Live in Harmony with the Seasons

Live in Harmony with the Seasons

Five Phases (Seasons) in Chinese Medicine
Chinese Medicine is a medicine of the seasons, based in part on an understanding that all change in the universe and in your body happens in five distinct phases that correspond to the seasons - namely:

• Wood (Spring)
• Fire (Summer)
• Earth (Late Summer)
• Metal (Autumn)
• Water (Winter)

Chinese medicine works by balancing the bodies Qi (energy), Yin and Yang in relation to the five phases to achieve optimal health. To help you be well and stay well by living in harmony with the seasons, here are some of my favorite wellness tips for Spring as well as a special offer from our newest Suite 103 Practitioner. Be Well and Enjoy!

Spring: Invite the Wood Element
Spring is dominated by the wood element in Chinese medicine which governs the Liver and the Gallbladder organs. The Liver and Gallbladder are related to growth, change, benevolence, creativity and deciding a course of action. In this spirit, Spring is a time for clearing out the old to make way for the new. A great way to do this is to focus on your diet, ensuring that your digestion is smooth and healthy. How do you do this?

First, try to include more greens in your diet. Green is the color of Spring and of the wood element, and green veggies are a great source of fiber, antioxidants and important vitamins and minerals. If you are having a hard time including greens in your diet - especially good organic veggies - consider a service like spud! Spud! is a local organic produce delivery service that will bring local fruits, veggies and more right to your door. I use it at home and not only does it help me ensure that I'm getting plenty of fresh and local foods, but it saves me valuable time shopping and reduces my carbon footprint. If you're interested in checking it out, use the code CR5-1005173 for a $25 discount.

Next, try drinking some milk thistle tea or taking milk thistle caps daily through the Spring months. Milk Thistle is an antioxidant that targets the liver, protecting it from incoming toxins as well as encouraging it to cleanse itself of damaging substances like alcohol, medications and environmental toxins

Lastly, if you haven't been in for a tune up for a while, now is a great time to check in. Since Chinese Medicine is a seasonal medicine, coming in with the change of seasons is always recommended as a minimum health maintenance program.

Office Updates

Welcome Jamaica Stevens, LMT - $40 new patient offer
Yes, we have a new massage therapist joining us on Saturdays who specializes in Swedish, Deep Tissue, Pregnancy Massage and Reiki and she is truly amazing. She's offering a special $40 first appointment offer to all current patients - a very generous offer for her outstanding service. Simply go online to our online scheduler and book a one hour massage with Jamaica to take advantage of this offer. Please note "$40 new patient special" in the notes section of your appointment. Slots are going fast, so I recommend booking soon if you are interested.

Rebecca Honored by Cambridge Who's Who
Nifty, huh? Rebecca has just been honored by Cambridge Who's Who Among Americal Entrepreneurs as an Outstanding Professional in the field of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Spread the word! Press release can be seen by looking back one blog post.

"Your Genes Are Not Your Fate"

A Tip of the Hat to Dr. Dean Ornish


This short 3 minute video is a brief talk by Dr. Dean Ornish, a man who proved scientifically that heart disease is REVERSIBLE through diet, exercise and lifestyle change. He is also the author of "The Spectrum: A Scientifically Proven Program to Feel Better, Live Longer, Lose Weight and Gain Health" and "Dean Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart Disease" among other things. I hope you enjoy this short video about his perspective, key to which is stress reduction and avoiding/reducing chronic stress in particular. Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine are a great way to combat stress. By balancing the bodies energetic system, especially the Liver and Heart meridians which govern the mind and emotions, Acupuncture, reflexology and Chinese Herbs can decrease anxiety, increase calm and increase your capacity to "stay cool" during a crisis.

Website Redesigned with more Educational Information + Amazon Store of Patient Resources!
That's right! I felt it was time for my website to have a new pair of shoes and so voila! I gave it one. In addition to a new look I've added a Learning Center which will be populated with articles about health, Chinese diet and lifestyle advice, information about Chinese medicine treatment for specific disorders and more. For now it has some good links to some of my favorite resources for learning more about getting well and staying that way as well as a link to my new Amazon Store! I've been feeling recently like I recommend so many books and resources to patients that I'm constantly sending out emails with links to more information and I wanted to consolidate that information to one location that would be easy for patients and people wanting to learn more about Chinese medicine and health to go. I'll be increasing and updating the inventory there frequently, so check back often, AND I will be adding a music section with the tunes I play in my office as well - I get requests for those CD's a lot! Check in out using THIS link.

Green Tea - A cup a day to keep the doctor away
Green tea has been used as medicine in China for thousands of years and recently, the west has been catching on. Traditionally used in combination with Chinese Herbs for headache, mental fog, colds and flu's, it provides the body with powerful antioxidants that have been proven effective in increasing the strength of the immune system, inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots (thus decreasing stroke and heart attack risk) and decreasing LDL (bad cholesterol) levels just to name of few of its most exciting health benefits. If you want to add one simple thing to your routine to increase your health and longevity, adding green tea into your diet is a great way to go but people often wonder how much is too much? And what if you want decaf? Is it still effective? To answer the first question - officially, you can't have too much as long as the caffeine isn't effecting you in a negative way but personally, I recommend no more than 3 cups of caffeinated green tea per day. While green tea has much less caffeine than coffee, it is still caffeinated and caffeine can contribute to stress, anxiety, tension as well as miscarriage so I always advise decreasing caffeine in the diet as much as possible. Luckily, decaffeinated green tea IS as effective as caffeinated green tea but then the question becomes - where do we get good decaf? Bag teas typically contain the lowest grade tea leftovers and lack the delicate tantalizing flavors of whole leaf green tea, but I for one have not been able to find whole leaf decaf. Luckily there is a simple - and ancient - solution. Throw away the first steep and drink everything after. Most of the caffeine in green tea is lost during the first steep so if you throw this away you are left with delicious decaf which you can consume to your hearts delight with all the great health benefits and flavor you desire, and you're only limited by how many steeps you can get out of a single pot. Traditionally in Chinese tea ceremonies the tea from first steep is used to warm the cups but is discarded and not consumed. My favorite tea shop in town is the Tao of Tea which has stores in SE Belmont area, in the Pearl district and inside the Chinese Garden downtown. They are very friendly about helping you learn more if you have questions.

Hope to see you soon!
Well, I hope this message finds you well and that you enjoy the Ornish video with a nice cup of green tea in hand. Please do check out the revisions to my website if you get a chance and stay tuned for more educational content - its coming soon! Yours - Rebecca