Last week, I went to a new acupuncture provider’s office for a session. I have done acupuncture once before, although I am pretty sure that the person who treated me that time is not licensed, but more about that later. I find the whole process of having fine, hair-like needles poked into my skin calming and oddly pleasant, but what I liked most about this new provider was her spot-on diagnosis of what was going on with me, holistically- “You are having trouble with transitions, and you just need some help.”
YES! I love the philosophy of acupuncture! No judgements, no shame – quite simply and clearly, I need some help. Why is that so difficult for so many of us as we get older? Asking for help, feeling ok with needing help with the things that supposedly, when they finally happen, will magically fall into place smoothly – like partnering, marrying, parenting, etc. But you are stumped when they do not. And you feel like a loser for having such a hard time adjusting.
How come no one ever talks about this stuff Am I the only one having such a difficult time transitioning to life as part of a couple?
A quick update to reassure you i didn’t go wandering off into the cosmos after the acupuncture appointment yesterday. It’s nice that i don’t have any needle aversions, but i think i would’ve been just find even if i did. It didn’t hurt at all – one spot on my ankle was a little more pinchy than the rest, but nothing i would call “pain.”
So ok. I gave her the rundown about how i’m, you know, not pregnant. And would like to be. She took a pretty complete medical history – that’s fine, i’m not particularly worried about her running around with the information. So she decided to start with a “balancing” treatment yesterday, to put us on a nice, clean slate. Ok, truthfully, i don’t have a clue what that translates to. What i do know is that even if i only manage to make progress towards my goal of relaxing more, i’m happy with that.
She put me on what i guess is basically a massage table – the kind with a hole for your face so you can lie on your stomach, which is what i did. Then she did the needles on my back, my ankles, my wrists, and my scalp. Yup, scalp. Didn’t feel a thing. She put some heat lamps over my back and feet (nice!) and left me in a fairly dark room with new-agey piano music for 25 minutes. I wasn’t even remotely tired when i went in and when she first left the room i started thinking “25 minutes? You want me to lay here like this and do absolutely nothing for 25 minutes and not actually stress out more!?” And then… i seem to have fallen asleep. Seriously. I was in that weird semi-conscious dreamstate before you really fall asleep and was certainly startled when she opened the door.
So she sent me home with some herbal supplements i’m supposed to take over the coming week that will do something, apparently, for my uterus, and a list of foods i can add (more of) to my diet. I told her at the beginning of the appointment that i’m pretty skeptical about all of this, but am willing to try things outside of my comfort zone at this point. She said that she hears that all the time – people always come to them when they’ve tried everything else and are kind of desperate. Yup, that’s me! She said she loves it because of the chance it gives her to show people that chinese medicine really works. Well, damn. If it does, i will gladly swallow my pride in exchange for a baby!
Curently listening to a beekeeping podcast. Tonights topic is Bee Acupunture, also known as Apitherapy. Therapeutic bee stings, also known as Bee Venom Therapy. To listen in you can log onto the below link: http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/16456
What is Apitherapy? Here are a few web sites on, what is Apitherapy:
1. http://www.apitherapy.org/
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apitherapy
3. http://www.beevenom.com/
All of the Wildlife Pro Network Beekeeping podcast are recorded. So, if you miss tonights podcast you can always listen to it by following the below link: http://robo.bushkillfarms.com/beekeeping/beekeeping-podcasts/ The Wildlife Pro Network Beekeeping podcast is on and live every 2nd Thursday of every Month. It is always informative and always enjoyable…it is also interactive. Interactive, because you can become part of the podcast. Talkshoe.com is the website that this podcast is made possible. Talkshoe.com is a free service where you set up a user Id and your phone number. When you join a podcast you actually call in and listen, (I usually mute my phone, while the speaker is talking), and you can ask questions by phone, or by typing your question in the text box, during the question and answer period. Sometimes the question and answer period is during the podcast, instead of at the end of the speakers presentation.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is an ancient Asian system of healing that focuses on achieving internal balance. TCM practitioners use methods such as acupuncture, herbal medicine, diet and lifestyle counseling and massage to restore the flow of Qi or vital energy (pronounced ‘chee’) and balance to the body. Chinese Medicine seeks to find the root of the problem and treats imbalances from there. TCM views health as a state of harmony and balance between mind, body and spirit.
Acupuncture is a branch of Chinese Medicine that involves inserting fine needles through the skin at specific points to treat various health problems. Acupressure uses the same theory and points as acupuncture, but uses pressure for therapeutic benefit instead of needles and can be practiced by an individual in the comfort of their own home.
The classic Eastern explanation for how acupuncture works is that channels of energy or Qi run in regular patterns through the body and over it’s surface. These channels or meridians are like rivers flowing through the body to nourish the tissues and organs. Along these channels are various points each associated with a different part of the body and each has a specific function. An obstruction or blockage in the movement of Qi or energy creates imbalance and/or pain in the body and can lead to dis-ease. By applying pressure to the acupuncture points on a regular basis you can help balance and strengthen your body, increasing your vitality, refresh yourself when you’re tired, boost your immune system, reduce stress and feel better!
Helpful points:
Pericardium 6 – For nausea, Insomnia, Anxiety
Located on the inside of the forearm, three finer widths directly above the wrist in the middle of the arm.
Apply pressure downwards and in a small circular motion twenty times
Liver 3 – to help smooth emotions, calm irritability and reduce anxiety
Located in the web between the big and second toe approximately 1-1.5 inches up from the start of the web. A tender spot should be felt.
Massage and hold for 30-60 seconds and repeat
Large Intestine 4 – For pain (headaches, toothache, abdominal pain, etc.), use with Liver 3 to help balance the emotions, reduce stress and calm the mind
Located between the thumb and index finger in the high point in the web. A very tender spot should be felt.
Note: do not use if you are pregnant
Kidney-27 - For energy and mental clarity
Place your fingers on your collarbone, slide them inward toward the center and find the bumps where they stop. Drop about an inch and slightly outward. Most people have a slight indent here that their fingers will naturally dip into.
Tap and massage the points firmly while breathing deeply. Continue for about 20 seconds.
Stomach 36 – To improve your energy, boost your immune system and strengthen your digestive system
On the outside of the leg, approximately four finger widths below the bone that protrudes just below the knee. Massage or knead it twenty times.
Note: Do not be too concerned with finding the precise location of each point. If you use several fingers to tap or massage in the vicinity described, you will hit the right spot
This article explains how rhinovirus during a child’s faster years may be full of an affect next to how asthma may develop.
Preliminary trial, doubling salt intake for one month led to a undersized growth in airway reactivity in men with asthma, as well as in non-asthmatics.10 Several double-blind trials enjoy provided limited demo of clinical restoration following a instance of sodium restriction.11, 14 It is bad-tempered to compare the grades of the studies because they used different amounts of sodium curbing.
Double-blind research shows that fish oil partially reduces reactions to allergens that can trigger attacks in some asthmatics.57 Another double-blind study showed that fish oil supplements prevented exercise-induced asthma attacks in people with asthma.58 A few other researchers enjoy reported undersized but meaningful improvements when asthmatics supplement with fish oil,59, 60 but reviews of the research concluded that most fish oil studies showed slight or no benefit.61, 62 It is possible that some of the trials poor to viewing an restoration because they did not ending long ample to give you an idea about an effect.
Israeli researchers reported that 64 mg per morning of innate beta-carotene for one week in a double blind investigation fortified ended half of a crew of asthmatics that experienced attacks as a ending of exercise.73 More research is needed to authenticate this promising finding.
It remains indefinite how effective picrorhiza is for people with asthma.
It is because the extracts block the action of platelet-activating factor, a mixture the body produces that in unit causes asthma symptoms.
Placebo-controlled trials using sham acupuncture, enjoy been quite contradictory, various of them showing a strong placebo effect that is not significantly improved upon by real acupuncture.114, 117 It is possible that needle insertion in non-acupuncture points has a stimulating effect that benefits asthma.
In Reference to
Allergy, asthma, and immunology from infancy to adulthood, Charles Warren Bierman, 1996
Asthma, A. J. Wardlaw, 1993
Genetics of allergy and asthma, Malcolm N. Blumenthal, Bengt Bjrkstn, 1997
Approved Links Asthma Asthma Asthma Asthma Info Breathing exercises for asthma Asthma
Tuesday/ transfer day, was a good day. Which is such a relief because it can be fraught with difficulties and anxieties.
My gorgeous husband had the whole day off to join me for the transfer, to drive me to my appointments and then to look after me in the afternoon.
Firstly I had an appointment with Dr. Doug my acupuncturist at 8.15am. They came in early just so I could have acupuncture and then get to the IVF clinic in time. It was great, it helped calm my growing anxiety. A night of little sleep and the vague nerves of ‘what if’s’, it was good to just take the time to relax and breathe. After the acupuncture he massaged my legs and feet while a vibrating massage machine rested on my belly – sounds a little kooky but I guess it stimulates blood flow. I then put my feet on some little metal plates and held 2 little metal bars that hooked up to the electric pulse machine while Dr. Doug massaged my back. He assured me there was a science behind this (science fiction my husband would say), that it helped to get my chi flowing through my body. It felt good and I left feeling happy and calm.
We arrived at the IVF clinic right on time. My husband is hilarious and always makes lots of jokes, even more so at the clinic. I think it’s his way of lightening the situation and of keeping me smiling. Not everyone has a sense of humour though and that just makes things even funnier, so we giggled through the whole process.
Starting from when the nurse looked at my file – “‘oh allergic to Sulphur drugs – well no need to worry – no one will be going near you with sulphur today.’ Husband – “unless of course the embryo is the devils spawn”. Me – “well it is from you!” Nurse – wan smile.
Our embryo had defrosted well, we are lucky – so far they always have.
In the transfer room a different nurse tells me to disrobe form the waist down and hop up into the chair. MY husband hops up onto the chair (yes he is a child, and I wouldn’t have it any other way) The nurse looks bewildered and he tells her – “we thought we’d try swapping it around for a while” as I slap him on the arm and shoo him out of the chair.
Legs up, dignity aside. The doctor’s voice from the other side of the curtain – “knock, knock”. My husband – “who’s there?”. Luckily the doctor has a sense of humour, laughs and smiles as he sticks his head between my legs. My husband wonders if when he get down there he thinks ‘ahhh yes now I remember this patient’.
So a bit of shuffling with the ultrasound – my bladder is nice and full (tell me about it – I am dying to go to the bathroom!) so the uterus is shoved back out of view a little. Insert the catheter thingo then in shoots the embryo. It is so quick, weird, uncomfortable but SO quick. It’s amazing really.
Then back to Dr. Doug for more acupuncture. Relaxing. And just to add to the silliness of the day I need to leave the acupuncture pin in my head for 24 hours. Yes, there were lots of jokes at home that night about tv reception.
I spent the rest of the day relaxing, dozing. And the following day. I am lucky that my boss is understanding and caring.
Now I’ve been back at work for 2 days. It’s hard to concentrate and I feel tired. This waiting part is truly so difficult.
What’s going on in there??? Are you sticking in little embie?
Am I tired and a bit seedy because it’s working or is that just my brain playing little tricks?
I’d really like this to be the one – because this whole process is soooo tiring and draining.
As a specialty of Acupuncture, Aetna acutally has NO acupuncturist network, at least in Virginia, Washington DC area.
Aetna only has one acupuncture discount rate network through ASH, say, American Specilty Health Acupuncture network. So, it means any acupuncturist has to accept a discount fee if he/she join the ASH network,if treating Aetna patient.
But, sometime, if the patient has Aetna Acupuncture benefit, Aetna may pay the acupuncture provider at a out-off network fee schedule–see, accoding to the rule, Aetna should have a acupuncturist network, then Aetna could pay the provider treating its HMO/EPO patient, but Aetna may refuse to pay,because the acupuncturist is out-of-network.
