Are You Ready to Thrive?

Welcome to the last post of Resolutions Week.  You made it!  Hopefully your first week with your new goals in 2011 went well!  If it was a rough one, keep going, it WILL get easier as these new habits become old ones.

Today I'm going to talk about willpower and tips and tricks for keeping the motivation until your new-found habits become integrated in your daily life.

First off, what is willpower? Dictionary.com defines it as: 

the ability to control oneself and determine one's actions

As I was looking through the definitions to find the one I wanted to use in this article, I found that they have a section of quotes that contain the word you've just looked up.  Pretty cool!  And funny enough, there's a quote that I think will fit well in this situation:

Writing a book is like rearing children—willpower has very little to do with it. If you have a little baby crying in the middle of the night, and if you depend only on willpower to get you out of bed to feed the baby, the baby will starve. You do it out of love. Willpower is a weak idea; love is strong. You don't have to scourge yourself with a cat-o'-nine tails to go to the baby. You go to the baby out of love for that particular baby. That's the same way you go to your desk. - Annie Dillard

Let's just substitute the parts about writing a book with the idea of living healthfully and loving your body.  Nice, huh?

So let's talk about willpower from a Chinese medical perspective.  

Our willpower is associated with our Kidneys.  When the Kidneys are weak, not only can we experience a decrease in willpower, but fatigue, early aging, pain or weakness in our low back or knees and much more.  

Kidney deficiency is really common in college students, parents of young children, and anyone else burning the candle at both ends.  Have you noticed that the more tired or stressed out you are, the harder it is to follow through with things that aren't vital?

So what can we do to strengthen our Kidneys so we'll be more likely to follow through long-term with our goals?

• Get plenty of rest - I know this can seem like a tough one, especially for those who are super busy.  But rest is going to be a key ingredient in letting your Kidney Qi regenerate.
• Eat a healthy diet - We get our Qi from our food and drinks.  High quality foods give us more Qi.  
• Keep stress levels low - We all know how stress plays in with fatigue.  Exercise can help keep stress from building up.
• Acupuncture and Chinese herbs help increase our quality of sleep, decrease stress levels and improve our digestion so that we're getting the best out of our food all so that our Kidneys can recharge.

So, as Annie Dillard said, it starts with love.  Love for yourself and your well-being.  When you take basic care of your body (and yes, the items bulleted above should be BASIC things we do for ourselves - not special treats every once in a while), you won't need willpower.  You'll love yourself too much to NOT do them, and you'll have enough energy and drive to follow through with them (as well as bigger and better goals!).

Resolutions Week - Intro
Resolutions Week - Part I - Exercise
Resolutions Week - Part II - Healthy Eating
Resolutions Week - Part III - Quitting Smoking

Welcome back to Resolutions Week!  If you're just now finding this series, you'll find links to the other posts at the end.

Today we're going to talk about smoking and how it affects our bodies from a Chinese medical standpoint.

In Chinese medicine, any time we're exposed to smoke it has a drying effect.  This could be cigarette smoke, marijuana smoke, or even smoke from the wood-burning stove you use to heat your house during the winter.  As with many things, a few exposures here and there aren't going to drastically change your health.  It's the chronic, long-term exposures that will have an impact.

What does it mean for something to be drying?

Just like a campfire can dry your shoes after you played in the river earlier in the day, smoking will dry up your body fluids.  Some people will notice this drying effect as:

• Dry mouth or throat
• Cough
• Thirst
• Red, dry eyes
• Dry skin, hair or nails
• Constipation

Again, in small doses, the drying won't have a lasting effect.  We'll drink more water because we're thirsty, which will replenish our body fluids.  Long term, however, while we could theoretically drink enough water to compensate for the loss of body fluids, our body's mechanisms for moving that fluid to different our different parts are damaged.  We can drink a ton of water, but we're still going to have the dry skin, hair and nails (and other symptoms) because our body isn't taking in and utilizing fluids properly anymore.

In Chinese medical terms, smoking damages our Yin.  When we don't have enough Yin energy to cool, moisten and calm, we end up with uncomfortable symptoms such as those mentioned above.

To reverse this drying effect, acupuncture and herbs can be prescribed, but of course, the best course of action is to limit your exposure.  

Tomorrow will be our last piece of this series on Resolutions.  We'll be talking about will-power and tips and tricks to keep going with those healthful resolutions!

As mentioned above, here are links to the rest of the articles from Resolutions Week

Resolutions Week - Intro
Resolutions Week - Part I - Exercise
Resolutions Week - Part II - Healthy Eating
Resolutions Week - Part IV - Willpower

Welcome to Resolutions Week! Yesterday we talked about how Chinese medicine looks at exercise.  Today we're going to take a look at how Chinese medicine views healthy eating - another common New Year's Resolution.

In Chinese medical theory, your Stomach is viewed as an oven, in which the foods you eat are cooked using the energy of the Spleen.  This isn't too far off from what we know biologically happens.  Biologically speaking, our foods are chemically "cooked" using acids and enzymes rather than heat cooked, but those ancient Chinese had a great analogy going, so let's stick with it!

So you put food into your Stomach and then your Spleen turns the oven on to digest that food.  There are a couple of ways that we can make our oven inefficient at cooking our foods.  Let's take a look at them:

• Ice water - Drinking ice cold water cools off our digestive oven, making it have to work that much harder in order to turn food into energy we can use.  If you tend to be on the colder side and you drink ice water, you may notice undigested food in your stools!  That's evidence that your oven isn't getting hot enough!
• Raw Foods - Eating lots of raw foods can also make our Spleen have to work harder to digest our foods.
• Too many sweets - too many sweet foods gum up the works of the Spleen, making it difficult to digest foods properly.  

The above things that we can do to make our oven inefficient are often used in "dieting" to burn more calories (except for the part about eating too many sweets, of course).  For someone who is extremely robust and in tip-top shape, doing those things won't likely make a large impact on their digestion.  Their oven is already super efficient and not bogged-down!  But in someone who has weaker digestion, who is cold all the time or has fatigue, doing these things can mean you're spending too much energy on digesting the food without gaining enough from it.


So here's what I recommend most people do to eat healthier:

• Skip the ice in your water.  Cool from the tap is fine.  Room-temperature or warmer is better!
• Eat fully cooked foods - Cooking is merely another way of pre-digesting the food.  Don't make your Spleen work so hard and you'll feel much more energetic!  A side salad is alright, but avoid those entree salads, especially during the winter when it's so cold outside.
• Avoid sweets - Too many sweets weaken the Spleen.  An occasional treat is fine, but let's not over do it.

Come back tomorrow for a look at Quitting Smoking as a New Year's Resolution!

In case you missed the rest of this series:
Resolutions Week - Intro
Resolutions Week - Part I - Exercise
Resolutions Week - Part III - Quitting Smoking
Resolutions Week - Part IV - Willpower

Welcome to Resolutions Week! Today we'll be discussing exercise and its importance as viewed from the Chinese medical perspective.

Many many MANY people make exercise a part of their New Year's Resolutions.  (It's definitely made my list!)  We all know that to be truly healthy, exercise is an important building block.  So why do so many of us struggle with the motivation to get up and move our bodies regularly?

We are a society of stress.  Our jobs are stressful.  Our families are stressful.  Traffic is stressful.  We're expected to do so much in so few hours!  In Chinese medical theory, stress is associated with the Liver and the Wood element.  Stress prevents the Liver from doing its job of keeping our Qi moving in a smooth fashion.  If our Qi isn't moving properly, we start to get symptoms of unhealth.

When we exercise regularly, we are mechanically making our Qi flow.  Think of all those muscles moving.  That blood pumping.  The sweat pouring.  Your Qi follows each of them.  So even though the stress may be making it difficult for your Qi to move smoothly, when you exercise, it is being forced to do so, which will help ease your levels of stress.  See how that works?  It's a great feedback loop!

One of the reasons we may find it difficult to get motivated to get moving is because of our Qi not moving properly.  Think of it like a car with a dead battery.  If the battery isn't sending power to the engine to start it, you're going to have to push-start it.  It's hard to be motivated to push that car, especially if it means having to get up earlier in the morning!  However, if you know that if you push that car and get the battery fixed so it'll start easily when you tell it to, it's much easier to get out there and start pushing!

So get out there and fulfill your New Year's Resolutions, and know that you're doing your body good to get that Qi moving!  Remember, it'll get easier to continue with your new habit once all those little bits of Qi get unstuck!

Resolutions Week - Intro
Resolutions Week - Part II - Healthy Eating
Resolutions Week - Part III - Quitting Smoking
Resolutions Week - Part IV - Willpower

I've made my New Year's Resolutions, have you?  One of mine is to be a little better .cough. about writing regular blog posts.  They might not be daily, but I'm striving for at least one new post a week.

I'm going to start off with a serious of posts on some typical resolutions and the theories, Chinese medical theory, that is, that support them as being healthy choices. 

We'll take a look at:

• Exercise
  
• Eating Healthy
• Quitting Smoking
• Tips and tricks for keeping the motivations going strong

If you've been reading this blog long enough, you'll know how I feel about trying to start new habits at the New Year vs. the beginning of Spring, but here we go!

Resolutions Week - Part I - Exercise
Resolutions Week - Part II - Healthy Eating

Read this article first, then come back here.  It's a long read, so if you're a little short on time, just read Parts 1 & 2; they are the inspiration for this post.

Now that you're back, let's get down to business!

I have a certain type of patient who comes in.  I call them my "zombies." 

They know that I call them this.

We joke about it.

But really, it's not funny.  (I'm just the sort of person to laugh rather than cry when I'm in a serious situation)  These women (it's always been women so far) come to me exhausted, depressed and cold.  They can't get enough layers of clothing to be warm.  Many of them also have digestive complaints.  When I look at them through my Chinese Medical Eye, they're pale and they have no pulse, hence the teasing about being a zombie.

There's always one thing that ties these women together:  they have some sort of a nutritional deficiency.  For some it's a consequence of a disease that makes their bodies unable to absorb the proper nutrients.  For many, it's a consequence of being vegetarian or vegan and not getting enough of the right nutrients.

It's not that I'm on a crusade to enforce a certain way of eating.  I don't care one way or another what a person's eating habits are - until those habits start effecting their health in a negative way.

People never like to hear nutritional advice.  Especially when it goes against their morals or excludes their favorite foods.  But I often find myself having to suggest some pretty extreme changes.  That they add animal products back into their meatless diet.  Or that they stop eating dairy or gluten or sugar.

And even though I'm always nervous for these talks, many times the response I get is, "I knew you were going to recommend something like this.  I think it's time to try it."

Sometimes it takes hitting bottom to realize that we've got to try something new.

And that's okay.  We can't know what will work for us until we try it, right?

We're all different.  We can eat different things and get very different results.  We can exercise different amounts and in different ways and get very different results.  The trick is to find our own set of "different" so that we can be our vibrant, energetic, lovely selves.  And be understanding of each others' "differents," so that we can all be the best that we can be.

I liked this article from Natural News (copied below) and wanted to share it with you all.  Apparently I am in the mood for some autumnal foods.  Bonus recipe at the end!

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, autumn is represented by the metal element, which corresponds to the Lungs and Large Intestine. Weakness in this element shows up as ailments in the Lung and Intestines: allergies, asthma and constipation. The remedy can be found in this season's most notable food: the pumpkin or squash.

The pumpkin is round, orange and sweet. It corresponds to the earth element in the five element cycle. Earth is the mother of metal. In Chinese medicine there is a saying: when there is weakness in the child (in this case metal: lungs and large intestine), nourish the mother (in this case earth.)

Weakness in the lungs will show up as: 

• allergies
• asthma
• bronchitis
• pneumonia

Because the lungs open onto the skin, one may also see acne, eczema and psoriasis. The paired organ to the Lungs is the Colon, so weakness here will show up as constipation, diarrhea, or IBS.

In Chinese medicine, the pumpkin is known to relieve damp conditions such as dysentery and eczema. It promotes discharge of mucus from the lungs, bronchi and throat, easing bronchialasthma. (1)

Not only does the flesh of the pumpkin benefit the Lungs and Large Intestine, the seeds are especially good for the intestines, easing constipation and acting as a parasite cleanse. Known as nan gua zi, pumpkin seeds are especially known to alleviate tapeworm and roundworm. For this purpose pumpkin seeds are taken by boiling into a strong tea known as a decoction or grinding into a powder to be taken with water.

Nutritionally, pumpkins are high in beta carotene which is converted by the body to vitamin A. Beta carotene protects the mucous membranes of the body and has been shown to protect both the lungs and large intestine against cancer. (2)

Soup is an excellent way to nourish the body this time of year. The following soup can be made with pumpkin or any kind of yellow winter squash. Make sure to save and wash the seeds, which can then be salted and baked at 350 degrees until dry.

Nourishing Pumpkin Soup 

• 1 pumpkin or squash, halved, seeded, and baked face down on baking sheet at 350 until soft (1/2 hour to an hour depending on thickness of squash.)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 6 cups water

1. In soup pot, saute onions, garlic and carrots in olive oil until softened.
2. Add water, flesh of the squash scraped from the skin, maple syrup, salt and pepper and mix well.
3. Bring to boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Cool and blend until smooth.
5. Reheat and serve.

Footnotes 

1. Pitchford, p.508
2. Ibid, p.313

References
Pitchford, Paul. Healing with Whole Foods. North Atlantic Books. Berkeley, CA.
Bensky, Dan and Gamble, Andrew. Chinese Herbal Medicine, Materia Medica.Eastland Press, Seattle.
Shanghai College of Traditional Medicine. Acupuncture, A Comprehensive Text. Eastland Press. Seattle.

There are few things better than cooking the first Fall Food meal of the season.  Stews and Stuffed Acorn Squash are wintery staples around my house.  

In the Chinese medical world, it comes as no surprise that many people start craving certain foods during certain seasons.  Those who do crave with the seasons are merely listening to their bodies and going with the flow of human evolution; eat foods when they're naturally available.

Some tips for eating in the Fall and Winter are:

• Eat foods that have been warmed. I know it's tempting to eat that raw salad, but try to avoid it during the cooler months - they're difficult to digest and can cause symptoms such as gas and bloating.
• Eat foods that are "in season."  Apples, Pears, Winter Squashes, etc. are all foods that will help strengthen our bodies for the upcoming winter.
• Stews are your best friend.  The foods in stews have already been cooked, making it super easy to digest, plus there's nothing better to warm you up on those cooler nights than a steamy bowl of soup. Num!

Here is a basic, easy recipe for Stuffed Acorn Squash (and don't forget to get creative and add your own ingredients to the filling!)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cut acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds with a spoon (you can save the seeds and toast them, or feed them to your dog if you have one - they'll thank you!)
3. Place the halves of squash cut side up in a baking pan filled with 1/2" of water and bake for about 1 hour, or until the flesh is easily pricked with a fork.
4. While the squash is baking, prepare the filling
5. Boil rice as per instructions.
6. Once rice is cooked, add desired ingredients.  Our last stuffed acorn squash was made with a bunch of stuff we found in our refrigerator that needed to be used before it went bad - andouille sausage, mushrooms, spinach and cheese.
7. I like to scoop some of the flesh of the squash out and mix it with the filling, then put the filling mix back in the squash.
8. Top the whole thing with cheese and place in the oven until the cheese is melty.
9. Enjoy this tasty and healthy meal!

What are your favorite Fall Foods recipes?

This post comes to you on the suggestion from this post earlier this week.

I don't believe I've talked about Moxibustion in this blog, which is a bit of an oversight.  See, I'm allergic to the smoke associated with the burning of moxa (mugwort) and so didn't even think about writing about it!

Thanks, Carolyn, for bringing it up as a topic!

As I mentioned in passing above, Moxibustion is the burning of the herb Moxa.  Moxa is the western herb mugwort.  The fluffy herb can be burned several different ways:

• Loose Moxa can be pressed into a little ball shape and placed on the handle of the needle and burned.
• Loose Moxa can be pressed into a little cone shape and placed on a patch of ointment directly on the skin.  The cone is then allowed to burn until the patient begins to feel heat and then quickly removed.  In China they will allow the moxa cone to burn to the point of blistering, creating a scar.  This is called scarring moxa, and for, hopefully, obvious reasons isn't practiced in the US.
• Moxa can be purchased in a cigar-shaped stick which is then burned and held over the skin.  There are two forms of moxa sticks: green moxa, where the herb is pressed together and rolled into the cigar; and a moxa stick where the moxa has been made into a charcoal cigar.
• Loose Moxa can be burned inside a special box (a moxabox) with holes in the sides to allow smoke to exit, which is then held over the skin.

So what is the purpose of burning moxa?  Moxa is an extremely warming and moving herb so it can be used for many reasons:

• Body Aches - Pain is caused, in Chinese medical theory, by a lack of proper movement of energy.  Moxa, when burned over the area will get that energy moving and decrease the pain.
• Skin Rashes - Some skin rashes are also caused by Qi not moving properly, so moxibustion may be indicated.
• Turning a breech baby - When burned on certain points, moxa can be very successful in turning breech babies.  Many nurses and midwives even know of this technique and will recommend that their patients find an acupuncturist to get that baby in the proper position!
• Cold conditions - Okay, so this reason for using moxa doesn't have a singular biomedical equivalent, so we'll discuss it a little bit.  In Chinese medical theory, the quality of something being cold will cause its energy to move more slowly.  If that cold is inside our bodies, it will cause our Qi to move more slowly, often causing pain.  Cold can be one of the contributing factors to pain.  There are many conditions where cold can be a factor, such as menstrual cramps, digestive troubles, infertility, diarrhea and more.  Moxa, because it is both warming and moving, is perfect for counteracting the effects of cold in the body.

So, while I don't use Moxibustion in my practice because I'm allergic to the smoke, I have sent moxa sticks home with patients who could really use a little warming over their abdomens.  Sometimes there's nothing better than a hot stick of moxa in the morning!