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Qi Gong offers a simple yet effective way to keep your body feeling loose and energized every day. This daily routine focuses on loosening fascia—the connective tissue surrounding muscles—and improving lymph circulation. Many people experience mild neck and lower back pain from sitting too long or poor posture. This gentle practice helps prevent those aches by moving your body in multiple directions, promoting flexibility and better circulation in just a few minutes. Why Loos

Getting older means stretching is no longer optional; it’s mandatory. I find that's especially true before bed; I need to get a good stretch on my quads and hamstrings before I can fall asleep. (I also have unhealthy cravings for sugary pastries, but we’ll save that for another day.) During the day, I manage pretty well with a little Qi Gong and taking stretch breaks every hour or so. In the warm weather, I like to go for longer walks outside. For the most part, this keeps

Meditation doesn’t have to be from some contorted seated position. Not everyone can sit in full lotus! When first learning meditation, we want to cultivate stillness within, through stillness of the body. This can be done seated in a chair or even standing. With practice, you’ll be able to bring this stillness into your daily life. Let’s start with a focus on standing meditation. Just standing still takes some effort from me. Constantly jumping from task to task. Making

Holistic medicine is something we hear a lot about. It can be very confusing just to understand what it is and what it isn’t. Put simply, holistic medicine is a very broad term, related to holism. That is - treating one’s health as part of a person’s place in a larger - overall context. To varying degrees, it’s concerned with one's physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. A Wider Lens While modern, allopathic medicine likes to be super specific (one specialist f

I’ve been practicing acupuncture for about 16 years, and over that time, I’ve noticed I see many more women than men. If I could make an unscientific estimate, I’d say 80% of my clients have been women. Of the men, by far the majority of them I’ve seen have been due to an accident or injury. Rarely do I see gentlemen come in for “wellness” or prevention methods around stress management. Why the hesitation? That’s a little odd to me because I know the stress is there, and th

The NADA ear protocol was developed in the 1970s to help the community around the borough of the Bronx, in New York City. Lincoln Hospital had a detox unit devoted to helping people break free from drug addiction, using this simple holistic treatment. The procedure was developed over time by Michael Smith, MD, LAc. His work was based on the research of the Chinese neurosurgeon H.L. Wen. What he developed was a protocol using specific acupuncture points on the ears that c

A recent Huffington Post Article offered some compelling tips for Older Adults to make the most of their health in their golden years. On top of this list was eating fiber. Fiber helps regulate bowel movements, improves digestion, and prevents colon cancer. Good sources of fiber are berries, flax and chia seeds. You can also supplement with a fiber powder or gummies, and be sure to drink lots of water with it. Next on the list, lots of protein, around 20 grams per meal. Vi

Inflammation is one of the main causes of many types of pain and disease. Proper diet is a great way to reduce inflammation. That doesn’t mean meals have to be bland and tasteless. Here are some excellent recipes that are also great for reducing inflammation. (Recipes are taken from: Martha Stewart - 22 Anti-Inflammatory Recipes You Can Feel Good About Eating (4/12/24).) Lower Inflammation Recipe 1 - Seared Beets with Turmeric Tahini Broccoli & Salmon This dish brings tog

Chronic inflammation can lead to pain, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, cancer, diabetes, obesity, arthritis, autoimmune disease, and mental health issues. It is caused by injury, diet, lifestyle, and genetics. Taking proactive steps to reduce inflammation goes a long way in preventing and moderating these diseases. One of my favorite sources for holistic health tips is the book Ancient Remedies by Dr. Josh Axe. Here are some of his tips for reducing inflammation: The first k

Tai Chi and Qi Gong are a set of exercises that offer many health benefits. With regular practice, they can serve as the veritable “apple a day” to keep all doctors away. One group of people that could benefit greatly from these exercises is athletes. Foundational Development Whether professional, amateur, or recreational, all athletes can benefit greatly from regular Tai Chi and Qi Gong practice. First off, the exercises offer very little risk of injury. In fact, they

Tai Chi and Qi Gong are sets of exercises that can be done by anyone and can benefit everyone. They’re especially good for older adults and people looking to maximize health benefits, with a light set of regular exercises. They are often mentioned and performed together, and complement each other well. Gentle, Yet Effective Exercises Both are a rather gentle form of exercise that promotes health and wellness. They embody relaxed effort and promote circulation and the flow

We acupuncturists in the United States find ourselves in a unique situation. We are tasked with educating and serving the population with a medicine that is at the same time ancient and new. It is also foreign, but universal - in that it works the same for all humans (and even animals and pets.) It’s also comprehensive, in that it can treat many different conditions, for people young and old. However, I want to focus on how it can benefit older adults, with an emphasis o

Calligraphy art When I was an undergrad at University, I arrived early to one of my classes to find the previous demonstration was still wrapping up. At the front of the auditorium was a Zen Buddhist monk. He was in full robes, sitting on the floor, in front of a large, blank, white scroll of paper. He dipped a large brush in some black ink. Then, in one fluid, continuous movement, proceed to paint a Chinese character on the paper. His movement was so fluid and beautifu

While every life has its share of ups and downs regarding stress, with chronic stress, ignoring it or waiting for it to fix itself could be deadly. Each of us is equipped to deal with a certain amount of stress. If we know good coping mechanisms, we may think we have it all under control. However, chronic stress can indeed be fatal, and it’s important we recognize the warning signs for when it’s time to take action. How Stress is Deadly Chronic stress increases the stress

Rain lashed against the temple windows, a relentless drumming that mirrored the storm brewing within Hana. Her calligraphy practice, usually a source of calm, felt like a struggle. Each stroke, meant to be deliberate and mindful, ended shaky and uneven. Disappointment gnawed at her. Life, it seemed, was mirroring the tempest outside. Her family business was floundering, and worry, a tenacious weed, had taken root in her mind. Taking a deep breath, Hana rose from her tatami ma

Roughly 11% of US children aged 3-17 are diagnosed with ADHD. It’s characterized by symptoms of hyperactivity, inattentiveness and impulsivity. It has serious implications in a child’s behavior at home and at school, and is understandably a serious concern for many parents. It’s not entirely clear what causes ADHD. Studies say environmental toxins, genetics, or both. It could be related to gut health. It could be neurological. It’s usually addressed to kids, but adults

Migraines affect roughly 17% of female adults and approximately 6% of adult men. They can be triggered by stress, certain foods, hormones, and dehydration. An episodic migraine attack may have the victim suffer from sensitivity to light and sound, nausea, loss of vision or tunnel vision (called an aura), and intense pain. A migraine differs from a tension headache in that it is usually on one side of the head and has intense pain that can be quite debilitating. They can h

Mental health has so much to do with “my why”. It played a big part in why I decided to go into holistic medicine. There are so many people suffering from different forms of mental illness, and I believe my experience can be used to help some of them come out of it. The Mental Health Landscape There are many types and causes of mental illness. They can all influence our lives in many ways. Mental illness affects our relationships, our jobs, and our lives. It can show u

I was talking with one of my clients recently. She’s a senior citizen, in her 70’s. Most of her life was in pretty good health, but she was remarking how recently she’s been developing all these health issues. It’s seemingly endless that every visit to a doctor for one thing, she inevitably finds out about some other thing that needs attention. This usually results in yet another medication on top of a whole slew of others. Or in some cases, that she may need surgery. G

In general, many things can be treated with acupuncture, and most practitioners will pick a few that they specialize in. Number one on the list, simply because it’s what most people seek treatment for, would have to be pain. Follow that with issues related to stress and anxiety, like mood, energy, sleep, headaches, digestion, and overall wellness. Pain comes in many flavors Most clients start getting acupuncture for pain. It’s only after seeing it work effectively that the