1. Three treasures of humans are our Chi (energy), Jing (structure/essence) and Shen (spirit/vitality/consciousness). Mental state and emotions directly impact the Shen and the Chi. 

2. Shen (spirit/vitality/consciousness) is expressed in the eyes. A good Shen is full of light and awareness, without chaotic movements. A depleted Shen is lacking energy and enthusiasm, and seems heavy or sad. 

3. The facial complexion expresses three things: the Shen, the Heart Blood (important for circulation, nutrition, and energy) and the Stomach Yin (digestion and nutrition). Two main cause of lifestyle disease or un-balanced living are emotions and alimentation, in other words, our mental state and the things we eat and drink. Research has named this and includes the microbiome in the “gut-brain axis”. Eating improperly for our body type or “eating our feelings” is sub-optimal alimentation that causes weaknesses of the chi over time. 

4. Strong emotions have varying effects on the health of the Chi:

Excess joy (mania) slows the chi. 

Worry ties the chi in knots. 

Sadness / grief deplete the chi. 

Anger flares the chi upwards. 

Fear or shock scatter the chi. 

5. A calm, balanced spirit which is “returning to center” or as the old Taoist text Secret of the Golden Flower states it, “turns the light around” is nurturing and protecting the chi. Turning the light around, or ever returning to one’s natural and balanced state, is preserving and growing the helpful chi, and preventing leaks of energy which deplete the chi. 

6. Tai chi and Qi gong are full of gentle, graceful, full-range-of-motion movements that allow Chi to express with freedom, without becoming chaotic. 

7. Acupuncture moves and regulates the chi, and returns balance to the body Yin and Yang. It is said that “all dis-ease starts with the Shen”. This means that the state of our mental health directly influences physical health. An unbalanced mind has the potential to create an unbalanced way of living, which impacts the body. 

8. The ancient Chinese character for “Healing” depicts a heart (Shen) in a boat headed in an away-direction. Healing means a journey to the “other shore”, or moving the heart, one’s consciousness, to another shore which is a new perspective. Taking the next positive step in our life is healing. 

On a basic physical level, acupuncture uses needles to stimulate specific points along the muscles by piercing the skin. The stimulation may be simple, like a “poke” or more technical, as in “tonify” or “disperse” through mild, practiced needle movements. It is essential to note that acupuncture is very different from dry needling. These are two separate methods that evolved from different medical philosophies. Acupuncture takes the entire body into account when points are selected, on the basis that the outer body reflects interior processes. One of the many strengths of acupuncture is that the physical body is looked at as a unified, cohesive whole. The Chinese word for acupuncture is zhen jiu “针灸” meaning “needle and moxibustion”. Moxibustion is a herbal heating technique for therapeutic purposes. 

Fire is the element of Summer, in the body present as the Heart, Small Intestine, Xin Bao (pericardium) and San Jiao (three metabolisms). The Fire element is present in the eyes and tongue and is associated with laughter and joy. Kindness is one of the attributes of fire. Herein we can directly see the wisdom of Nature, that all of these good things converge at the optimal time for vacation (or stay-cation). To keep the fire element healthy, consume bitters (leafy greens), go gentle exercise, rise with the Sun and laugh often. Acupuncture strengthens or calms the fire element as needed. These treatments are especially significant in Classical medicine because the human body actually has 2 more fire meridians, than any of the other elements (Heart, Small Intestine, Xin Bao, and San Jiao).

1. Drink the best possible water you can get.  This is the first  and most  important step. While it is all too easy to forget, water really is the basis of our bodies and the key to life. It nurtures all of our tissues, supports mental and physical energy, and is a prime mover for  all  life on our planet! The sacred importance of water goes beyond the physical and supplies the necessary quality of health that is bouncy, youthful, and vibrant. Give yourself the gift of water today, because it is easy and will almost certainly improve any condition including stress. 
2. Consume antioxidants in the easiest and most efficient way for you. Whether they are in an antioxidant capsule supplement, an herbal tea, a spirulina tablet or in a favorite fruit such as strawberry or blueberry, you can add them to whatever you are eating today. These antioxidants work similarly to water in that they support all aspects of well-being and health at the cellular level. You might consider different types of green tea such as matcha, kukicha, or genmaicha to shake up your routine and boost energy and alertness. Basically, antioxidants should be a “food group”. I like to imagine that antioxidant use is a game of balance, whenever we bump into a stressor or toxins, the antioxidant acts as the anti-toxin. 
3. Let go of stress, just for today. It’s all too easy to get caught up in ideas of the perfect event, or the perfect life, that we miss the hundreds of perfect moments that spontaneously and generously arise each day. There is a beautiful motto by Master Usui (discoverer of Reiki) which encapsulates this idea: “Just for today, I will not worry. Just for today, I will not anger. Just for today, I will do my work honestly. Just for today, I will be kind to every living thing.” Stress is one of the most common barriers to wellbeing. Keep Master Usui’s words with you and remember that all we really have is today. 
4. Optimize this day by doing that one nagging task. We all have that one thing we’ve been putting off. It’s time to do it, so that box will be officially “checked” and you can let it go! Get that one thing done, and enjoy the sense of accomplishment and peace. 
5. Connect with Nature. Natural environments such as an outdoor walk or meditation calm the mind and boost wellbeing. If you can, step outside for a walk, breathe in fresh air, and take in your surroundings. If you can’t get outdoors, bring nature to you with  soundscapes. Dan Gibson’s music offers  calming, realistic nature sounds like ocean waves, forest  sounds, rain and birdsong to create a soothing atmosphere wherever you are. YouTube has many resources for music that follows this general theme including ones specialized for meditation and best of all, they are often free of cost. 
6. Plan the “calm healthy” dinner this evening. I hope you will celebrate your wins today with a nourishing meal. After a busy day, proper nourishment makes all the difference. Here is an example: A meal like pan-seared salmon filet paired with a hearty salad (think spring mix and dark green lettuce) will fuel your body with essential nutrients. Add some roasted sweet potatoes for extra vitamins. 
7. Last thing: Make your acupuncture appointment. I had to say it, you know who wrote this 😉 Having your energy boosted, blockages and stagnation cleared, and relaxation infused into your whole body, you will most likely leave feeling lighter than when you came and feelling great knowing that you’re supporting health naturally.

As the winter months arrive, the atmosphere has more Yin energy than Yang energy. The temperature cools, frost descends, and the chi energy of the body retreats to the interior where it rests and re-sets in the Kidney. At this time, while the diet may be heavier with fats and opportunity for sunlight and exercise has diminished, it is important to supplement the Post Natal Chi. Post Natal chi is what we produce from air quality, food, and drinks. Classical medicine postulates that Post Natal chi has a part in nourishing the kidneys. While acupuncture and different traditional herbs nurture the kidney, there is one modern “letter vitamin” that directly helps with this sunlight deficit, and that is Vitamin D. 

Vitamin D is absorbed nicely with other oils, such as Coconut, Sea Buckthorn, Borage, Flax or Fish oils. This is because it is an oil-soluble vitamin. The presence of Vitamin K helps the D absorb, and this is why supplements on the shelf sometimes come as a combination of D3 and K2. In combination with light therapy (high-lumen light panels that mimic sunlight) and other mood-boosting activities, the positive benefits of Vitamin D can be quite noticeable. While vitamin D is one of the most common deficiencies, its effects are sometimes “invisible” until the deficiency has been corrected, or if you did not have the deficiency. 

Vitamin D is necessary to life because it supports the immune system (Wei chi), mood (Shen), bones, nerves, and muscles (Water energy and Wood energy, respectively). Some of the vitamin D rich foods are: salmon, mackerel, sardines, egg yolks, organic milk, and mushrooms. 

Balance of Yin and Yang are essential for experiencing lifetime health, according to Classical Chinese Medicine. But what does this really mean? We are all familiar with the basic symbol of Yin and Yang and that it represents opposites, but this is only a summary and tip-of-the-iceberg explanation for a deep and all-encompassing concept. Yin and Yang balance is a timeless idea, still relevant today as it was a thousand years ago. Yin is like the moon. It represents coolness, nurturing, slowness, and physicality or mass. Yang is like the sun. It represents heat, transformation, quickness, and energy or chi. There are many more suitable representations, but this is a quick overview. They both exist in the human body, from every cell to every organ. Comparing yin and yang with the traditional five elements, it is easy to see that Yin is the most like water, and Yang is the most like fire. 

The organ groupings clearly illustrate Yin and Yang. Yin organs are called Zang. They are relatively solid, and food does not pass through them. They are the: Kidneys, Liver, Heart, Spleen, and Lungs. The Yang organs are called Fu. They are relatively hollow and food and liquids actively pass through them or they directly influence the digestive process. These are the Bladder, Gallbladder, Small Intestine, Stomach, and Large Intestine. An imbalance at the organ level often impacts function at the meridian level. This means, if you have even a small imbalance INSIDE the body, it shows based on what is going on, on the OUTSIDE of the body. For example, Excess Heat of the Liver can show as tenderness and redness of the big toe, the beginning of the liver meridian. 

A person with balanced Yin and Yang has these qualities: They are usually energetic and have enough energy to complete the things they want to do. They find it easy to fall asleep, they mostly sleep all night, and wake up easily in the morning. They feel hungry only when meal times are approaching and no not feel overly warm or cold in an average-temperature environment (around 75 degrees F) throughout the day. They have a glow to their skin and a spark in their eyes. May we all strive for such wellness!

A person with an imbalance of Yin and Yang could have an excess of yang, a deficiency of yang, an excess of yin (though this one only occurs in very specific and usually long-term conditions), or a deficiency of yin. It is necessary to see a professional Acupuncturist to receive identification of the imbalance pattern. A Classical Chinese Medicine evaluation has three parts: Interview where symptoms are discussed, Tonge-diagnosis where the appearance of the tongue is looked at, and Pulse-diagnosis where the different pulses on each arm are analyzed. It is important to remember, in complex cases where multiple conditions are happening at the same time, that person would have a combination of patterns revealed in their evaluation. It is common for a person to have more than one “imbalance”, but thankfully, the path to addressing it is often simple. 

Classical Medicine is ancient medicine. To understand a path of healing such as they had, we have to think “anciently”. Tradition approaches very complex ideas with simple terms. Let’s try it! What would be a most “Yin” landscape? I picture a huge, snowy mountain in Winter. It has mass, therefore massive, it’s cold representing coolness, it is covered in snow which is made of water, and it is Winter when life hibernates or seems to move slowly. What would be a more “Yang” landscape to compare it to? Imagine the desert in Spring or Summer, it is hot, dry, and sparse. The wind traverses the flat land quickly. A temperate landscape in a temperate season, would have a combination of Yin and Yang factors. When you see it, it can be noticed everywhere. 

Qi Gong and Tai Chi are two traditional arts that involve exercise and focus on achieving Yin-Yang balance. Balancing yin and yang is one of the most basic and all-pervasive concepts in Acupuncture. The balance can be achieved through many means including acupuncture treatment, exercise, proper sleeping habits, nutrition, and herbal therapies. The balance naturally exists in the universe, and also within us. May we all find it and keep it, in our hearts and in our physical wellness. 

Spring is a yang part of the year. The ancient texts of Chinese medicine remind us at this time of year in particular to rise with the Sun and take walks in nature, to absorb the beneficial chi. This is the same chi causing plants to emerge from their winter sleep and generate the light green new growth. As water energy of Winter becomes wood energy of Spring, it is also a great time for detoxifying, cleansing, and renewal. We can renew our perspective, as the increasing sunlight helps us to see things in new ways. Spring in the Chinese medicine calendar goes with the color green, jade green, the Liver and Gallbladder, Eyes, Muscles and Tendons refreshing new start for your health and inner well being, acupuncture is a great place to begin.