Acupuncture and Nutrition Clinic – Houston

I have a number of patients who come to my clinic to get help with managing the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. Without a doubt, the treatments required to battle cancer are strong and can be debilitating to quality of life. The diagnosis is emotionally devastating and then coping with the treatments which are physically challenging becomes a double whammy.

I was pleased to read the article below because for those of us who treat patients going through the rigors of cancer treatment, we know that acupucnture is a wonderful option. One of my patients came to me after her chemotherapy, radiation and surgery was finshed. She was exhausted, anxious, not sleeping, having hot flashes and night sweats. These symptoms were a result of the post surgery medications as well as finally connecting to the emotional trauma of the battle to fight cancer. What many people on the outside don’t understand, is that the healing only begins once the treatment and surgery is over. Most patients are just too busy and preoccupied with surviving the process of fighting cancer rather than really processing what it all means.

Another patient came to me after her second diagnosis with cancer. She had been diagnosed many years earlier, had gone through chemotherapy and surgery and had been in remission for ten years. Suddenly she was faced with the diagnosis once again. She remembered what the treatment did to her physically and emotionally and had heard that acupuncture could be an option to help her get through it better. As she started her chemotherapy, she came to me with the information given to her by her doctor about what side effects to expect from the drugs she would be receiving.

As would be expected these patients were nervous. Anxious about what would be. So much unknown but at the same time aware that they would be feeling worse than horrible as the chemotherapy progressed. All I can share with you is what not only these two but numerous patients have told me during the course of their various cancer treatments.

“I feel calmer now”
“My nausea and vomitting is less”
“My stomach doesn’t hurt”
“My bowel movements are better”
“I am sleeping deeper”
“My energy is improving”
“I feel I can get through this”
“I don’t ache as much all over”
“I’m not getting as many headaches”
“My anxiety is better”
“My hot flashes are less frequent and/or less intense”

If any of these sound familiar for yourself or your friends and loved ones, it’s helpful to know that acupuncture helps. Based on what patients say, the tongue and pulse and an assessment, acupoints are chosen to address the constitiution of the patient as well as the symptoms. Please feel free to read this article that describes what many hospitals are now encouraging for their patients.

Good digestion is key to good health. If you think about what takes place during digestion, it is important for food (aka fuel, aka nutrition) to be broken down and absorbed properly in order for our body to get what it needs from our food intake. When our digestive processes are disturbed we miss out on the health benefits from the food we eat. Digestion issues like constipation, diarrhea, gastritis, nausea, crohns and colitis affect our overall health because our bodies are not working well enough to ulitlize the nutrition from the food we eat. The good news is that quite frequently acupuncture can help manage or resolve many digestion problems.

My recent trip to China was an eye opener. Digestive problems like gastritis was very common place. General complaints of stomach discomfort seemed almost universal, whether it was in the internal medicine, gynecology or pain clinics I attended. The doctors used mainly herbal formulas to treat digestive issues, although it was also addressed along with other complaints in the acupuncture clinics.

During my three week stay in China, there were people everywhere, everyplace. It was very crowded. Millions of people in the cities (23 million in Beijing, 20 million people in Shanghai and 8 million in the city of Hangzhou where I studied). Try to imagine Houston growing to accomodate 20 million people within the city itself. Think of how we would incorporate all the people, the cars, the pollution, the apartments and office buildings. Imagine driving with cars, buses, bicycles and motor bikes coming in all directions paying little attention to traffic lights, order or lanes in the street. Your hands would be gripping the steering wheel while focusing on avoiding someone on a bike or another car. In short, it is a very stressful way of life.

In my practice, I have seen how stress affects digestion. Stress can create a blockage in liver energy which disrupts the actions of the liver, spleen and stomach energy. When these channels are disturbed, it can cause the stomach energy to rebel making it flow or move upwards toward the esophagus (ie-gastritis, reflux), rather than the normal path of downward to the intestines (normal BM’s). Stress can also deplete our spleen energy causing us to feel tired, sluggish, bloated and swollen. The liver energy that becomes stuck can cause gas, bloating, abdominal pain, irregular bowel movements and depression. In addition, it is quite common to see concurrent issues of sleep problems, anxiety, low energy and high blood pressure along with digestive problems.

If any of this sounds or feels familiar, you are not alone. If you have struggled with digestive issues, acupuncture might just be what you need to resolve or reduce your problems. When all that Western medicine can do is give you drugs to work on the symptoms, remember that acupuncture may very well have an explanation that does not equate with Western terminology. That results in addressing the problem, even if it has been a life long issue. The bottom line is, if nothing else has worked, you have nothing to lose. Try acupuncture. The worst case scenario is that you feel less stressed. Not too bad…

A patient I had previously treated for back pain came to see me a couple of weeks ago. It had been more than three years since her last visit where she had reported feeling great. Since I had not seen her for quite a while, I had assumed no news is good news. Not the case.

At the time of her first visit back, she told me she was having horrible hot flashes and sweating (making her hair curl), constant stomach pain, diarrhea, (six times a day for six years). In addition, she was extremely anxious, not sleeping well, and quite frankly, sick and tired of being sick and tired.

This patient reported she had forgotten how well she felt after her last experience with acupuncture. When her stomach pain became overwhelming she did the right thing by going to her medical doctor to try and figure out what the problem could be. She went through all the possible medical tests at their disposal to find that there was no Western understanding of her stomach pain. After numerous attempts at finding the cause, she remembered the last time she felt better. She couldn’t believe she had actually forgotten.

But that’s really ok. Because you do want to rule out anything serious. Western medicine is the best in the world for diagnostics. Once everything serious had been ruled out (ie cancer, especially since she is a three time cancer survivor) it made smart sense for her to come and try acupuncture again.

It was clear to me that her stomach pain was directly affected and exacerbated by her anxiety. In Chinese medicine there is a direct link between liver channel issues and digestive issues. (There is no real equivalent in Western medicine, so doctors usually prescribe anti-depressants). So I treated her anxiety issues which was in part causing her epigastric pain. That is called treating the root to treat the branch (symptom). In addition, I treated the symptom which alleviated her diarrhea and part of the root problem. She has been diarrhea free for 2 weeks and has had her stomach pain reduced by almost 50%.

I asked her if she would be willing to share her story with you. She sent me the following almost immediately as she has been so pleased with her progress.

I am a very lucky lady! After 6 years of severe, unexplainable stomach pains, 6 doctors, 6 endoscopies and colonoscopies, too many pills to list and no one else to see to find a solution, I sought out the Acupuncture & Nutrition Clinic as a desperate attempt to get help for this severe pain. I had used the Acupuncture & Nutrition Clinic for back pain 3 years earlier and knew that they not only listened, was caring and compassionate, they had completely relieved my back pain. They listened yet again, asked many questions and started to work their magic. We are in our second week of treatment and the pain has already started to subside. For the first time in 6 years, I feel good. Not only is my stomach pain much better, everything feels better. My anxiety has lessoned, my back feels great, my mind is clear and my physical health seems to be much better. Had I not gone to 6 doctors with no relief, I wouldn’t have believed that they could help me this fast. The most amazing part is that everything feels better. There is nothing more important than health and this is exactly Acupuncture & Nutrition Clinic’s philosophy. The better I feel, the happier they feel for me. They truly care and want to help. They are so positive, so reassuring, so compassionate and the best part, it’s painless! I actually like those little needles now. I have learned that they are my friend! I am forever grateful to have found the Acupuncture & Nutrition Clinic and I will continue to go twice a week until I feel that the pain is completely gone. When this happens, I will continue to go back for maintenance forever! Life and my health is so much better because of Acupuncture & Nutrition Clinic! I am a lucky lady! ~Dana~