Acupuncture Technology News

The “Chronic Dehydration” blog was quite popular. Your feedback has been amazing. I love that so many of you wanted to share this article with your patients! Together we can make a huge impact.

If you missed it for some reason, you may want to click below and catch up.

New Year’s Resolutions…They can be Hard to Swallow: Part 1

“Chronic Dehydration” plays an important role with regards to blood-related TCM patterns. Our Western analysis told us that 83% of the blood in the body is WATER.

Today we are going to continue our discussion on Chronic Dehydration in relation to blood in TCM.

I did a little research on the subject of blood in one of my favorite books. Okay, I’ll admit I’m a little nerdy. How many of you like to curl up in a big comfy chair, reading “A Practical Dictionary of Chinese Medicine” in your spare time?

I LOVE reading this book! The words and explanations crack me up. When I was in college, my friends and I used to come up with random phrases from the TCM dictionary and try to stump the class. Everyone would get a chuckle. Now days, I don’t have many to chuckle with ‘in person’ because most of my colleagues have scattered around the world. Hopefully today, you and I can chuckle together.

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Pop Quiz: Is there an herbal component to the AcuGraph system?

Answer: YES.

Maybe you’ve missed it…so, I want to introduce you to AcuHerb, the herbal recommendation portal built into the AcuGraph system!

Have you noticed that there is a button along the header of the AcuGraph software called “AcuHerb?” You’ve probably been so busy that you missed it!

When the AcuGraph was invented, hundreds of hours of research went into cataloging and correlating the knowledge of dozens of textbooks and historical data concerning Meridian Therapy and Channel Theory.

A similar approach was taken with the creation of AcuHerb. Books were correlated, experts consulted and TCM theory reviewed. Once the AcuHerb software was created and TCM herbal remedies selected, the next task was to tie the herbal treatment recommendations into the AcuGraph diagnostic system.

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What is the difference between constipation in a younger person and constipation in the elderly? Constipation always involves heat. In a younger person, it is common for constipation to manifest from heat–usually from food stagnation. Constipation in the elderly is a little different.

There are a lot of changes that happen in the body as we begin to age. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, a pattern known as “Yin and Blood Deficiency” begins to manifest at the age of 40 and then continually progresses over the years. Yin and blood relate to the viscous fluids in the body. Many common aging symptoms are due to this normal progression of yin and blood deficiency. Some of these symptoms include:

• Loss of teeth
• Loss of height
• Osteoarthritis
• Vaginal dryness
• Premature ejaculation
• Dry skin
• Loss of vision
• Poor digestion
• Constipation

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Hello Friends,

So here’s a question: Do they have acupuncture in Africa?

Most people I talk to assume not, and they are generally right. Acupuncture is relatively new in Africa, but with the help of AcuGraph and Multiple Health Tips Ltd., it’s become much better known and trusted.

Multiple Health Tips Ltd. (MHT)  is our AcuGraph distributor in Nigeria. Based in the seaport city of Lagos, MHT has been selling AcuGraph and promoting acupuncture for several years. Through their tireless efforts, AcuGraph has gained acceptance and is now in use by a number of practitioners in Nigeria and other central African countries. Additionally, MHT has spent several years working for the approval of Chinese herbal treatments in Nigeria. We’re pleased to report their efforts have born fruit, and we expect the official recognition of AcuHerb formulas in the coming weeks.

Dr. Dennis Baker and I spent a week in Nigeria in September, teaching, treating, and meeting with government officials about the need for, and the potential of, acupuncture to help the Nigerian people. We were very warmly received and blessed with the opportunity to treat hundreds of people at no cost while touting the safety and effectiveness of acupuncture treatment. Our patients and hosts were favorably impressed, particularly with the low cost and almost non-existent side effects of acupuncture.

As Nigeria begins to open up to Chinese Medicine, MHT hopes to establish the first acupuncture training school in central Africa. As Nigeria leads the way, other central African nations will follow. The need is great and we count ourselves very fortunate to be at the cutting edge of this health care awakening in Africa, thanks to our friends at MHT.

We have an important announcement about our efforts to help spread the word about Acupuncture and reach patients in need of care in developing nations. I’ll have more information and the exciting announcement next week.

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Is it just Americans that are crazy enough to have a tradition that revolves around eating until you are stuffed? I received a Thanksgiving card in the mail last week that said: “Gobble til you Wobble!” Eating with family and friends during the holidays is inevitable. Stuffing oneself is a choice. Even though I try to make a commitment before the weekend that I won’t overeat, somehow I always forget–and so do my patients!

Earlier this year I wrote a blog entitled “Monday Morning Blues” which focuses on a really great herbal formula for Food Stagnation–206 SP—Bao He Pian. I believe that blog was written right after a Memorial Day weekend BBQ.

Food Stagnation is a TCM term which describes how the body reacts after making a lot of poor food choices. You know the symptoms:
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How do you feel on Monday morning after eating TOO MUCH FOOD?

You know that feeling you get after consuming an abundance of rich, greasy foods over the weekend? Loss of appetite, bloating, foul stool and gas, indigestion, diarrhea and/or constipation are all symptoms of what is termed “Food Stagnation” in TCM. Read the rest of this entry »

Talk about an AMAZING herbal formula that treats a large realm of symptoms. Can you find any “one” prescription in Western medicine that can treat both DEPRESSION and/or HEMORRHOIDS? How is this possible? In Chinese medicine we do not treat the symptom—but instead we treat the imbalance causing the symptom to occur. The pattern responsible for both hemorrhoids and depression in TCM is Spleen Qi Sinking.

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Insomnia is a common problem that can affect quality of life on many levels. Here is an interesting fact: Studies have shown that chronic pain is linked with poor sleep habits. As acupuncturists, we treat a lot of chronic pain, so it is no surprise that we also have a lot of patients who complain of INSOMNIA.

It is interesting to read the western approach to treating insomnia.

• First try to modify your lifestyle… Go to bed earlier, begin preparing your brain for sleep two hours before bedtime, meditate, etc.
• If that doesn’t work, doctors prescribe SLEEPING PILLS which “can also become habit-forming.”
• Or—maybe you just need “counseling.”

Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine takes a completely different approach and is very good at treating insomnia. Because insomnia is caused by an underlying disharmony within the body, your job as the practitioner is to find out the root of the problem, so that you can FIX IT (not just cover it up with SLEEPING PILLS!)

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I have three herbal formulas from the AcuHerb family that I prescribe almost daily in my private practice for patients that are beginning their journey into, what some call, the “Golden Years.” This can be a tough transition for many individuals, and I have found this age group to be extremely open to seeing an acupuncturist.

These three formulas can be called “sisters” because they are all from the same family of herbs. You know how “sisters” are…they may be from the same family, but they all have different personalities! By getting to know them well, you will be better able to treat your patients who are entering this new stage of life.

Liver/Kidney Yin Deficiency is the diagnosis that could also be considered the “family name” for these formulas. It is typical for patients with this diagnosis to have a graph that shows some type of imbalance in the Liver and/or Kidney channels—which could show up as a split, a deficiency or even an excess. It is your job, as the practitioner, to know the difference between the personalities of each of the three formulas listed below—so that your patient gets amazing results.

Let’s talk about each personality…

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Recently I received a phone call from one of my patients. She said: “I don’t know how you know these things, but you were RIGHT—I was coming down with a cold and I didn’t even know it! The good news is that my cold only lasted one day, and usually I am sick for 3 to 4 days. Can I book an appointment for my husband to keep him healthy also?”

This is the time of year that everyone is hoping that they don’t get run over by the ‘Flu Truck.’ How did I know that my patient was coming down with something?  NO–it wasn’t because I looked into my “crystal ball” to see the future of her health.  I simply graphed her and found multiple indications that this may be the case. This led to me asking her if she felt like she was coming down with something.  Her answer was: “No, but I have been a little tired lately.”

Her graph indicated to me that she was more susceptible to catching a cold…

Some indications that made me think she was in danger of getting a cold were as follows:

#1: My experience has shown that those with deficiency or splits in the Lung channel are more susceptible to getting sick during flu season.

#2: The Lung and Large Intestine are paired organs which tend to be out of balance when someone has low immunity.  The Lung was deficient and the Large Intestine was split…

#3: She hadn’t been eating well, which also adds to someone being more susceptible to a virus.  She didn’t come right out and tell me that she wasn’t eating well, but I could tell by the graph.  The Spleen was split and the Stomach was excess. When I asked her about this she confirmed that she had been to several holiday parties over the last week.

This is a great time of year to let your patients know that acupuncture can help them boost their immunity.  Here is a little bit of ADVANCED AcuGraph Training—from a TCM perspective which includes classic points to remember and herbs to have on hand for your patients.

POINTS

Split or Deficiency in the Lung channel:

• Lung 7 is the Luo for this channel so it is perfect for balancing splits.
• Lung 7 combined with LI 4 create the perfect pair for promoting immunity.
• I also like to add SP 6 and ST 36 to this combination when I am trying to strengthen someone’s immune system.

Excess in the Lung Channel:

• Often phlegm is the culprit for excess in the Lung channel.
• To get rid of phlegm you want to support the Spleen and Stomach by adding SP 6 and ST 36.
• And then I ALWAYS add ST 40.  Peter Deadman says that “ST 40 is the single most important acupuncture point to transform phlegm in the body.”  It transforms damp, benefits the chest, and alleviates cough and wheezing.

HERBS

Phlegm changes as a sickness progresses.  Here are two herbal formulas which may be indicated when your patient presents with phlegm.  It is good to keep both on hand because the type of phlegm they present with will indicate which formula they need.

Bai He Gu Jin Pian (302 LU)

• Symptoms: Very dry cough, extreme thirst, a sore throat, and dry yellow/green phlegm that is hard to cough up—sometimes there may be blood.  Usually they would also complain of night sweats and the feeling of being hot.
• TCM: Lung heat

Er Chen Pian (204 SP)

• Symptoms: Cough, with a lot of whitish phlegm that is easy to cough up, with nausea and possible vomiting, with a tendency toward feeling chilled.
• TCM: Phlegm damp in the middle jiao

Note:  As always—check for any contraindications that may be indicated for these particular formulas.  This information can be found in your AcuHerb manual.

Kimberly Thompson, L.Ac.

Acupuncture Research Analyst

Miridia Technology

Who needs more tools in their toolbox???

I use AcuGraph with every patient that comes into my office. As an acupuncturist with a TCM background, I find value in using pattern diagnosis as a tool in my own practice. I have also found that adding Chinese herbs helps patients get better faster.

Let’s talk about “Blood Stagnation.”

From a TCM point of view, a blood stagnation pattern presents with sharp stabbing pain that comes and goes and is worse with pressure, a choppy pulse, and a dusky tongue. Blood and Qi move together throughout the body. When there is stagnation in a channel, qi and blood do not move the way they are supposed to which leads to pain from “Blood Stagnation.”

Once my diagnosis has been made, I have multiple tools to assist me in “fixing” the problem.

• AcuGraph allows me to see blockages in the channel.
• Acupuncture opens the blockages in the pathway.
• Chinese herbs allow the body to keep blood and qi moving so the blockage doesn’t return.

AcuGraph:

AcuGraph is designed as a diagnostic tool to show how qi is moving through the body. I have found that with a blood stagnation pattern, the graph may present with a lot of splits or an extreme excess split in a particular channel.

When someone comes in complaining of right shoulder pain—often you may see a split in the Small Intestine channel with an excess on the right side. Or if someone comes in with low back pain that is worse on the right with pain radiating down the right leg—it is common to see a split in the Gallbladder channel with an excess on the right side.

Acupuncture:

That’s the simple part, right? Open the channel, get the blood and qi moving, and relieve the pain. The trick is keeping the channel open…

Chinese Herbs:

Acupuncture combined with an herbal formula for blood stagnation helps the patient to get better faster and keeps the blood and qi moving so they don’t have recurring pain.

My favorite herbal formula to use for Blood Stagnation is Xue Fu Zhu Yu Pian (507 LV).

This patient presented in my office after falling off of a ladder. He had had sharp stabbing pain that came and went in multiple areas of his body, but with palpitation I found that it was more extreme on the left side. His pulse was choppy, his tongue was dusky. My initial diagnosis was qi and blood stagnation. He was only able to see me for one visit because he lived a long distance away. I treated locally with acupuncture and then sent him home with Xue Fu Zhu Yu Pian (507 LV) to help with the blood stagnation. He reported back that his pain continued to diminish as he finished his herbal prescription and that it didn’t return.

BONUS:

Xue Fu Zhu Yu Pian (507 LV) will NOT ONLY help the patient with their pain but they may also get many other benefits such as relief of other blood stagnation symptoms like headaches, chest pain, insomnia, restless sleep, palpitations, menstrual cramps, and a bad temper.

What happens next?  You have happy patients that are pain free. When your patients are happy, they tell more people what a great job you did.  And then you get more new patients!  Why?  Because you have so many great tools in your toolbox.

Have a happy and prosperous New Year!

Kimberly Thompson, L.Ac.

P.S.  With any herbal formula you should know the contraindications which may affect your patients.  Xue Fu Zhu Yu Pian (507 LV) strongly activates blood circulation and is contraindicated in pregnancy, in cases of bleeding disorders, and for menorrhagia. Use caution with patients who are on anticoagulation therapy.