So, people like to ask how acupuncture works. When asking this question, one can come up with a variety of responses ranging from scientific to totally esoteric. I prefer a blend of the two myself. I like to hear about the science and I like to revel in the magic, all at the same time. However, when a good research study comes into your hands it's pretty mind blowing. I like this research article as it talks about the anatomy of the back shu points. These are points that the ancient Chinese found by experimenting and observing a persons response to having needles put into this certain point. Back then they did not cut animals open, keep them alive and stick needles in them and write everything down according to the scientific method, yet they still found points that caused physiologic changes in a person, then they deciphered what the changes meant. In this day and age of the scientific method we find that these points (I am specifically talking about the back shu points of the bladder channel) line up with axons and dendrites of the nervous system along the spine, and thus by manipulating these points you are indeed causing a response to the nervous system that affects target organs and induces a physiologic response in the body. I find this both logical and magical myself. Here is the article I am talking about, please read if you are interested:
http://www.neuroanatomy.org/2009/032_035.pdf
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Thanks Minda
A dear friend of mine recently sent me an article from the New York Review of Books, entitled The crazy State of Psychiatry, by Marcia Angell. I found this article very interesting, and a kind of reassurance to why I choose the subject that I am currently studying, TCM. The beginning of the article starts with the subheading, "The Epidemic of Mental Illness, Why?". The statistics under this subheading show that people who Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance increased "nearly two and a half times between 1987 and 2007- from 1 in 184 Americans to 1 in 76.... and a thirty five percent increase in the same two decades for children" (Angell, M. 2011). The main theme of the article is why? If we have some of the best psychiatric drugs on the market, why do we see more today than ever before. The article continues to postulate that the drugs on the market are indeed, not the best things people with mental illness could be given, but instead, more detrimental, and causing more illness. Further more, there is an idea that the criteria for mental illness are becoming less rigid, and opening more and more symptoms up to be interpreted as a sign for mental illness. Psychiatrists themselves are moving away from psycho analysis, and talk time with patients, and moving toward relegating symptoms to drug categories, and simply prescribing haphazardly. The article is very open minded in the sense that is concedes that there are some people, and some illnesses that do benefit to some of these drugs, but that mostly pharmaceutical companies are the main benefactors of these drug sales, and not the other way around. Here is a quote from the article.
When Minnesota and Vermont implemented "sinshine laws" that require drug companies to report all payments to doctors, psychiatrists were found to receive more money than physicians in any other specialty. The pharmaceutical industry also subsidizes meetings of the APA and other psychiatric conferences. About a fifth of APA funding now comes from the drug companies" (Angell, M, 2011).
Big business generally does not spend money if they do not gain from it in some way, I think most people can agree big business, especially pharmaceuticals has never been known for it's amazing works of philanthropy. The article then explores the effects of anti-psychotics, and anti- depressants on the brain. These drugs over time cause the brains pre-frontal cortex to "slowly atrophy", causing lifelong damage. Obviously I am paraphrasing this article immensely and would suggest that anyone who is interested in this topic read the article, as it is very thought provoking. Mostly what I got from the article is an idea or more confirmation I should say, in our diseases medical system, but also the public's loss of belief in their bodies natural abilities to heal itself, and an emotional dependency on pills. I had begun to loose my belief as well, when dealing with even benign issues such as acne, so I can't imagine how daunting it must feel to people who are dealing with mental illness. SO I choose to study natural health, and I do firmly believe there are better alternatives to drug cocktails for almost everything. The article spoke largely of children who are now being given anti-psychotic drugs, some "500,000", and "ten percent of ten year old boys" take medication for ADHD. These statistics make me think of my dad. My father was a drug addict his entire life. He grew up in a household with one alcoholic parent and one who was emotionally unstable and a pill popper. He was diagnosed with ADHD at a young age, and given something akin to Ritalin. It is my opinion that he probably needed love and attention a little more than he needed drugs, but sadly his was a highly dysfunctional household so drugs was what he got the most of. It is no wonder to me, that for the the rest of his 50 years of life he was never able to feel normal without some sort of chemical intervention, and he never did learn to love or believe in himself, his body, and all of his abilities. This is the reason I choose TCM, I want to help foster a belief in one's body, and a more holistic and natural approach to Health.
When Minnesota and Vermont implemented "sinshine laws" that require drug companies to report all payments to doctors, psychiatrists were found to receive more money than physicians in any other specialty. The pharmaceutical industry also subsidizes meetings of the APA and other psychiatric conferences. About a fifth of APA funding now comes from the drug companies" (Angell, M, 2011).
Big business generally does not spend money if they do not gain from it in some way, I think most people can agree big business, especially pharmaceuticals has never been known for it's amazing works of philanthropy. The article then explores the effects of anti-psychotics, and anti- depressants on the brain. These drugs over time cause the brains pre-frontal cortex to "slowly atrophy", causing lifelong damage. Obviously I am paraphrasing this article immensely and would suggest that anyone who is interested in this topic read the article, as it is very thought provoking. Mostly what I got from the article is an idea or more confirmation I should say, in our diseases medical system, but also the public's loss of belief in their bodies natural abilities to heal itself, and an emotional dependency on pills. I had begun to loose my belief as well, when dealing with even benign issues such as acne, so I can't imagine how daunting it must feel to people who are dealing with mental illness. SO I choose to study natural health, and I do firmly believe there are better alternatives to drug cocktails for almost everything. The article spoke largely of children who are now being given anti-psychotic drugs, some "500,000", and "ten percent of ten year old boys" take medication for ADHD. These statistics make me think of my dad. My father was a drug addict his entire life. He grew up in a household with one alcoholic parent and one who was emotionally unstable and a pill popper. He was diagnosed with ADHD at a young age, and given something akin to Ritalin. It is my opinion that he probably needed love and attention a little more than he needed drugs, but sadly his was a highly dysfunctional household so drugs was what he got the most of. It is no wonder to me, that for the the rest of his 50 years of life he was never able to feel normal without some sort of chemical intervention, and he never did learn to love or believe in himself, his body, and all of his abilities. This is the reason I choose TCM, I want to help foster a belief in one's body, and a more holistic and natural approach to Health.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Back At It.
I'm back!
I took a little break as it was finals week, then I was on vacation from school, then I needed to get myself back in the mode of being in school. So, now I am trying to maintain my blog and dedicate myself to posting about once a week again. So this is what's new with me.....
1. I switched to the 4 year track at OCOM. I feel that this will help me create more of a school, life, work balance. I don't want to quit my job, I don't know how I could live just off of student loans, plus I like my job so why quit. Also, on the 4 year track I will be able to take more elective courses that I would be too busy to take on the 3 year track. Speaking of elective courses.....
2. I signed up for a beginners mandarin class. In school we have to learn so much in Chinese, names of things, that we don't understand. I think having even a rudimentary understanding of the language will help me a lot. Also, I like languages. Which reminds me I need to practice my German way more :(
3. I am still trying to work on balancing my life a little more, giving myself some free time, spending time with loved ones, doing well at school, doing well at work. I feel like I can have it all, so I am working on making that possible for me!
4. I moved to a new house and the tiniest angel is going to come live with me soon! Yay, here is a picture to show you all what an angel she is!
And that is me in a nutshell for now. I will try to post once a week again with things that I am learning and just life in general :)
D.
I took a little break as it was finals week, then I was on vacation from school, then I needed to get myself back in the mode of being in school. So, now I am trying to maintain my blog and dedicate myself to posting about once a week again. So this is what's new with me.....
1. I switched to the 4 year track at OCOM. I feel that this will help me create more of a school, life, work balance. I don't want to quit my job, I don't know how I could live just off of student loans, plus I like my job so why quit. Also, on the 4 year track I will be able to take more elective courses that I would be too busy to take on the 3 year track. Speaking of elective courses.....
2. I signed up for a beginners mandarin class. In school we have to learn so much in Chinese, names of things, that we don't understand. I think having even a rudimentary understanding of the language will help me a lot. Also, I like languages. Which reminds me I need to practice my German way more :(
3. I am still trying to work on balancing my life a little more, giving myself some free time, spending time with loved ones, doing well at school, doing well at work. I feel like I can have it all, so I am working on making that possible for me!
4. I moved to a new house and the tiniest angel is going to come live with me soon! Yay, here is a picture to show you all what an angel she is!
D.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Winter is Coming
Or winter is here rather, and I have found myself in a quandary. What do I eat in the morning? I don't want to eat bread, and I tend to steer clear of dairy and eggs, so what to eat? My lovely roommate Charli makes green smoothies for herself every morning, and while I was loving them in the summer, I found that it is too cold for me in the morning in the winter. This would make sense from a Chinese Medicine standpoint. Summer is the Yang season, and is fire, so cooling foods would serve the body well. However, winter is Yin, and our bodies need warming foods to keep our internal yang strong and for our bodies to function properly. So, I have been having a hard time with this, until my friend Rachel suggested I add some warming spices to my smoothie such as ginger or cardamom. I thought this sounded like a good idea, and so I tried it, and low and behold I felt much better. I was feeling pretty proud of myself, then I went to theory........ According to Chinese medicine theory, your body does not like raw in winter, and over time eating a bunch of raw food will cause Phlegm, which no one wants. SO, again I was stumped. I decided this rule sounded a little stringent, and honestly felt a little offended for my beloved green smoothie, I felt that I needed to defend it's virtue and get to the bottom of this, could my green smoothie really cause Phlegm? I should add physical manifestations of Phlegm are no fun, they include cysts, goiters, sluggishness, lethargy, weight retention to name a few. Well I have consulted some admirable sources (one of my professors and my acupuncturist, both of whom are brilliant) and this is what I have come up with.
During winter we want to avoid raw food. We want to feed ourselves warm nourishing meals, including warming spices into our diets such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, garlic and I would throw tumeric in there because I think it is a magical root. However, the everything in moderation rule will apply, so if you have one raw green smoothie in the am, it is not going to give you goiters :) It is however, a good idea to amend your smoothie for the winter weather. It makes sense that the same smoothie that serves you in the summer, would not be the best in the winter. Fortify your green smoothie with warming spices and add some fat to it, such as coconut milk in order to help and feed your body in the winter. Other than that, drink ginger tea to help your stomach fire, and have the rest of your meals be cooked, nourishing meals. :)
The End...... For Now.
During winter we want to avoid raw food. We want to feed ourselves warm nourishing meals, including warming spices into our diets such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, garlic and I would throw tumeric in there because I think it is a magical root. However, the everything in moderation rule will apply, so if you have one raw green smoothie in the am, it is not going to give you goiters :) It is however, a good idea to amend your smoothie for the winter weather. It makes sense that the same smoothie that serves you in the summer, would not be the best in the winter. Fortify your green smoothie with warming spices and add some fat to it, such as coconut milk in order to help and feed your body in the winter. Other than that, drink ginger tea to help your stomach fire, and have the rest of your meals be cooked, nourishing meals. :)
The End...... For Now.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Bad Medicine Talk
I have, in my life, run into many people that think some of my faith in holistic health, is unfounded. I even once had someone tell me that acupuncture is a sham, and that it can all be explained by the placebo effect. I appreciate other peoples skepticism, and input. However, I would like to remind people that all the studies out there are not always totally truthful, and that when considering a claim, one must also consider the source, who funded the writing that is making this claim etc. This statement goes for both holistic claims as well as western medicinal claims and or refutes. In essence I would like to remind people to keep an open mind about everything, even those ideas that seem foreign to them. I recently watched a ted talks that talks about bad medicine, and I have to say Ben Goldacre MD. can speak to the flaws of publications better than I can.
Enjoy:
http://www.ted.com/talks/ben_goldacre_battling_bad_science.html
Enjoy:
http://www.ted.com/talks/ben_goldacre_battling_bad_science.html
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Hypochondria
I took a week off of blog posts. I have been rather busy, and just couldn't seem to take the time to post. However, I am back! Lately in school I have observed that I am feeling like every symptom mentioned pertains to me. Theory class is especially bad for this, as we are talking about the Organs of the human body, and how they can cause pathology when out of balance, the Zhang Fu organ theory. I am now convinced that all of my Organs are out of balance and I am a big mess, while still maintaining decent health from an outward perspective. And my teachers say the imbalance will only get worse in school because I am going to be working so hard, and not be able to pay attention to the rhythms my body wants. But, at least in the end, I will know how to heal myself a bit better! :)
Though the study of Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory (TCM Theory), I have been feeling reaffirmed in why I chose this medicine to study. I like the holistic nature of it. I like the idea that a pathology in one area affects all other areas of the body in one way or another. I like the notion that this medicine derived from centuries of observation, and trial and error. This medicine has a very scientific approach even if it wasn't always written down in the jargon of "double blind study", or "case study". Ancient Chinese philosophers organized data from doctors, found patterns, and compiled them in huge texts such as the Huang di Nei Jing for future practitioners to use and study. It is funny to me that people in this modern age disregard this medicine just because they can't understand the theory of it, and most of those people that I have met, have never taken the time to try and read about or understand the theory themselves. This makes me want to understand the theory well, so that I may be able to bridge the gap for people as a practitioner.
A few things I have noticed my first term at OCOM are:
1. I feel a tremendous pressure to understand all of my classes well because they are all so relevant, the western medicine classes just as much as the eastern medicine classes. In undergrad I was pretty sure some of the classes I was being forced to take as pre-req's were total B.S. and I just needed to pass a test then I could forget it.
2. Whenever I have free time, or even when I am at work, I think to myself, "I should really be studying right now", I didn't so much feel that way in undergrad.
3. Getting used to being in a college that is pass, fail, it is still hard to detach my ego from the concept of a high GPA. :)
More to come later.....
Though the study of Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory (TCM Theory), I have been feeling reaffirmed in why I chose this medicine to study. I like the holistic nature of it. I like the idea that a pathology in one area affects all other areas of the body in one way or another. I like the notion that this medicine derived from centuries of observation, and trial and error. This medicine has a very scientific approach even if it wasn't always written down in the jargon of "double blind study", or "case study". Ancient Chinese philosophers organized data from doctors, found patterns, and compiled them in huge texts such as the Huang di Nei Jing for future practitioners to use and study. It is funny to me that people in this modern age disregard this medicine just because they can't understand the theory of it, and most of those people that I have met, have never taken the time to try and read about or understand the theory themselves. This makes me want to understand the theory well, so that I may be able to bridge the gap for people as a practitioner.
A few things I have noticed my first term at OCOM are:
1. I feel a tremendous pressure to understand all of my classes well because they are all so relevant, the western medicine classes just as much as the eastern medicine classes. In undergrad I was pretty sure some of the classes I was being forced to take as pre-req's were total B.S. and I just needed to pass a test then I could forget it.
2. Whenever I have free time, or even when I am at work, I think to myself, "I should really be studying right now", I didn't so much feel that way in undergrad.
3. Getting used to being in a college that is pass, fail, it is still hard to detach my ego from the concept of a high GPA. :)
More to come later.....
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
School so far
As the weeks progress I am getting back into the swing of being a student. It is a different feeling having to take my work home with me, and have it consume my every day life again. Well, the hotel industry can be very consuming as well, but being a student is consuming in a different way. Learning all about living Anatomy has been fascinating, and I am happy to report that I got a 92 on my first mid term! Grades don't matter very much at OCOM as it is a pass or fail program, but I still have my ego attachment to getting good grades :) It will be no surprise to anyone that I am loving the more practical classes, although there is a lot of memorization. The one class I seem to be struggling with is Qi Gong. I don't love it, I get much more out of Yoga than I do Qi Gong. To me Qi Gong seems so esoteric, and as you all know, I am very fidgety. I have a hard time being still, I don't like slapping myself in the self massage Qi Gong, I don't like sitting there with my hands in still motion for 1000 hands Buddha. I feel annoyed and bored all class, and I am admittedly no good at meditation. I don't want to Practice Qi Gong outside of class, and I resent that I feel badly about not practicing. I want to love it, because I do believe it is good for you, I believe that people feel better after doing it, I just personally don't. I guess this all means that I should be practicing it, and that through the discomfort and "suffering" of it I could gain something. We will see how the next 3 years goes.
OAAOM
In other news I did just join the Oregon Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine as a student member. I think this will be a good way to network within the pretty saturated Oregon market, and become a part of this community. This will also help to keep me informed as to new legislation regarding the Acupuncture scope of practice in Oregon etc. With my membership I will also be able to audit conferences open to licensed practitioners, which I will be sure to be writing about when I do attend :)
That is all for now.......
OAAOM
In other news I did just join the Oregon Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine as a student member. I think this will be a good way to network within the pretty saturated Oregon market, and become a part of this community. This will also help to keep me informed as to new legislation regarding the Acupuncture scope of practice in Oregon etc. With my membership I will also be able to audit conferences open to licensed practitioners, which I will be sure to be writing about when I do attend :)
That is all for now.......
Monday, October 15, 2012
Dealing with Food Allergies
As most everyone who has any experience can tell you, I have many food allergies and sensitivities, that I sometimes neglect to pay attention to, but that I am very aware of, and are a great source of discomfort for me. I believe they are a main source of my hormonal fluctuations, and acne. I have tried everything, I do yoga, I do cleanses, I wash my face, I use moisturizer, I try to eat foods that are good for my gut etc, etc. It has always seemed to me that my sensitive system has just gotten worse with all my efforts.
Well my friends I am happy to report I am trying something new to heal my gut, and heal my food sensitivities, and hopefully, vanquish acne to some extent. What is it I am doing.... well acupuncture of course. I was introduced to a woman named Shelley Laurey. She works part time in Hawaii, and part time in Oregon. I thought this was a nice touch, as she knows about the environment I am coming from. She is also an OCOM graduate! So, she knows about the environment I am now in. She has been an Acupuncturist for 35 years, and she deals specifically with food allergies! I am very excited about this new prospect, and optimistic for a positive outcome. Here is how it works: Shelly listened to what I had to say, then looked over my body for tell tale signs. She did some muscle reflexology as was able to determine that I have leaky gut syndrome, and parasites. This is causing me to build up food sensitivities that become increasingly aggressive as my leaky gut persists. We determined that I have a sensitivity to Gluten, and Corn, and an allergy to Eggs, and Dairy ( which I already knew from my last allergy test). She has me on an herbal supplement for the parasites which she says many girls in Hawaii have, from all the sushi we eat there. We are working on fixing me all up with a few acupuncture sessions. As many of you can imagine, this sounds much better than just never eating dairy, eggs, gluten, etc. again. Of course once I have done all this healing I have to be proactive and not mess up my gut again, but I am a pretty healthy person anyway so that should not be such a problem. I will report back in a few months with my progress!
As far as school goes, I am learning a lot. Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory is kicking my butt, and living anatomy is a lot of memorization, but I am loving every minute of it. I am so happy I have made this investment in myself, and I really feel this is a wonderful fit for me. :)
Well my friends I am happy to report I am trying something new to heal my gut, and heal my food sensitivities, and hopefully, vanquish acne to some extent. What is it I am doing.... well acupuncture of course. I was introduced to a woman named Shelley Laurey. She works part time in Hawaii, and part time in Oregon. I thought this was a nice touch, as she knows about the environment I am coming from. She is also an OCOM graduate! So, she knows about the environment I am now in. She has been an Acupuncturist for 35 years, and she deals specifically with food allergies! I am very excited about this new prospect, and optimistic for a positive outcome. Here is how it works: Shelly listened to what I had to say, then looked over my body for tell tale signs. She did some muscle reflexology as was able to determine that I have leaky gut syndrome, and parasites. This is causing me to build up food sensitivities that become increasingly aggressive as my leaky gut persists. We determined that I have a sensitivity to Gluten, and Corn, and an allergy to Eggs, and Dairy ( which I already knew from my last allergy test). She has me on an herbal supplement for the parasites which she says many girls in Hawaii have, from all the sushi we eat there. We are working on fixing me all up with a few acupuncture sessions. As many of you can imagine, this sounds much better than just never eating dairy, eggs, gluten, etc. again. Of course once I have done all this healing I have to be proactive and not mess up my gut again, but I am a pretty healthy person anyway so that should not be such a problem. I will report back in a few months with my progress!
As far as school goes, I am learning a lot. Traditional Chinese Medicine Theory is kicking my butt, and living anatomy is a lot of memorization, but I am loving every minute of it. I am so happy I have made this investment in myself, and I really feel this is a wonderful fit for me. :)
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Nutrition Plug
Wedding Yay!
I took last week off as I was attending my friend Merlyn's wedding in Colorado. It was a wonderful trip, but I did miss a few classes and had to play some catch up upon return. However I am happy to report that I did well on my first two quizzes, and now have 5 more staring me down for next week. Despite the stress of trying to cram everything quickly into my brain, as well as working and trying to maintain a small semblance of a social life, I am still feeling really good about school, and thinking I made the right decision in coming here. The more that I begin to delve into the theory of this medicine, as well as the history of it, I realize how much it really does have baring here in the west. Many of the basic principles apply when thinking of Homeopathic medicine as well as Naturpathic medicine. As I have said before, I do believe that people in the west are beginning to have a stronger urge to pursue more holistic forms of health care, as it is becoming increasingly more clear that our current strategies for health care are not fixing the problems with the degenerative diseases of aging and of course the obesity problem as well.
Basic Nutrition from the Anatomy and Physiology Lecture
On the topic of obesity, we did talk a bit about nutrition, here are some things we spoke of in the anatomy and phsyiology lecture yesterday.
Lipids: Fat, important for vitamin absorbtion, and brain function. We as humans can only synthesize 5 of the 10 must have fats that we need in life. Anything that is listed as an essential fat, or essential fatty acids are those of which we must consume to acquire. This means eat avocados and nuts and fish. This does not mean eat fried food etc. and or starve your body of fat altogether. Learn about what are good fats and eat those, don't be afraid of them, and moderate the "bad" fats. As you all know I am a waitress, I had a woman the other day chomping on fried calamari who asked me to hold the avocado from her salad as she thought it was too fattening. That is a perfect example of nutrition ignorance, and I found it sad. So here is my educational plug on fats :)
Carbohydrates: Important because they are the bodies #1 preferred method of energy. If your body does not have this energy source, it will pull energy from protein, however protein has other functions it needs to be doing in and building in your body, if you are using up all your protein as energy, your body will be deficient in other ways. However, if you eat too many carbs, they will indeed be stored as fat. So, eat carbs, they are good. Eat sustainable carbs such as brown rice and wheat bread. Avoid white refined and processed carbs. Also, try to do at least 20 minutes of aerobic exercise a day, and you will use up those excess carbs and they will not be stored as fat. In other words, go for a run, it's good for you :)
Protein: essential for life, however not in the quantities that we as Americans are eating it. We now eat protein in major excess of what our forefathers did. Protein gets broken down and distributed by the liver and Kidneys. We never store protein in our body, all the protein we ingest either goes to some use in our body, or gets expelled in our urine. If we have excess protein our kidneys have to work over time to process and expel extra. This is why kidney failure patients can't eat protein and are on very low protein diets. You can actually cause your body to go into a state of ketosis or ketoacidosis, (acid kidney) which leads to kidney failure and death by eating too much protein (ie. atkins diet is bad). So eat protein, but not too much, and try to eat forms that don't have a crap ton of antibiotics and hormones in them (ie. stay away from factory farmed meat).
So that was my nutritional plug. This is all from my western medicine anatomy and physiology class for those of you who that means something to. Hope you enjoyed it. Stay tuned next week :)
I took last week off as I was attending my friend Merlyn's wedding in Colorado. It was a wonderful trip, but I did miss a few classes and had to play some catch up upon return. However I am happy to report that I did well on my first two quizzes, and now have 5 more staring me down for next week. Despite the stress of trying to cram everything quickly into my brain, as well as working and trying to maintain a small semblance of a social life, I am still feeling really good about school, and thinking I made the right decision in coming here. The more that I begin to delve into the theory of this medicine, as well as the history of it, I realize how much it really does have baring here in the west. Many of the basic principles apply when thinking of Homeopathic medicine as well as Naturpathic medicine. As I have said before, I do believe that people in the west are beginning to have a stronger urge to pursue more holistic forms of health care, as it is becoming increasingly more clear that our current strategies for health care are not fixing the problems with the degenerative diseases of aging and of course the obesity problem as well.
Basic Nutrition from the Anatomy and Physiology Lecture
On the topic of obesity, we did talk a bit about nutrition, here are some things we spoke of in the anatomy and phsyiology lecture yesterday.
Lipids: Fat, important for vitamin absorbtion, and brain function. We as humans can only synthesize 5 of the 10 must have fats that we need in life. Anything that is listed as an essential fat, or essential fatty acids are those of which we must consume to acquire. This means eat avocados and nuts and fish. This does not mean eat fried food etc. and or starve your body of fat altogether. Learn about what are good fats and eat those, don't be afraid of them, and moderate the "bad" fats. As you all know I am a waitress, I had a woman the other day chomping on fried calamari who asked me to hold the avocado from her salad as she thought it was too fattening. That is a perfect example of nutrition ignorance, and I found it sad. So here is my educational plug on fats :)
Carbohydrates: Important because they are the bodies #1 preferred method of energy. If your body does not have this energy source, it will pull energy from protein, however protein has other functions it needs to be doing in and building in your body, if you are using up all your protein as energy, your body will be deficient in other ways. However, if you eat too many carbs, they will indeed be stored as fat. So, eat carbs, they are good. Eat sustainable carbs such as brown rice and wheat bread. Avoid white refined and processed carbs. Also, try to do at least 20 minutes of aerobic exercise a day, and you will use up those excess carbs and they will not be stored as fat. In other words, go for a run, it's good for you :)
Protein: essential for life, however not in the quantities that we as Americans are eating it. We now eat protein in major excess of what our forefathers did. Protein gets broken down and distributed by the liver and Kidneys. We never store protein in our body, all the protein we ingest either goes to some use in our body, or gets expelled in our urine. If we have excess protein our kidneys have to work over time to process and expel extra. This is why kidney failure patients can't eat protein and are on very low protein diets. You can actually cause your body to go into a state of ketosis or ketoacidosis, (acid kidney) which leads to kidney failure and death by eating too much protein (ie. atkins diet is bad). So eat protein, but not too much, and try to eat forms that don't have a crap ton of antibiotics and hormones in them (ie. stay away from factory farmed meat).
So that was my nutritional plug. This is all from my western medicine anatomy and physiology class for those of you who that means something to. Hope you enjoyed it. Stay tuned next week :)
Saturday, September 22, 2012
First Week Down
The first week of school is behind me, and already I feel like I have made a wonderful choice in my school selection. OCOM (Oregon College of Oriental Medicine) was just rated The Best Acupuncture College in The U.S. by thebestschools.org, which is pretty fantastic. However despite all of the notoriety the overall feeling I have when I am in class, and at the school, is one of belonging and awe. Learning about the human body is fascinating, and learning to heal the human body is magical.
Sadly, my first day was not the best for me. While I was very excited about the classes I was going to have that day, Point Location and Qi Gong, I was sick with a head cold and it was extremely difficult to be present. My first day of class was Wednesday, and I had woken up on Tuesday with a fever. My fever broke Tuesday night, but by Wednesday morning I really had no business being out of bed, so I made it to my first four hour class, then skipped my second class and went home back to bed.
I wish I had had an opportunity this week to do a little more reading, and have more interesting information to give out, but most of the week I was just trying to keep my head above water. I am now feeling much better due to multiple acupuncture sessions, and some Chinese herbs I am taking. Next week will prove much more lively for me.
One idea I can close with, is a little perspective given to my class by my wonderful anatomy and physiology teacher Regina Dehen ND, LAc. When speaking to the relationship between western medicine and eastern medicine she took us back to the foundations, when western medicine was in its infancy. She explained to us, that back then, ideas were less black and white than they are today. We have all heard the term Melancholy, which for a long time was the term for what today would be called sadness or depression. Melancholy literally means black bile, and it was thought that people with this condition had a liver disorder that produced a black bile into their system. However, no black bile was ever found so the idea was, after some time, dismissed. The example was kind of a light bulb to me, how similar ideas once were, and I feel that modern thinking is coming back to these concepts. More and more people are looking to alternative medicine for help, The Economist just published and article about the human microbiome entitled Me, Myself and Us, and the U.S. Military is beginning to hire Acupuncturists to help with PTSD. It is an exciting time to be in my field indeed!
Here is a Picture of my entire incoming class!
Sadly, my first day was not the best for me. While I was very excited about the classes I was going to have that day, Point Location and Qi Gong, I was sick with a head cold and it was extremely difficult to be present. My first day of class was Wednesday, and I had woken up on Tuesday with a fever. My fever broke Tuesday night, but by Wednesday morning I really had no business being out of bed, so I made it to my first four hour class, then skipped my second class and went home back to bed.
I wish I had had an opportunity this week to do a little more reading, and have more interesting information to give out, but most of the week I was just trying to keep my head above water. I am now feeling much better due to multiple acupuncture sessions, and some Chinese herbs I am taking. Next week will prove much more lively for me.
One idea I can close with, is a little perspective given to my class by my wonderful anatomy and physiology teacher Regina Dehen ND, LAc. When speaking to the relationship between western medicine and eastern medicine she took us back to the foundations, when western medicine was in its infancy. She explained to us, that back then, ideas were less black and white than they are today. We have all heard the term Melancholy, which for a long time was the term for what today would be called sadness or depression. Melancholy literally means black bile, and it was thought that people with this condition had a liver disorder that produced a black bile into their system. However, no black bile was ever found so the idea was, after some time, dismissed. The example was kind of a light bulb to me, how similar ideas once were, and I feel that modern thinking is coming back to these concepts. More and more people are looking to alternative medicine for help, The Economist just published and article about the human microbiome entitled Me, Myself and Us, and the U.S. Military is beginning to hire Acupuncturists to help with PTSD. It is an exciting time to be in my field indeed!
Here is a Picture of my entire incoming class!
Thursday, September 13, 2012
HI!
As many of my friends and family know, I have begun the journey through acupuncture school with the Oregon College Of Oriental Medicine. I am going to try and post a weekly reflection, and thought this would be a fun way to keep everyone informed as to my progress, as well as being a good tool for me to look back on. So here it goes, my experience up to this point:
School officially begins on the 19th of September. I am very excited, and am looking forward to getting this much anticipated ball rolling. I was able to meet the entire incoming class this week at our new student orientation at Menucha in the Columbia Gorge. This was an overnight retreat stay in which we listened to many people talk about "how hard" OCOM is going to be. By the end of the first day I felt a little weary of hearing about how hard it all is, and how tired I am going to be, but I was encouraged by the idea of it being an over all transformative and uplifiting experience.
In conjunction with all the information that was given to us, we also got to participate in some fun practices. We had a small hands on shiatsu demonstration where we got to pair up and practice a little Shiatsu massage. This reminded me that part of my experience at OCOM will be giving and receiving an array of wonderful treatments. We also had a brief lesson on Qi Gong. It was fun to be able to partner up with a complete stranger, and play with each others energy. During the practice I could feel the magnetic pull of her energy on my palm, and it will be fun to expand my knowledge of this practice. At the end of the day we got to receive a little auricular acupuncture after which I took in the amazing sunset, and finally retired to my bed.
Menucha was such a beautiful atmosphere to begin this new journey, and I was impressed that OCOM invested in this retreat style experience for us to begin with. I am nervous to begin this new chapter in my life, as it is so different from the world of restaurants and corporate ladders that I have up to now been engrossed in, but I am also so excited and optimistic. I feel that my future is so bright. I just have to send a little gratitude out to my father Perry Dominic Reghi, who passed away in 2007. He was at times a hard man to know, but he helped to teach me one of the greatest lessons in life: that life is a precious gift and we are really the only ones who can dictate our own happiness regardless of all the external factors. And that compassion is not always easy, but always necessary for peace.
So here are some pictures:
This is what I ended my day with:
and this:
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