Tag Archives: acupuncture

acupuncture, health, medical qigong, nutrition

The Free and Easy Wanderer

Spring plant

Spring, the time of rebirth. New sprouts of life springing forth, bright shades of green bursting out. The element is wood, the climate wind, the energy up and outward, yang energy is increasing,warming the cold yin energy of winter. It expands, warms, and grows from the cool hibernating earth. It is our first season of life, the morning hours, new beginnings.

In traditional Eastern medicine, the energies of the liver and gallbladder are associated with springtime, a wonderful time to do some spring cleaning, externally and internally. A free flowing energy, ‘springing forth from the east, the free and easy wanderer.
It manifests in our nervous system, which is always growing and expanding, inquisitive by nature. Wood energy is always thinking , analyzing, creating. When healthy and abundant, there is clarity of mind and the capacity to problem solve. It embodies freedom, happiness, ease (the opposite of dis-ease), and flow. If out of balance, the opposite emotions manifest as confusion, anger and frustration.

Finding healthy ways to express these high energy flows are extremely beneficial. Take some hikes in nature (barefoot is best), work on some vocalization (singing, toning, breathwork), adding activities to move this dragon-like energy.

The wood nature qi manifests in our muscles, tendons, hair and nails. The channels, encompass the inner and outer legs, hips, mid-back,the head, jaw, neck and shoulders. Some signs that may present during this season: a stiff neck, mid-back tension, tight diaphragm, tension headaches manifesting on sides of head or vertex, exhausted eyes from excessive screen time, sleep disturbances (especially from 11pm to 3am) including vivid dreams, hip pain, and joint stiffness. Make sure you are not sitting for extended periods of time, or if you must, set your alarm at the top of each hour for a movement break. Adding mindful movement practices such as qigong and mindful movement will keep the tendons and joints moving with ease and grace.

Please feel free to reach out with any questions or insights!

health, news

Ready to Sleep through the Night?

Overcoming insomnia,
developing a sleep health practice

“Put your thoughts to sleep,
do not let them cast a shadow
over the moon of your heart.
Let go of thinking.”
— Rumi

Sleep provides the body and brain with the much needed rest and recovery period, after long stressful days. Interrupt this natural biological rhythm, and systems start to malfunction quickly. Adequate sleep maintains the delicate balance of yin and yang and ensures a healthier state of being. During the day, yang is abundant, and during the night, yin dominates. Heading to sleep by 10pm, allows the nervous system to have time to heal and recover from the days activities.

Stress, one of the main causes of insomnia, is accompanied by overexertion and excess worries. The pace of life demands that we must always be on the go. This persistent and constant state of overworking stresses our physical body, our mental capacity, and forces our nervous system to maintain a constant state of high cortisol levels.

Once sleep is disturbed on a regular basis, havoc runs quickly, often leading to headaches, digestive issues, hormonal imbalances, and increased stress levels. The cause of insomnia can be as simple as a poor sleep environment, environmental factors, biophysical and medical conditions and biochemical imbalances. Lifestyle factors such as lack of exercise, irregular work shifts, poor diet and moods can all contribute to insomnia. Many medical conditions also often leave one restless and sleep deprived.

As insomnia progresses it will lead to a slower reaction time, poor performance during daily activities, enhanced health issues which will stress every system of the body. In ancient Rome, insomnia was unheard of, in fact if you did have that as a diagnosis, it was considered a very severe mental, emotional and spiritual disease.

The success of acupuncture appears to have an irreplaceable effect in the treatment of insomnia and its symptoms, when compared with biomedicine and its treatments. Most treatment protocols call for 2 to 3 treatments a week, for a 10 week duration. Based on the concept that all disease is the result of an imbalance of energy moving through the body, acupuncture restores flow and balance, allowing the body to return to it’s natural self-healing capacities. Acupuncture calms the nervous system and helps to correct the imbalances in the body, clears obstructions in the musculature, fasciae and nerve pathways, facilitates the natural flow of qi and relaxes the entire body.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or a free consultation. I incorporate acupuncture, Reiki, Medical Qigong, meditation, sound therapy, essential oils, herbs, nutritional advice and lifestyle recommendations, to devise the perfect treatment plan to assist you on your healing path.

In health,
Carol Reed, L.Ac, MSTCM, Reiki Master, Medical Qigong

208.351.0952
www.ElementsofTao.com
carol@elementsoftao.com

health, manual therapy, medical qigong, reiki energy

Let’s Go To Vagus!

No silly, I did not mean ‘Las Vegas’, I am inviting you to explore your tenth (X) cranial nerve, your Vagus nerve, ‘The Wanderer’. It connects your brain to each of your organs. Also connecting your ‘gut’ to your brain, like when we receive that ‘gut feeling’. It is the main nerve of our parasympathetic nervous system, part of our autonomic nervous system, meaning we don’t have control over it, or do we?

By mindful practices, such as: yoga, qigong, receiving massage and acupuncture treatments, nature bathing, meditation, toning (OM) and breath work, they are finding that we can connect to our parasympathetic nervous system, allowing us to ‘rest and digest’. In fact, breath awareness is one of the most powerful practices to connect with our Vagus nerve, assisting us in reducing heart rate, enhancing our immune function and assisting digestion.

Reconnecting with our natural rhythms and taking the time to slow down, are essential practices to guide us to a more balanced state. This includes bringing more mindfulness to our sleep practices (put that phone away) and our dietary habits. We truly are what we eat! How many of us our multi-tasking while we are ingesting food, and then complain of indigestion? Our modern day mode, technology abound, truly throws us out of our natural state of being, creating imbalance.

This is why it is so important to adopt mindful practices that resonate for you. Making time to do what you truly love is essential to wellness. Connect with nature, breathe mindfully, shake off your shoes and ground, look at the trees, observe the colors, inhale the aromas, all are beautiful ways to restore balance. Treat yourself to a massage or Reiki session, a yoga class or workshop, all are wonderful ways to restore. Self-massage, especially on abdomen, is another excellent way to connect with your Vagus nerve. Simply place your hands on your abdomen and gently follow path of digestion by slowly moving clockwise. It stimulates serotonin which has a direct relationship with melatonin, a hormone which controls our sleep-wake cycle. Also, make sure that your room is completely dark. Even a small amount of light can disturb your melatonin production for up to 4 hours. The best time to go to bed is before 11pm, so that your nervous system truly gets the deep rest it needs to heal and regenerate.

The more we implement these mindful practices into our everyday lives, the calmer and more harmonious our lives become. You will feel more balanced, more energized, and resiliency towards everyday stressors. Train yourself to return to your original state of harmony and balance and allow that to resonate outward.

Namaste,

Carol Reed, L.Ac., MSTCM