Why You Should Incorporate Acupuncture into Your Self Care Routines

Whether improving your self-care efforts are part of your New Year’s Resolutions, or you’re only beginning to recognize the importance of “me” time, acupuncture is worthy of incorporating in to  your self-care routines. After all, if you don’t take care of yourself, who will?

Self-care is more than just taking time out for yourself. It involves recognizing your needs, both met and unmet, and taking care of them – both mentally and physically. Whether you’re looking to improve a physical ailment, your overall health, mental health or appearance, acupuncture is a fantastic, affordable, and non-invasive practice to incorporate into your efforts.

In an article on Acupuncture Together,  it explains that acupuncture can be used as both reactive and preventive treatment, and that, “Some self-care is preventive (eating a balanced diet; regular exercise; getting enough sleep) and some is responsive (getting extra rest when you’re sick).

It’s also important to change your thinking of self-care, and challenge any negativity that may come with it. Instead of thinking that making yourself a priority is selfish or unnecessary, an article from Still Point Acupuncture elaborates, “self-care may be the most generous, responsible and compassionate choice we can make. It allows us to not only take care of ourselves, but also ensures that we have the physical and emotional resources to share our talents and gifts with others.  It allows us to be physically and emotionally present for the people in our lives.”

The article goes on to suggest the following ways to practice positive self-care, in addition to acupuncture services:

• Get a massage
• Take time to meditate
• Stay hydrated
• Make getting to bed on time a priority
• Speak kindly to yourself
• Do something that brings you joy
• Love your body with healthy food
• Have lunch with friends

Let Acupuncture Help You Achieve Your New Years Resolutions!

Happy New Year!

Can you believe it, another year has come and gone, and now we begin to make our marks and enjoy fresh starts in the year 2018.

Whether you’ve made a few resolutions, one big one, or are simply looking for more positive changes to incorporate in to your life, you’ve come to the right place. In fact, the ancient art of acupuncture can help you on your journey towards many of the most popular resolutions. Here’s how.

 Weight Loss

Acupuncture sessions can help promote a better overall sense of well-being, thus reducing the desire to eat and/or overeat out of anxiety or depression. With reduced cravings and increased endorphins, you’ll be able to make smarter choices and lessen the likelihood of overindulgent snacks.

Better Skin

Acupuncture has been said to help with acne as well as in combating signs of aging. By utilizing specific facial acupuncture points, it can help to increase blood flow, help with hormonal imbalances that may be causing breakouts, and more.

Better Sleep

Acupuncture works to unblock any blocked or stagnant qi, or energy in the body that may be latent. It can also help to increase natural night time melatonin levels that will help you to fall asleep, and stay asleep. By calming the mind and easing any chronic pain, it essentially calms the body to be better prepared for slumber, too.

More Time Unplugged

As we are more connected now than ever before (think about it, how are you reading this blog?) everyone can benefit from more time spent disconnected – resolution or not. A quality acupuncture session will provide you with at least 20 minutes of relaxation and privacy, allowing you to rest your thoughts, meditate, manifest your intentions and desires, or overall just relax.

Acupuncture as a Possible Solution for Seasonal Allergies

Despite the unseasonably warm temperatures, it’s safe to say Fall is here – and with it comes all the seasonal allergy symptoms of sneezing, coughing, itchy eyes, congestion and headaches. If you find that the beauty of the season gets hidden behind suffering from seasonal allergies, you’re not alone.

In fact, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, nasal allergies affect approximately 50 million people across the country, amounting to nearly 30 percent of adults and 40 percent of children.

If you’ve tried your fair share of pills, syrups, sprays, sinus rinses and cold packs, perhaps we can help.

A recent article originally published by TIME via CNN reported that of the participants studied in a trial published in Annals of Internal Medicine who tested positive for pollen allergies with nasal symptoms, those who received combined treatment of acupuncture and antihistamines demonstrated a greater improvement in their allergies than those who took antihistamines alone, and those who had “fake” acupuncture.

Additionally, a NPR article cited Dr. Sandra Lin, an Associate Professor of Otolaryngology (an ear, nose and throat doctor)  at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as suggesting, “Acupuncture may help relieve symptoms and improve quality of life for people with perennial allergic rhinitis, and may help with seasonal allergies. too, according to several studies. Thus, it could be an option for people looking for non-pharmaceutical treatments.”

As far as allergies and rhinitis are concerned, within alternative medicine they are typically associated with qi within the lung, and spleen. By targeting these meridians, acupuncturists can attempt to target these meridians and help to balance the qi.

Curious to know if acupuncture could help relieve some of your allergy woes? You won’t know until you try – and it can’t hurt (literally) to pay us a visit!

An Argument for Acupuncture use in the Emergency Room

It’s hard to watch the news these days without hearing of the crippling opioid epidemic that is sweeping our nation. With stronger prescription pain medication regulations and the high risk of addiction and/or overdoes, people are swiftly turning to other resources and options when it comes to pain management. While many may already know the benefits of acupuncture for chronic pain, it is now considered an option for acute moderate to severe pain, as well.

In emergency rooms (where people typically go for sudden or concerning pain) doctors are becoming increasingly cautious about the use of prescription pain medication administered orally or intravenously. Instead, according to a recent article in Forbes, a recently published study out of Australia has found that acupuncture is a safe and alternative option to opiates; depending on the patient, of course.

Dr. Marc Cohen, the lead investigator behind the study, said to Forbes, "Our study has shown acupuncture is a viable alternative, and would be especially beneficial for patients who are unable to take standard pain-relieving drugs because of other medical conditions. But it's clear we need more research overall to develop better medical approaches to pain management, as the study also showed patients initially remained in some pain, no matter what treatment they received.”

Dr. Sergey Motov, M.D, a specialist in pain management, and an attending ER physician at Maimonides in Brooklyn was also quoted in the article as saying, “I am very supportive for use of acupuncture in the ED as an adjunct to opioid analgesics with a hope of opioid reduction and to non-opioid analgesics as a part of multimodal approach.”

We find these results and support incredibly valuable, as holistic methods are often effective yet overlooked.

If you find yourself suffering from chronic pain, acupuncture is sure worth giving a chance. And while acupuncture can provide relief- as always-  any concerning pain or symptoms should be addressed with your physical as soon as possible.