Is it really a facelift? The answer is an unequivocal no. Nor is it intended to replace a facelift. Cosmetic acupuncture entails no incisions, sutures or acid peels and it will not produce sudden, drastic changes in underlying structures. In fact, the American Cosmetic Acupuncture Association discourages the use of the term, “facelift” in connection with acupuncture, as this creates unrealistic expectations and, ultimately, disappointment. Remember, it took decades of stress, sun damage and exposure to environmental toxins for your skin to reach a state of crisis, and the damage will not be instantly undone. The remedy cosmetic acupuncture may offer is the reduction or erasure of fine lines and the softening of deeper ones. Additionally, patients may experience the firming of jowls and a reduction in the size of under-eye bags. It is not unusual for clients to report enhanced skin tone, increased energy and eyes that sparkle.

But it doesn’t stop there. Since facial acupuncture is based on time-tested principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine, a person’s overall health may also benefit. Insomnia may be corrected and weight gain may be controlled. Cosmetic acupuncture is, after all, a whole-body treatment. In the Traditional Chinese Medicine view, a person’s face is affected selectively by his or her internal organs. Facial features reflect organic strengths, and as internal organs are fortified, one’s face reflects the improvement. Besides addressing a patient’s condition holistically, the practitioner will probably work locally, inserting painless, ultra-fine needles into–and around–specific wrinkles, acu-points or muscle points, depending on the technique employed. Techniques can be Spartan or luxuriant, and practitioners will often incorporate herbal poultices, moisturizers, pulsed light or essential oils into a treatment. An imperceptible electrical current may also be passed among the needles.

If your features are tired, your eyes are baggy and your skin is without luster, yet you do not feel the need for cosmetic surgery, then facial acupuncture may be for you. The freedom from post-treatment downtime and the experience of enhanced vitality contribute to the ever-increasing popularity of this Asian art. If you are willing to try something different and new, you may find that facial acupuncture is the perfect partner in your quest for rejuvenation and renewal.

This article is from www.acupuncture.com by Charles Yarborough, L.Ac.

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The modern world is extremely stressful which normally over stimulates the nervous system resulting in reduced blood flow to the reproductive organs in both men and women. Acupuncture relaxes the sympathetic nervous system, allowing greater blood flow to the ovaries, the lining of the uterus, and the testes. Egg , sperm, & uterine lining quality are improved, the endocrine or hormonal system is in a greater state of balance, all of which increases the chances of pregnancy and maintaining pregnancy. Acupuncture gets things moving, while herbs nourish certain deficiencies that have contributed a patient’s inability to conceive. Individualized nutritional counseling, according to Chinese medicine principles, can also enhance fertility and improve pregnancy outcomes by reversing some of the effects of poor eating habits.

Most fertility patients are treated twice weekly while attempting to conceive and every week or bi-monthly during the first trimester to help maintain pregnancy, but individual cases differ. With IVF, pre- & post-transfer acupuncture greatly improves the odds of conceiving.

Posted in Yinyang House by Andrew Lagomarsino

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

In the Traditional Eastern medicine approach, the disease begins with a deficiency of yin. This seems contradictory to the appearance of the patient, who often shows obese constitution and low metabolism, signs that would correspond to excess of yin and deficiency of yang. However, the patients with early stage of diabetes actually have a hyperactive metabolism that does not provide useful energy. Hence, the food nutrients are not successfully utilized; hunger persists, sugar pours out in the urine, thirst develops, and there may be easy sweating. This yin deficiency then generates heat that becomes pathological and then parches the yin. The imbalance of yin and yang eventually degrades and inhibits the qi, so that qi and yin deficiency co-exist. At this point, secondary effects, such as blood stasis and damp-heat, manifest, causing many serious symptoms (29). Without proper nourishment of qi and yin, yang eventually becomes impaired, and the patient, now with advanced disease, has a combined deficiency of qi, yin, and yang.

Acupuncture therapy is a common approach to treating diabetes in China. Many Americans assume that acupuncture is only suitable for treating pain, perhaps because the initial introduction of acupuncture was mainly for this application. Indeed, the general opinion here appears to be that acupuncture ought to be used mainly for treating chronic back pain. Therefore, relatively few people have turned to acupuncture for treating the disease. Increasingly, people with pain and other health problems for which acupuncture is selected also have diabetes.
In the U.S., it is uncommon for people to receive acupuncture therapy every day, as is the method used in the clinical studies reported in the Chinese medical journals. Instead, one may undertake a course of therapy with acupuncture once or twice per week. Needless to say, the impact of the intermittent treatment is not as great as with daily acupuncture. However, through the combination of the less frequent acupuncture and the daily ingestion of herbs, one might reasonably expect to accomplish results comparable to those reported in China where the majority of patients get some degree of blood sugar normalization and relief of symptoms. Best results are expected for younger individuals and those who have had diabetes for only a few years.  Most acupuncturists in the U.S. have not been called upon to treat many patients with diabetes, mainly because of the misconception that acupuncture is not suitable for that disorder. Nonetheless, acupuncturists are in a position to provide expert treatment because the points to be needled are also used (in various other combinations) for treating other disorders. For example, the acupuncture point zusanli (called ST-36) is one of the most commonly used points for chronic diseases and is used especially when the disease is obviously affected by dietary factors.

This article is from Journal of the institute for traditional medicine and preventive health care by Subhuti Dharmananda, Ph.D., Director, Institute for Traditional Medicine, Portland, Oregon.

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1. Empty conditions

Infertility is due to a lack of the vital substances that are essential for conception.  Blood and Kidney deficiency is always involved this matter.  Kidney essence is related to Kidney yin and Kidney yang aspect.  The menstrual function and the uterus rely on the Yin aspect and its Yang aspect.  For fertilization to occur, the Yin and Yang aspects of the essence need to be perfectly balanced.  If Yin is deficient, there is not enough nourishment to support the fertilizing egg.  If yang is deficient, there is no spark to transform and activate Yin, the water, which therefore can’t fertilize or nourish egg.

For someone who doesn’t have any idea what is Kidney essence, it could be explained such as aspects.  Kidney essence is primarily derived from the parents before birth, whereas Qi is formed after birth.  Kidney essence is replenished only difficulty, whereas Qi can easily be replenished on a day-to-day basis.  Qi moves and changes quickly from moment to moment, whereas the essence changes only slowly and gradually over long periods of time.  In the Eastern medicine point of view, the major functions of Kidney essence are growth, reproduction and development.  It is producer of bone marrow and basis of constitutional strength.

2. Full conditions

In the case of excess, fertilization is not able to occur because pathogenic factors and excess conditions obstruct the uterus, directing and penetrating vessels.  Such excess conditions may be cold, blood –heat, dampness, stagnation of Qi and blood stasis.  The temperature of uterus should be steady, warm, neither too cold nor too hot.  Cold and blood-heat interrupt uterus function.  Cold congeals blood and blood-heat thickens the blood quality.  Blood in uterus is the basic nutrition supplier to the embryo.  That’s why blood quality is very important for fertilization.  Damp-heat prevents the proper movement of Qi and blood and may lead to stagnation of Qi and blood.  Liver Qi stagnation obstructs the directing and penetrating vessels, from a Western perspective this may also correspond to tubal obstruction.  Blood stasis is long-standing in reproductive system, can be causes for abdominal masses, ovarian cysts or endometriosis.

Absence or irregularity of ovulation often corresponds to a Kidney deficiency; blockage of the fallopian tubes to damp-heat, possibly with heat –poison and blood stasis; uterine myomas to blood stasis, possibly with phlegm; and pelvic adhesions to damp-heat with blood stasis.  Statistically, blood stasis counts for up to 30 percentile of whole infertility cases.  In the next article, we will discuss treatment approach of Eastern medicine in order to increase fertilization.

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

1. Constitutional weakness

Constitutional weakness of the Kidney-Essence is an important cause of infertility.  It could come from prenatal essence deficiency.  For example, the parents’ constitution itself being not good, the parents’ health was not good at the time of conception, or her mother was too old when she conceived her.

2. Overwork

Overworking for long hours without adequate rest and with irregular diet for years, is a major cause of Kidney-yin deficiency.  Kidney-yin is the basis for menstrual blood and the uterus, and when it is deficient it may cause fertile probelem.

3. Excessive physical work

Excessive physical work or strenuous excise and sports weaken the organs which are related with reproductive system.  Tough sports training, ballet or gymnastics may cause the weakness of the uterus because young girl’s uterus is in a vulnerable state.

4. Excessive sexual activity at an early age

Too early or too excessive sexual activities may damage the Kidney and reproductive system.

5. Invasion of cold in uterus

Invasion of cold is on the most common cause of infertility in young women, which prevents fertilization.  If a girl undergoing puberty is exposed to cold and dampness, especially during her period, when exercising or playing sports, Cold invades the uterus, turns into internal cold.  Cold obstructs the reproductive function due to cold congeals the blood and restricts  blood vessels.

6. Diet

Excessive consumption of cold, iced foods and drinks also leads to cold in the uterus.  Too much greasy and dairy foods create dampness in the reproductive system, may cause the blockage of the fallopian tubes.

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

Loss
What does a couple who has just been diagnosed with a fertility problem have in common with a couple who just had their fourth miscarriage? The level of anguish may not be the same, but these two couples do have a lot in common: a sense of loss and disappointment, and the feeling of emotions and events being out of control. For both couples a basic assumption-that by being decent people who try hard in life, your wishes will be fulfilled-has been shattered.

Symptoms
Even if your mind isn’t consciously thinking about loss, your unconscious mind and your body may be responding to feelings of grief. Do you recognize any of the following symptoms that either appeared or worsened during your infertility experience:

• lack of energy (especially when you have an unsuccessful cycle on medical appointment days or when you will see a pregnant friend);
• headaches;
• irritability (snapping at people or making mountains out of molehills);
• insomnia.
• extreme sadness.
• inability to concentrate.

The best way to get back to “business as usual” is to take care of the emotional business at hand. And there’s nothing wimpy about healthy grief work – it calls on all of your courage and resourcefulness. A Zen proverb says, “The way to control a bull is to give it a big pasture.” Paying attention to grief ends its power over you. Give grief its due and you’ll find the energy and concentration to get on with your life. See a mental health professional if you feel that infertility is making it hard to cope day in and day out.

Denial, Shock and Numbness
After several months of unsuccessful attempts to get pregnant or stay pregnant, feelings of shock or numbness may result. Feelings of “this can’t be happening to us” or “I know next month we will be successful” begin to change over to anger and guilt.

Anger
Anger usually results from feeling vulnerable or helpless or both. Helpless feelings result from the lack of control that you may feel over your life plan, your body, and your future. This may be a new experience; previously, when you worked hard at something, you probably achieved your goal. Now you are working hard and doing everything you can to conceive, but without reaching your desired goal. A sense of vulnerability evolves from feeling “jinxed,” or feeling that life isn’t fair. You may feel as if you can no longer count on anything good happening in your life.

Anger can consume you, coloring your everyday thoughts and experiences. You may feel emotionally guarded, pulled between tears and sadness or anger and rage. The next time you feel angry, irritable, or frustrated, take an inventory of your body and identify how different parts of your body respond to the angry feelings. Do your legs feel weak? Does your heart beat faster? Do you feel flushed or shaky? Does your breathing change? Become familiar with how you react physically to these intense emotions.

Remember that anger is a normal response to infertility. You may find it helpful to try some of these techniques to manage angry feelings. There is no “right” way to do this; don’t force it, and don’t expect a specific response. Tears and feelings of sadness often mingle with anger.

• Take a blank sheet of paper and list all of the things in your life that you are angry with
• Get active physically
• Express your anger but use “I feel” statements rather than attacking a family member of friend.
• Talk about your anger with a counselor or therapist who can help you process and deal with your emotions.

This article is from www.resolve.org, the national infertility association.  Many patients experience severe stress due to fertility problems.  I always suggest that stress disrrupts your phsical and mental health.  Meditation and yoga help calming the mind.  Even Breathing technique is helpful when you feel stress.  Acupuncture is very effective to release mental stress as well as correct physical imbalance.

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

It is recommended that the patient receive acupuncture and herbal treatment to regulate the body’s functions and make IVF more successful, approximately three months prior to the IVF procedure. The chance of a successful IVF outcomes will be significantly increased with the support of acupuncture and eastern medicine. Some patients may get pregnant naturally during the preparation time.

During the three months preparation time, patient will receive Eastern medicinal therapy in order to:

1. Improve the function of the ovaries
Acupuncture and herbal medicine help to improve ovarian function, allowing for development of better quality eggs and strong, healthy embryos. Eastern medicine can also regulate estrogen and progesterone levels, thereby thickening the lining of the uterus. There are research results that Increased blood flow to the uterus help promote follicular development and also implantation of the embryo.
Eastern medicine is able to help decrease the FSH levels by regulating the hormones and function of the ovaries. High FSH levels indicate poor ovarian function. A high number of FSH may suggest the lack of ovulation as hormones continue to increase to stimulate the ovaries to work harder.

2. Strengthen the immune system & reduce stress
Many patients using IVF during experience side effects and high levels of stress associated with trying to get pregnant. Relaxing the patient helps prevent the uterus from contracting, thereby improving the implantation process and preventing miscarriage.

3. Improve semen quality & quantity
It is important for male patients to prepare for IVF for sperm maturation in terms of quantity and quality of sperm. The health of the embryo will reduce the risk of miscarriage.

4. Support diet & lifestyle
Dietary consultation will help nourish the uterus and Qi & blood circulation. Some Eastern excises including Tai Ji, Qi Gong, Yoga and meditation will relieves stress and promote overall health.

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812

Sun Wellness Acupucnture                       http://www.sunudang.com
1208B Veterans of Foreign Wars Pkwy #201 Boston MA 02132 (617) 327-1812