we end up with is too much Liver energy, creating an imbalance. The Liver is associated with the element of wood, and so a stressed-out person may be described as "having too much wood energy."

What we found is that when we went hiking, our stress simply disappeared. The trees, because they ARE wood, were taking all of our extra wood energy and using it to become bigger and stronger trees. They need that wood energy, we need to get rid of any extra wood energy. Pretty neat, huh?

So the next time you're feeling stressed out, go for a walk in a wooded area. And if no one's around, or if you're like me and don't care what other people think, give a tree a hug. You'll both feel better for it!

I grew up as an Army brat. Luckily my dad was in the National Guard and worked here in Portland, so we never had to deal with the issues of being stationed in different places all over the world. But I still grew up knowing what MREs (Meals Ready to Eat), the PX (Post Exchange) and BDUs (Battle Dress Uniforms) were. Okay, so there were some things I didn't know: I never knew that MREs came with candy in them! (My dad always ate the candy before we got to it) I was in my early twenties before I found out I had been cheated all my life!

It's interesting how everything comes full circle in our lives. I found this article recently about how the military is training their doctors to perform acupuncture on the battlefield! Most people don't know that I seriously considered joining the military to help pay my way through college. I decided that it wasn't the path for me, but it's funny how I COULD have ended up at almost the same career endpoint!

Yay for the military recognizing this powerful medicine and it's abilities to help our soldiers through the toughest times in their lives!

I posed this question to my faithful followers on Twitter and here are the answers I received:

*Needles
*Chinese and Needles. Brings to mind an old Chinese guy sticking needles in my body. Also pinhead from Hellraiser! ;p
*New medicine to the West. Untested, does it really work?
*Acupuncture = Health, naturally! (I'm a convert most recently because my husband can treat me now too )
*My first thought is of the feeling of the needle entering but not hurting.
*I think of 'balanced life'
*Needles
*I think its something my brother learned after he got his MD
*Did it to quit smoking -OUCH! Didn't work for me. Want to do again though for other things!
*Needle, relaxation, and calm - in that order.
*A relaxed neck, a headache gone

Great answers, Everyone! As you can see there have been a wide variety of experiences with acupuncture!

And don't worry, an acupuncturist would never put that many needles in your head!