Inger’s Blog

Happy New Year to you! I hope you had a restful holiday. Although we are entering a new year, we are still in the midst of winter. Winter from a Chinese medicine perspective is a time for rest and renewal. Yin energy is predominant, meaning the body’s natural tendency is to be more still: to stay at home, read, regroup, rest. Some people may experience a general lack of a desire to be social or participate in major external activities. Don’t feel guilty or “lazy” about feeling this way. You are living according to nature’s natural cycle. Just wait until spring; you will find you have a surge of newfound energy!

Winter is a good time to start up with regular acupuncture treatments. The external environment and change in the weather patterns, such as wind, rain, and snow, can bring on colds especially if you are feeling run down and exhausted. I’m treating a lot of patients with head colds and the initial onset of cough and fevers lately. As soon as you are feeling symptoms such as headache, body aches, unusual sweating, fever, chills, sore throat, cough, fatigue and/or depression, it means it’s time to schedule an acupuncture appointment. Acupuncture and Chinese herbs are very effective in treating the initial onset of colds. While my patients are resting on the treatment table with their needles, I will then prepare an herbal formula for them to take home. I decipher whether their particular cold is more of a Wind-Cold pattern or a Wind-Heat pattern. The prepared formulas are different based on these patterns presentations.

In Chinese Medicine, a “Wind-Cold” and a “Wind-Heat” are two types of early-stage Cold patterns. For example, a patient with a Wind-Cold pattern will present with the following symptoms: fever and chills, head and body aches, clear or white nasal discharge, and a floating pulse. There are many types of Wind-Cold disorders, but the key treatment strategy is to release the pathogen from the exterior by inducing sweating. Based on the individual patient’s pattern presentation, I will decide the appropriate formula for the patient’s Wind-Cold pattern and prescribe an herbal formula accordingly. Alternatively, a patient with a Wind-Heat pattern will present with the following symptoms: fever, sweating, slight chills or a minor aversion to wind, headache, thirst, and a sore throat. Patients may also have a cough and/or redness surrounding their eyes. The pulse is usually floating or rapid. And the tongue can have a white or slightly yellow coating with slight redness at the tip. Heat moves quickly through the body and therefore herbal formulas for Wind-Heat patterns include herbs that are acrid and cooling, which help to release the pathogenic influence at the exterior level as well as clear heat. Also, pathogenic heat patterns tend to attack the lungs first and “injure the fluids” (causing dehydration). These formulas help to generate fluids and help the lungs to disseminate and descend fluids downwards.

Hopefully this will help you better understand colds from a Chinese medicine perspective. If this is confusing you, that’s okay too! All you need to know is acupuncture and Chinese herbs are a wonderful way to resolve the initial onset of a cold as well as boost your qi (your vital energy) in order to prevent illness in the future.

Here’s to a year of good health!

—Inger

You don’t need to be in pain to get acupuncture and you don’t need to be ill. Because Chinese medicine is preventative medicine, acupuncture as a monthly “tune-up” can be just as helpful. How? Chinese medicine’s focus is on the cultivation of your body’s qi (translated loosely as your body’s “vital energy”).  When your body’s qi is flourishing, it can better handle stresses and strains that may come your way. For example, if you are exposed too much to the elements—sun, wind, or dampness—or to toxins in our environment—molds, polluted air, and so on—you are likely to get sick. If your body’s qi has been supplemented through regular acupuncture treatments, it can better handle these external pressures. 

With the healthcare reform debate continuing, one approach that is widely agreed upon by medical doctors, naturopaths, and Chinese medicine practitioners is that it is far better to prevent illness than to treat it once it has taken root within the body.  Chinese medicine focuses on this preventative approach.  I have stressed on my web page that Chinese medicine is not just about acupuncture.  It includes the five modalities: acupuncture, tui na (Chinese therapeutic massage), dietary therapy, Chinese herbs, and qi gong (exercise). When you come in for a treatment, I may apply tui na (for example, after your acupuncture treatment), as well as prescribe herbs. I am also likely to discuss ways for you to cultivate your qi in your everyday life, through eating balanced meals and exercising regularly. Of course, my recommendations from a Chinese medical perspective are made in response to your unique health status and state of being. Although preventative medicine is good for all, preventative approaches are not the same for all! Write me or make an appointment if you’d like to discuss appropriate preventative medicine for you.   

—Inger

Autumn brings focus after the scattered season of summer. During the summer, we are active and social (so I blame summer for my recent lack of blogging!). During fall, we focus inwardly, we stay inside, and we contemplate the busy season we’ve left behind.

What the Huang Di nei jing (The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic) Says about Autumn

“In the three months of autumn all things in nature reach their full maturity. The grains ripen and harvesting occurs. The heavenly energy cooks, as does the weather. The wind begins to stir. This is the changing or pivoting point when the yang, or active, phase turns into its opposite, the yin, or passive phase. One should retire with the sunset and arise with the dawn. Just as the weather in autumn turns harsh, so does the emotional climate. It is therefore important to remain calm and peaceful, refraining from depression so that one can make the transition to winter smoothly. This is the time to gather one’s spirit and energy, be more focused, and not allow desires to run wild. One must keep the lung energy full, clean, and quiet. This means practicing breathing exercises to enhance lung qi. Also, one should refrain from both smoking and grief, the emotion of the lung….”

—Chapter 2, Huang Di nei jing

The Inner Classic is the earliest text we know of on the subject of Chinese medicine. We are not certain exactly when it was written, but scholars tend to place its composition between 320 BCE and 260 CE. The book offers practical advice on how to maintain balance in our lives by living according to seasonal and other cyclical changes in nature. The Chapter 2 quote above discusses what is occurring in nature during the autumn season and how those phenomena affect our body/mind. The paragraph emphasizes the health of the lungs during autumn because the lungs’ qi corresponds to the energy of autumn in Chinese medicine. At this time of year it is important to focus on the lungs and on prevention in general in order to avoid contracting an illness.

How to Stay Well

Below are suggestions for enhancing your health during this stormy season:

·          It is increasingly windy and cold, so always cover your head and neck when going outside. Pathogenic cold will get into your body via your head and neck.

·          Take deep breaths and breathe in the fresh fall air. This will help to clear your lungs and provide fresh qi from the air to your body.

·          Allow for appropriate sleep. Go to bed earlier than usual—when it gets dark out—and wake up earlier. Unlike in summer, when we stay awake later, we should do the opposite in autumn.

·          Drink herbal teas that supplement your lung qi. Ren shen (Panax ginseng) effectively supplements the lungs and helps augment the qi, and huang qi (Astralagus membranaceus) helps to augment your protective qi (the qi that keeps you from contracting an illness).

·          The lungs are associated with sour foods in Chinese medicine, and eating sour foods helps stimulate the body and encourage mental focus. Eat sauerkraut, sourdough breads, olives, and pickles!

The suggestions above, in addition to regular acupuncture treatments and herbal prescriptions, are wonderful, preventative ways to avoid getting sick this season and to increase your overall health and well being.

—Inger