AOMA Blog

An Integrative Approach to Epilepsy Care

Posted by Maxwell Poyser on Fri, Dec 10, 2021 @ 10:29 AM

Epilepsy is one of the most common brain disorders in America, actively effecting roughly 3.4 million people nationwide. A disorder housed in the Central Nervous System (CNS), Epilepsy is primarily characterized by the presence of seizures that can effect the whole brain (generalized) or a portion of the brain (focal). Given the dynamic existence of the disorder, it has proven to be a very challenging one to treat. Utilizing the benefits of multiple medical practices, patients often see a benefit in including a more integrative and holistic care approach to their health plan, opposed to a singular one.

Candace Parsley, an AOMA Doctoral student who is studying epilepsy, has seen firsthand the benefits of an integrative approach both for her patients, as well as herself.

Candace Parsley Headshot

One of the primary benefits she has seen is Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s ability to help alleviate some of the common challenges of epilepsy, including the side effects of anti-seizure medication. Acupuncture and TCM have a long-standing history of being helpful in treating digestive issues, stress reduction, and sleep deprivation and disorders, all of which are common issues individuals with epilepsy face. In collaboration with Western Medicine and pharmaceuticals, holistic medicine provides a way for individuals to customize their health treatment programs in a way that is better tailored towards individual success and well-being.

An integrative approach to epilepsy care can be increasingly beneficial in optimizing the full scope of patient care. Lifestyle management, an important element in treating epilepsy, can take on a new and potentially more impactful position under the guidance of a Chinese Medicine Practitioner. In response to the topic of agency, Parsley mentions that “the capacity for integrative medicine to empower choice and agency on the part of the patient and have that vested interest in their health where they are the ones making the decisions and they are actively involved in making their care plans, is a game changer for a lot of people. Especially in regard to the epilepsies.”

For many individuals with chronic illness, the ability to have an option on how their health is managed is often limited within a singular care system. Regarding epilepsy, integrative care has the potential to restore a sense of agency and control for an individual’s health story by providing them the option to customize a treatment plan that best works for them. While epilepsy is often a lifetime diagnosis, with proper patient care, individuals can find a way to live a happy and healthy life with this chronic disorder. The beauty of integrative medicine is in its ability to gift such a life to its patients, reinforcing the power of integrative care.

Looking to learn more about how Acupuncture and TCM can help assist in epilepsy care? Check out the following resources!

https://www.epilepsy.com/learn

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21689988/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29763803/

Meet The Veterans of AOMA!

Posted by Maxwell Poyser on Thu, Nov 11, 2021 @ 01:51 PM

In honor of Veterans Day, our Senior Director of Student Services, Dami Tokoya recently sat down with a few of our veteran students to discuss the impact being in the military made on them, and how their time serving the Nation influenced them to practice integrative medicine here at AOMA. 

Meet Caitlyn Kelly!

US Army, SPC, 2012-2017 

1. What motivated you to join the military?Caitlyn Kelly Image 1

CK: I won't lie, I was working three jobs and still about to lose my house, so I joined the military. Plus, I really needed health insurance.

2. How does your military experience translate into being a student?

CK: It definitely puts a lot of the stresses of student life into perspective. My military experience enables me to compartmentalize efficiently and get my work done in a timely and effective manner. Also, since I worked as a linguist (Persian-Farsi, some Dari, and German) I learned to process vast quantities of information in a very limited time and recall them accurately as needed;.

3. What are your hobbies?

CK: I very much enjoy working out, I mix it up a lot between yoga, running, and lifting. I am experimenting with being a novelist, I love reading so it seems like the logical next step. I also do hobby taxidermy!

Caitlyn Kelly Image 2

4. As a Veteran, can you describe the positive impact practicing integrative medicine, acupuncture, etc has had on you?

CK: I am very much enjoying the ability to continue to serve in the new capacity as a healer. It also gives me a chance to continue to support my brothers and sisters at arms after retiring from the military.

5. What are your plans for after graduation?

CK: I’m opening my own clinic down in Spring Branch, Tx.

 
 

Meet Monique Jones!

MJ Image 1
MAJ (R) Monique Jones is native of St. Louis, Missouri (which is home to Missouri Botanical Gardens-among the top three botanical gardens in the world). She enlisted in the U.S. Army February 2000 as an Admin. Specialist with assignments at 42nd Military Police (MP) Detachment, 16th MP Brigade at Ft. Bragg, NC, 6th Ordinance Battalion, 23rd Area Support Group, South Korea, and Noncommissioned Officer Academy (NCOA), Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. In 2005 she reclassed to 91V/68V, Respiratory Therapist assigned to WOMACK Army Community Hospital, Ft. Bragg, NC. In 2007 she was selected to the Army Active-Duty Option Green to Gold Commissioning program. She received her commission as Second Lieutenant in the Medical Service Corps May 8, 2009, from Campbell University, Buies Creek. She graduated Cume Laude with a Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) and minor in Psychology. She went on to serve on Active Duty as a Medical Operations and Plans Officer for the Army Medical Department. Her duties and assignments include: Executive officer for the Headquarters and Headquarter Battery of 75th Fires Brigade, Medical Platoon Leader 218th Field Artillery Regiment, and Brigade Medical Operations and Plans Officer for 75th Fires Brigade, Fort Sill, OK; Brigade Medical Operations Officer and Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) Officer for 12th Combat Aviation Brigade, Katterbach, Germany; Operations Officer for 212th Combat Support Hospital (CSH) the only forward deployed CSH, and Commander for the Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment of 212th Combat Support Hospital, Miesau, Germany; Senior Observer Controller and Headquarters Team lead 3-409th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th CAV Multifunctional Training Brigade, Fort Knox, KY. Monique deployments include Afghanistan, Poland and Ghana. Monique retired June 2020, culminating her 20-year career assigned as the Deputy Surgeon for the 13th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, Fort Hood, Tx. 
 

1. What motivated you to join the military?

MJ: I was living with my mom after I graduated high school, feeling like I was grown and had life all figured out. My mom had a problem with me coming home at all hours of the night. I of course with very little perspective on what adulting was believed I shouldn’t have a curfew because I was “grown”. One night I came home at around 3am. My mom was furious. She told me if I couldn’t respect her rules then I had to leave. I stormed off to my room to grab some things before I left. I really had no idea where I was going. I reckon my mother knew that. She stood in front of the door with her arms spread wide shouting at me repeatedly “where do you think you’re going”. I just looked at her with a dumb look and went back to my room. I didn’t go to sleep. I just sat there watching the screen not paying attention to what was on. Then the infamous song played “Be all that you can be, in the Army”. That night I didn’t sleep. In the morning instead of going to work as a salesclerk at Victoria Secret, I went to the local recruiting station. Just like that I was grown enough to make the impulsive decision without any approval. Still today it’s the best decision I’ve made in my life thus far. Oh, I did do a lot of growing up over the years. I must say the I’m blessed and honored to have worked in such a profession with amazing leaders, peers, and subordinates. All of them have contributed to my success and growth over the years. There are words I can express to thank them all enough. If my mom were alive, she would say the same. She was so proud of me.

2. How does your military experience translate into being a student?

MJ: Perseverance and grit! I don’t think there anyone in the world who would say the life of a service member is easy. At times it’s a thankless job with immeasurable task. Throughout the years it has been the greatest challenges that I didn’t think were humanly possible that made me a better person. Along with serving in the military, being a parent has also been instrumental in my development process. It’s such an honor to be a mom but being a service member and a mom presents great challenges. I’m not sure I would have made it without my kids. There are times I feel like they teach me more than I teach them. Their resilience and stand-up character should be emulated by all. Providing for them was and still is my number one mission. When service members across the world have a mission, no matter how demanding it maybe it has to be accomplished for the greater good. It takes a lot of faith, perseverance, and grit to be successful. What I’ve come to realize is discipline and dedication will get you through. You can’t just be a part of something or an idea because it sounds good or its popular. You must have conviction in what you’re doing, be dedicated, and disciplined in your execution. To be an Acupuncturist is no easy task. The curriculum is quite challenging and demanding. I want to be an Acupuncturist to serve the community. In order to serve the community best in the future I must be disciplined in my studies now. I must be willing to persevere through challenges and know that it’s all part of the process.

MJ Image 23.What are your hobbies?

MJ: Finding a hobby is one of my post military goals. I want to learn to play violin and piano, mentor the youth and host socials for women. I don’t really have a hobby at the moment. If I had to choose, I would say I’m a professional learner. I love learning new things, speaking, teaching, traveling, and quality time with my kids and family.


4. As a Veteran, can you describe the positive impact practicing integrative medicine, acupuncture, etc has had on you?

MJ: The greatest impact has been what I’ve learned about my body and how it operates. Prior to learning what I’ve learned thus far I didn’t pay attention to how much the mind, body and spirit were connected to influence harmony for us as beings. Understanding symptoms in my body that I previously ignored, then being able to identify a food source that has healing properties to relieve the abnormality is simply amazing to me. The medicine is so amazing. I wouldn’t say everyone should fire their current healthcare plan and only use Traditional Chinese Medicine, but I do believe everyone should be educated on how it works.

5. What are your plans for after graduation?

MJ: The most important thing for me after graduation is to educate the community on how to observe and listen to their bodies as a prevention method for illness. It important to me that the community know that there are alternative methods for treating illnesses, pain and cognitive/emotional conditions that don’t require medications with side effects. I want to influence the community to take a more personal approach to their own healthcare. I want to specialize to treat pain and cognitive/emotional conditions. At the moment I’m projecting my target client population to be service members, veterans and children. At first thought I would like to have my own private practice though I’m aware of the various benefits of integrative medicine.
MJ Image 3


6. How do you feel both your military experience and your education have prepared you for your future?
 
MJ: God doesn’t make mistakes! Without my military career I wouldn’t be here. As a healthcare professional in the military, I’ve gotten to honor to work with allies all over the globe. Every opportunity taught me valuable lessons on the effects of treating patient’s vs symptoms. As a student of acupuncture one of the principles that first stuck to me was being able to understand the patient holistically. It’s not just about the chief complaint but also external and internal factors that can influence it. Sleep hygiene, good nutrition and exercise are consistent themes that I’ve witnessed being taught in both my military career and during my education her at AOMA. I will continue to educate the community on why these are so important for vitality.

 

Meet Robin Boyles!

US Army, 1SG, 1990-2010

Robin B Image 1-1

I am a 20-year Army veteran. I served in the Army Veterinary Corps from 1990 - 2010. My first assignment was overseas in Rota, Spain for three years. Dream job and place to live on the southern border bay of Cadiz. Loved it! I served mostly in Europe I spent a total of nine years in Germany, three years in Italy and one year in Iraq from 2004-2005. I joined the military because I wanted to see the world and it was a fantastic experience! I worked in the veterinary clinic seeing animals every day, x-rays, surgery, vaccines, you name it. Our main job was keeping military working dogs healthy and educating their handlers on how to care for them. It was a great job and I learned a lot.

My greatest take away was meeting and working with people from everywhere. I love experiencing new cultures and ways of being healthy. I retired as a first sergeant. My husband was also in the military, and I got out so we could go to Thailand for three years.
My experience in the military has given me the discipline and medical background I
needed for doing acupuncture. I want to treat veterans when I graduate and continue to serve military members and their families. I love that we have a partnership with the Austin VA, and I can’t wait to do my internship there. That is another reason to go to AOMA besides the fact that we have such a diverse group of instructors and students to learn from. I am very excited about the future of acupuncture and that the military is adopting it as a valuable resource for our veterans and active duty. AOMA is a great learning environment and supports us veterans!

 

Meet Khong Bouapraseuth!

1. What motivated you to join the military?IMG_0666

KB: I joined the military in a turbulent time a few years after 9/11. I was in the Texas Army National Guard (Ammunition Specialist) from 2005-2011 and in the Army Reserves (Water Treatment Specialist) from 2011-2013. Both my units were in Fort Worth, Texas. I was briefly part of the Oklahoma National Guard in Oklahoma City during my undergraduate. I was deployed to Camp Taji, Iraq (close to Baghdad) in the middle of massage school. My time in Iraq (2008-2009), I was an armored gun truck driver.
My company provided security for others to transport supplies, mail, people, construction from Camp Taji to various place in Iraq. I was trained in all positions of the gun truck: Truck Commander, Driver and Gunner; in case if one of my team member was incapacitated, I would take over their role effortlessly. I spent months training in tactical driving and maneuvers in convoys, basic maintenance on vehicles, learned how to use military GPS systems, radios, jamming devices, and a little bit of Arabic. Some weeks, I would go to the range every day to do target practice with machine guns. I also learn some combat field medic medicine for emergencies.

The military appealed to me because at the time, I was 17 years old and still in high school. I was thinking how I was going to pay for college. I am a first-generation American and my parent came to the United States with next to nothing. I was too young to sign up on my own. My dad had to sign a permission slip for me to join. The military has great education benefits, and with the National Guard and Reserves, you only have to serve one weekend a month and two week in the summer. Occasionally, there will be a state and national emergency where I would get deployed to help citizens evacuate from an area with natural disaster and/or deployed to war.


2. How does your military experience translate into being a student?IMG_0046

KB: My military experience has instilled the importance of adaptability and perseverance which as helped me as a student. I have a patient in the student clinic that does not want any needles. I was able to adapt and apply other TCM methods, such as, acupressure, cupping, bodywork, meditation, herbs, and medical Qi Gong to the patient. The patient still got great results. We absolutely need perseverance to finish the programs here at AOMA.

3.What are your hobbies?

KB: My hobbies include gardening, Kung fu movies, and of course spending time with friends and family.

4. As a Veteran, can you describe the positive impact practicing integrative medicine, acupuncture, etc has had on you?

IMG_4737

KB: The positive impact that practicing integrative medicine as a Veteran is immeasurable. Veteran are an underserve population. When I was in the military, it seem like pills were given for every condition. It is refreshing to see that Veterans are asking for more integrative approaches. I have talked to several veterans that have gotten acupuncture at the VA and they love it and want more of it!

5. What are your plans for after graduation?

KB: I would like to collaborate with other healthcare professionals while working for myself. I will most likely start a practice in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

6. How do you feel both your military experience and your education have prepared you for your future?

KB: My military experience combined with my education at AOMA has given me confidence about my future. There is always more to learn and what I have taken away from both experience will give me a good start.

 

Meet Nadja Profit!image1

Army, 2003-2011

1. What motivated you to join the military?

NP: I’d always wanted to do something “for the greater good” like the peace core, or teach America… and when I found myself in central Texas, the opportunity presented itself.

2.What are your hobbies?

NP: Information gathering, deep dives on lots of different subjects… My undergrad is in fine art & I still dabble in creating art.

image4

3. As a Veteran, can you describe the positive impact practicing integrative medicine, acupuncture, etc has had on you?

NP: To serve many populations of clients.

4. What are your plans for after graduation?

NP: I plan to start my own mobile clinic and hope to serve many different demographics in part by using a pay it forward type of community acupuncture.

5. How do you feel both your military experience and your education have prepared you for your future?

image3

This medicine is like a bridge that connects all of my life experiences and all of the different demographics of people that I’ve been honored to share space with and honed my skills in order.

Topics: masters program, doctoral program, veteran affairs, aoma, veterans

A Trip Down Memory Lane: An Interview With Robert Laguna

Posted by Maxwell Poyser on Thu, Oct 21, 2021 @ 11:18 AM

I recently sat down with former Dean of Students, and longstanding AOMA faculty member Robert Laguna to talk about how he got started in the world of Acupuncture & TCM, his over two decades of history with AOMA, and the impact community healthcare has to create life-altering change.

MP: How long have you been at AOMA and how did you first become acquainted with the school?

RL: If you put all of my time together at AOMA it's been close to 25 years. I started as a student in ‘94. I was in the second class of AOMA; they opened in ‘93. I graduated in 1997, then I went to private practice for about a couple years and then somewhere around late 1998/1999 they asked me to supervise a couple of Student Clinics. When I was in school, I would always help other students, and I also had a background in

 teaching. I had been a band director for many years. I had a teaching certificate and stuff like that, so I knew my way around a classroom especially teaching in the arts. I think around ‘99, they asked me to come around as a classroom teacher. Around that time the owner of the school, Stuart Watts was trying to limit the amount of administrative stuff he was doing, and he was actually bringing in administrators little by little, and he asked me to do some of the admin things he was doing, specifically with transfer students. Around 1999, he established a deanship, and I became the Dean of Student. I stayed in that position until about a year ago. I don't remember exactly when I did not become the dean of students [laugh].


Guoen Wang, Robert Laguna, 1995MP: That’s a very interesting start to becoming an acupuncturist. What made you want to shift from being a band director to entering into the field of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine?


RL: In my dad’s recovery from alcoholism, he became a licensed chemical dependency counselor (LCDC); this was in the late 70/80s. He established a small, outpatient detox clinic in San Antonio. I would help them, and I was basically working as a consultant for class instruction. I would help them with different stuff, with the paperwork, teaching classes, curriculum design, helping to recertify the counselors, etc. during the summer when I was off [from teaching]. Band Directors don't get the full summer off, just a month and a half but during those time I would help them and then any time during the year when I could help.

Around ‘93 or ‘94 there was a big debacle in Texas because back then the institution that oversaw detox clinics was called TCADA (Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse), and the person in charge had embezzled a ton of money in the organization and then they dissolved it because it caused a lot of hoopla, and in the process, many detox beds (in-patient facilities) went away. As a result, so we saw a lot more people in more emergency situations because [of the fact that] people were canceling these services.

Around that time an acupuncturist had moved into the same building we were in and he said that if we ever needed an acupuncturist he could help with detox. And we were really skeptical, rudely skeptical even. But later on, we had this client who was detoxing off of heroin. Heroin is painful to detox from by the way; it's not as critical as alcohol—an alcohol detox could kill you—but it is still really painful and uncomfortable. The hospitals had turned him down, and we just needed some help, so we called the acupuncturist. It did take him [the patient] sometime to feel comfortable with the needles—which is common—but they eventually convinced him to try one needle and as soon as the first needle went in, he stopped shaking. We continued working with him pretty frequently for a week, week and a half and the changes we saw initially showed that the help he was getting opened him up more to the other counseling he was getting. It was almost like an emersion. As soon as I saw that I though "I gotta do this, I gotta do this."

At that same time [as the detoxing clinics closed] in ‘93 the acupuncture law came to be in Texas, which is why the school arrived, as soon as the legislation was here the schools came. The law stated that no one in TX was allowed to practice acupuncture anymore without being licensed, which meant that all of the inpatient and outpatient facilities in Texas that were using acupuncture as a complement to regular treatment couldn’t do [so anymore]. [That action] really disenfranchised a lot of people, and it wasn't your more urban people it was more so people in more rural areas like Temple or Plano at the time. So, my dad and two other people brought up a lawsuit to sue the state saying this wasn't right, and one of the judges here in Austin, Judge Wisser, decided to issue an injunction stating that there would be an exception for people who were currently practicing in detox settings while the law was being revised. Later an addition was made to the law for acupuncture detox specialists. I say that because [it gives context with] what was happening in the background. That process [to become an] acupuncture detox specialists took about 5 years to be fully certified, and that left me hanging because I wanted to go down that route. I was already using NADA, and I was trained in that, and I was still helping too even though I wasn't a counselor or acupuncturist; I was just there helping in the trenches. But they weren’t going to let me do this anymore, so I realized I needed to learn the practice. One of the other people who helped [us] with the lawsuit she recommended AOMA to me and she’d said it was in Austin (at the time there was two acupuncture schools in Austin) but she told me I had to learn herbs too in the process, and at the time I was kicking and screaming at the thought of it. I just wanted to do acupuncture. It was just people being made to change and you just didn't want to do; it was very much like that.


Short story long, I went through the curriculum at AOMA, went through herbs learned to love herbs, graduated in 97 and then went to work right away at an integrative office. So, at the same time I was trying to establish my private practice on the side I had the chance to work with an osteopath at their clinic. With two osteopaths, two chiropractors, two nurse practitioners which was very rare at the times; it’s rare now but at the time it was more so, and I was really happy to [be a part of] that. That has been a large part of my approach since day one—an integrative approach.

MP: I personally didn’t know that acupuncture had so much to do with addiction recovery, and all the applications it had in different practices.

RL: Well, it's a subset of Chinese Medicine which is what you learn at the school. You learn Chinese Medicine, which is medicine. It’s like asking someone what biomedicine is for: Does it help with headaches? Of course. Does it help with menstrual problems? Yes, that’s what medicine does.

I will say that the way Chinese Medicine is practiced in the US, the one thing we cannot do well is trauma. If you get in a bad wreck the ambulance doesn’t take you to an acupuncturist’s office, [you should] go to an ER. Not only that, but we also fill a gap that biomedicine tends to leave open which are chronic disorders. They do what they do well and so do we. We tend to treat chronic problems well and they treat acute problems well; that doesn't mean Chinese Medicine can’t treat acute problems and vice versa. But those are our wheelhouses so to speak.

MP: I feel like chronic pain isn’t taken as seriously in biomedicine, whereas acute pain is taken a bit more seriously, in the fact that they are good at treating headaches, but they don’t ask WHY you have the headache.

RL: or how to prevent the headache from becoming a more serious issue.

 

"It really teaches you that you don't practice medicine in a vacuum."



MP: There have been so many people who have been here at AOMA for as long as you have, and more so, can you speak on a few of your favorite experiences you’ve had here at AOMA, and with the faculty?

RL: For me, over the years the two ongoing experiences that I have found really very enlightening are our presence at the Kerrville Folk Festival, which we started going to in 98, treating volunteers. It was a beautiful community filled with beautiful people, a very tightknit community. It was a community filled with hippies so to speak, and because they were hippies, they had this basic distrust of "The Man.” This goes back to the 60’s where there was a complete rebellion of what the system was doing, so a lot of them had never really been seen by doctors; they would get seen by their own. Acupuncture and specifically NADA acupuncture was really impactful to the hippies, not just in New York but [the communities] in California and especially New Mexico were really instrumental in creating an amalgam of medicine and they needed to rely on their own [so it made sense]. In fact, a lot of the authors of acupuncture texts in the United States were actually hippies because they had to rely on their own; some had to learn Chinese so they could read the texts and then teach the other people around them, etc. It's a very interesting topic. So, our presence at that Folk Festival was a great time, not to mention the music. The little clinic we had out there, an outdoor clinic, was filled with really great memories and it was a wonderful highlight for me.

Another one was my relationship with the Seton network. They had three community clinics, and we participated in all three of them; although they are down to only one now—McCarthy—but our ability to establish clinics at these facilities has been a really impactful experience for all of us, and students agree that it has been really outstanding for them too. One, you get to see a different group of people who are also underserved, that was the purpose of the community clinic it was a way to help people who didn’t have access to these services. But also, for us to have the provider’s right there, and a lot of the time they were treating patients right in front of you. It created a lot of communication between the providers and us, and a lot of the discussion 60% of the time or so was about how to get the patient to a better space, social economically and otherwise, not just medically. It really teaches you that you don't practice medicine in a vacuum. The person who has these health challenges is not coming into this practice ONLY for these health practice. These issues happen not just because of their health but because of everything that is happening around them, and you are trying to help them get to the next place [level]. There were a lot of people who didn’t speak English, and you deal with a lot of different cultures; it just beautiful. It really gives students another window into what community healthcare is really all about.

You [have a chance to be] a part of a broader product. We're all consumers and when you step back and you kind of look at it, we all have to eat, need shelter, we all have basic needs, and your provider should recognize all of you [and your needs] and so should your medicine.

MP: Over the years, what changes have you seen in more Western, Biomedical practices and their perceptions of Integrative medicine?

Faculty_Headshot_Robert LagunaRL: When I started my patients would tell their primary care physicians, they were doing acupuncture and they would get yelled at. And just in a period of 20 years that been changed completely, and many providers—not all—are very on board with the practice. Not all insurance companies are open to it, but now that Medicare has made it a part of their program the other insurance practices will follow.

I have seen a lot of change in the past 20 years. For someone who is in school, 20 years is a long time. But in relation to the age of the medicine we are practicing, 20 years is nothing. It’s come a really long way and the other important thing that I see, and that I always thought it was somewhat harmful to us as a culture in the United States, is to think of acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine as so different than Biomed; that it is an either or [situation]. There was always this tension about each party thinking about the other party as evil and the only good medicine is the one you practice, and that kind of thinking has always been harmful. “What positive changes could you create in this patient’s condition?”—the goal is always that. “What can the patient take from that interaction?”

What I've seen is a kind of reluctant acceptance between the two but there has begun to be a foot-in-the-door that most practitioners are ready to have a conversation and that was not happening in the past. You still see a bit of that in classrooms, where students think that MDs and Biomed are bad and Chinese medicine is good, but you can’t look at it like that. I work with providers, regular MDs, etc., and they are just as dedicated to their patients as we are. There are these concepts that we bring into it; just out of ignorance like anything else when you are learning about a different culture. Just because we/they are different doesn’t make us/them good or evil.

"This institution has created a venue for me to grow as a student of the medicine and to practice my craft as a teacher and provider. I'm not punching a clock; I believe that I’m engaged in something that is constructive and meaningful and when you find something like that it’s not tedious work."


MP: To close us off, do you have any other aspects of integrative medicine, of AOMA and your time here that you'd like to share?

RL: I've always thought of AOMA as a family and that sounds kind of cliche-ish. Sometimes I wonder if that feeling is mutual – but that’s usually my insecure self-talk. This institution has created a venue for me to grow as a student of the medicine and to practice my craft as a teacher and provider. I'm not punching a clock; I believe that I’m engaged in something that is constructive and meaningful and when you find something like that it’s not tedious work. It’s a job because it’s an exchange of energy that you get paid for that’s true, but it’s not the feeling that "ughh I have to go to work". I have never thought that because that’s not true in this case. I don’t bemoan that I work. It’s similar to the feeling I have teaching music, but I have never been one to engage in something like that [meaningless]. Most acupuncturists I know don’t think of it like that, as a chore to go to work, to have to see a patient (or a student for that matter). If I ever feel that way in my profession, then I know it’s time for me to stop. I want to see them—I don’t have to see them. I feel that what I do is meaningful and AOMA has played an integral role in this for me.

 

Topics: faculty spotlight, aoma, Robert Laguna

Introduction of the AOMA Jingfang Institute

Posted by Jing Fan, LAc on Fri, Oct 15, 2021 @ 12:00 AM

Jingfang Partnership (2)

AOMA is proud to announce its historic partnership with Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. AOMA founded its Jingfang institution to partner with Dr. Huang Huang and the International Jingfang institute at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. Professor Huang Huang has been a guest professor for AOMA Doctoral program since April 2021.

Jingfang, also known as classical formulae in traditional Chinese medicine, is an ancient herbal remedy that was formed in China around 3,000 BC. These empirical herbal formulae that were solidified through human experimentation by the Ancient Chinese were primarily recorded in a medical book named Shāng Hán Lùn 1800 years ago.

Dr Huang

Professor Huang Huang is a world-renowned physician, professor, and one of the preeminent authorities on Jing Fang and Shāng Hán Lùn. He is one of the pioneers responsible for the resurgence of Classical Chinese Medicine in China and in the West. He dedicates his lifelong study to the differential diagnosis of herbal patterns. Professor Huang is also a prolific writer and editor who has many published texts, including the much-celebrated “Ten Key Formula Families in Chinese Medicine” and “Zhang Zhongjing’s Clinical Application of 50 Herbal Medicines”, which have both been made available in many different languages. Professor Huang currently holds the position of Dean of the International Jing Fang Institute of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine and is engaged in promoting and lecturing about Jing Fang across the world.

To promote communication and cooperation in Jingfang education, clinical internship, and academic research, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine and AOMA Graduate School of Integrative Medicine have signed the Letter of Intent for Cooperation on September 22nd, 2021.

  1. Both parties will explore how we might effectively exchange professors, students, researchers, and administrative personnel. This may occur virtually or in person.
  2. NJUCM will work with AOMA to set up a branch of the International Jingfang Institute at AOMA.
  3. Both parties will explore how we may jointly implement appropriate research projects of common interest in the field of Jingfang.

We hope the AOMA Jingfang Institute will practice and pioneer Jing Fang (Classical Formulas) in North America.

Topics: acupuncture school, study in China, aoma students, china, tcm, chinese medicine, acupunture, acunews, Jingfang Institute

An Interview With The President: Dr. Mary Faria

Posted by Maxwell Poyser on Mon, Sep 20, 2021 @ 02:38 PM

 

Dr Mary FariaIn honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we recently sat down with AOMA President and CEO Dr. Mary Faria to learn more about how she came to be at AOMA, her commitment to creating a more diverse and inclusive environment on campus, and how the power of acupunture has helped her to be a better runner. 

Hi Mary! What is your role at AOMA and how long have you been with the school?

Hi Maxwell. I serve as the President and CEO of AOMA. I joined AOMA in January of 2018.

What initially drew you towards how the study of Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine is practiced here at AOMA?

I worked for a large healthcare system for close to 25 years. We worked with AOMA in our community clinics. The value this medicine brought was extraordinary. The integrative model that was created not only demonstrated better patient outcomes through an integrative approach, but also reduced emergency room visits, hospitalizations and provided a more holistic approach to patient care that patients respond to very well.

I also have utilized an integrated approach for my own health. Through an active lifestyle, good nutrition, mindfulness and taking advantage of acupuncture and herbal treatments I’ve never needed to take medications or more invasive procedures. I’m passionate in my belief that integrative care models that include acupuncture, herbs and other alternatives can transform healthcare in this country.


AOMA has a diverse set of faculty, staff, and students from across the globe, and as one of the only Hispanic-American Presidents within the field of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, how important has creating a more diverse and welcoming environment on campus been to you?

It has been very important to me. I’m a believer in the richness that comes from diversity. It was important to have a role at AOMA dedicated to helping us find ways to be more inclusive and I’m so pleased we have that in place with our Sr. Director of Student Services and Inclusion and Diversity. Our Governing Board has embraced this, and we have begun the process of intentionally inviting new members who better represent people of color.


Pre-Covid Community Wellness Hours were a very popular event at AOMA and were a wonderful way for individuals of more vulnerable communities to receive free or reduced-cost treatment for topics such as pain or stress. As a longstanding and active Austinite, what have been some of your favorite moments during these engagements with your community?

I very much miss our in person community wellness hours. I participated as often as I was able. There is something so special about group meditation. Energy (Qi) shared is powerful. At the end of each wellness hour we go around the group and everyone shares something they want to share about the experience, if they choose. It is so gratifying to hear how much this time we offer is transforming lives through stress reduction, help with addiction, and providing peaceful time. It is clear for many it is the only outlet they have. How wonderful that we can help in this way.

Holistic Medicine has long been a standing practice in Hispanic Culture, have you noticed any similarities between how holistic medicine is practiced in Hispanic Cultures and Traditional Chinese Medicine during your time at AOMA?

I think there is a deep care for the person being treated that is common among all medicines. With traditional practices as in my culture (Mexican) and with TCM the mind body connections are much stronger. There are also generational aspects, things passed from grandparents to parents to children and so on.


As some may know, you are an avid runner and acupuncture has been known to help elevate some of the pressures that come with running and other forms of exercise. How have you noticed a difference in your running practice since incorporating acupuncture & TCM into your routine?

Yes, I’ve been a competitive age group runner for about 30 years now. I was actually introduced to acupuncture when I was dealing with a running injury and quickly became a fan. It was so effective in helping me overcome the injury. I’ve incorporated it in my integrative approach to staying healthy for running over the years. I’m training for a marathon now and getting acupuncture each week up to the marathon in October to help with some hip flexor strain I’ve been experiencing.


Lastly, when you are not at AOMA how do you like to spend your free time?

I love to spend time with the love of my life, my husband, even if it is just enjoying the back of our property in a hammock. We love to find new places for hiking and enjoying the outdoors. Running of course, but I also swim and bike. I love reading, especially historical fiction and I love being creative through artwork and flower arranging.

Topics: integrative medicine, AOMA community collaborations, acupuncture, chinese medicine, Mary Faria, CEO, ATX

TCM for Pain Managment

Posted by Maxwell Poyser on Wed, Sep 15, 2021 @ 01:22 PM

Written by Zhenni Jin

Pain, one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, has posed serious challenges for public health and healthcare systems. Including discrete pain episodes and longer durational pain, around 9 to 12 million American adults suffer from chronic pain. Many of which have high-impact chronic pain that has created profound difficulty in life and work. Not only do patients suffer from physical and psycho-emotional challenges in regard to their pain, but they also may have to bear extra medical costs and economic loss with the progress of time. As pain is an experience influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors, a more comprehensive approach to treatment is required for the Chinese medicine practitioner’s thinking towards treating pain conditions.

When Chinese medicine practitioners deal with pain and pain-related issues, we more often discuss issues related to stagnation located in channels, muscles, and sinews. From the Chinese medicine perspective, those stagnations can be made by qi, blood, dampness, phlegm, coldness, and heat toxicity. Therefore, any treatment to move qi, breakdown blood stasis, drain damp or phlegm, expel cold and clear heat toxicity, combined with open channels, can be very efficient in fixing the pain from different modalities. Moving the stagnation, warming the channels, nourishing the internal organs (like kidney and liver), boosting the immune function are critical in the treatment plan. For chronic pain and elderly patients, the body constitution is also a key point for consideration, disregarding stagnations. That is why acupuncture, one of the most popular treatments for pain management, should always be combined with a holistic and individual-designed treatment plan.


Acupuncture and Moxibustion


Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese Medicine practice that inserts needles into specific locations on the body, using hand-manipulating needling to enhance the qi sensations. Acupuncture keeps the balance between the outside environment and the body, thus allowing for the qi to flow throughout the channels, restoring health from the mind and physical body. With little risk of severe adverse effects, acupuncture has been recognized as a practical, cost-effective, and safe integrative therapy for treating pain conditions. In fact, over the past decades evidence on this ancient therapy has been accumulated by researchers of Biomedicine. In addition, the effect of acupuncture has also enabled it as a reasonable alternative to opioid abuse in the management of chronic pain conditions.


Moxibustion/moxa is a therapy that involves burning mugwort (ai ye) to facilitate healing. Burning moxa produces a lot of smoke and a pungent odor that often warm the channel, expel dampness and invigorate the blood. Usually, we place a medium-large moxa stick into a box, then put the box on the pain-related channel pathway area or place a small moxa cone on the top of needles to focus on specific points. We can also hold the large moxa stick by hand and move it along the channel to stimulate qi and dissolve stagnation. Primarily, the moxa box is used to treat pain by tonifying and boosting body deficiency. When moxibustion is combined with acupuncture, it is more efficient in healing the pain due to cold, blood stagnation, manifesting a cold-like feeling, fixing sharp pain.


Tui na and Cupping


Tui na (a combination of channel massage, acupressure, and body manipulation) is the earliest form of Asian bodywork therapy that has been used in China for centuries. In the tui na session, the patient lays on the table or sits in a chair in their most relaxed position. As the practitioner, we will ask a series of questions and then begin treatment with fingers, hands, elbows, and forearms, pressing, kneading, pushing, and tapping on the body’s surface. The type of tui na delivered by varying practitioners can be quite different and is often dependent on the patient’s needs and abilities; therefore, we always check with patients about their feelings and technique endurance. Tui na is best suited for treating muscular pain due to qi and blood stagnation, manifesting as deep aches, and poor joint range of motion; most of the time, this is combined with the cupping method. In addition, we may use herbal wine, ointments, and heat to enhance these techniques.


Cupping is a Chinese medicine hands-on modality consisting of placing several glass or plastic cups on the body. Practitioners warm the cups using a cotton ball or other flammable substance placed inside the cup to remove all the oxygen. The practitioner places the cup against the skin; the air in the cup then cools, creating lower pressure inside the cup, creating a vacuum, and allowing the cup to stick to the skin. Fleshy sites on the body, such as the back and thigh, are the preferred sites for treatment. Fire cupping brings excellent warmth to the body, warming and moving the stagnations very quickly. Therefore, for muscular pain treatment, tui na and cupping are common to move the qi and blood, opening the channels and muscles before acupuncture. It can reduce a lot of pain and muscle tension and assist in a better outcome of needling.


Herbal internal and external treatment


Chinese herbal treatment is a commonly used method combined with other hands-on treatments, like acupuncture and tui na; it can be applied internally or topically. Taken orally, herbs help the internal organs related to the pain; when placed topically, herbs work more on the muscles and ligaments. Therefore, once the patient has finished with acupuncture, we usually suggest they take some herbal medicine to enhance and prolong the effectiveness of any hands-on treatment.


The herbs for pain management that practitioners most commonly use can come from different leaves, roots, stems, flowers, and seeds of plants such as Safflower (hong hua), Szechuan Lovage Rhizome (Chuan xiong), Notopterygium Rhizome and Root (Qiang huo), pubescent angelica root (du huo), Corydalis Rhizome (yan hu suo), Eucommia Bark (du Zhong), and Achyranthes Root (Niu xi). Suppose we recommend Chinese herbs as a treatment: In that case, the herbs are combined into an individual-designed formula that is dispensed in the form of an herbal tea, capsule, liquid extract, granule, or powder. In addition, some herbs can be made into topical remedies. For example, many athletes or people who suffer from muscle pain might use a Notoginseng (san qi) ointment to treat their pain topically. This herb is usually made into creams and ointments to treat muscle soreness and aches, bleeding and bruising, joint pain, swelling, and inflammation. As well, many herbal patches and herbal foot soaks help open channels and move blood very efficiently.


Chinese medicine is used to look at the human body through the eyes of heaven, earth, and human at the same time. It is a complex being, made up of spiritual and physical properties. Pain is a complicated condition, which is the reason why Chinese medicine treatment is so expansive. It attempts to comprehend and gather as much of the universe's themes to restore health to us, while simultaneously, trying to create as simplistic of a conclusion to understand the complexity of our health as functional human beings within the vast network of life as possible.

TCM for Travel

Posted by Stephanee Owenby on Wed, Jul 28, 2021 @ 05:32 PM

Human beings love to travel – in 2019, a total of 2.3 billion individuals took trips in the United States alone. We travel for many reasons: to experience new people, places, and cultures, to broaden our horizons, to escape our everyday lives, and to see the world through new eyes. But nothing ruins a good vacation like not feeling your best! Motion sickness, pain, and illnesses like allergies and the common cold can derail pexels-gustavo-fring-3885493even the best-laid trip plans. Throughout the 5000-year history of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), clinicians have been developing methods to preserve and restore health to the human body. Acupuncture is arguably the most well-known TCM practice; combined with traditional Chinese herbal medicine and other lesser-known modalities like cupping and gua sha, can be extremely effective at relieving the symptoms of motion sickness, reducing pain, and helping the body heal from injuries and infections.

My experiences with travel have been some of the best – and unfortunately also the worst – experiences of my life. I often say that I have the heart and soul of a traveler, but just not the constitution of one! I suffer from terrible motion sickness, whether traveling by car, air, or sea. I’ve never traveled by train, but I’m guessing that those would give me motion sickness too. And after my last cruise, I even had seasickness after getting back on land – a type of motion sickness known as disembarkment syndrome. Motion sickness, travel sickness, seasickness, or disembarkment syndrome occur when the body, the inner ear, and the eyes send conflicting signals to the brain. People may feel fine one moment and then suddenly experience various symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, cold sweats, dizziness, and headache, as well as other uncomfortable symptoms. This most often happens when people are in a car, boat, airplane, flight simulators, and amusement park rides. The good news – and I can attest to this from personal experiencepexels-spencer-davis-4353813! - is that TCM, including acupuncture and traditional Chinese herbal medicine, can help. Nausea is the result of rising stomach Qi. According to AOMA clinician and licensed acupuncturist Dr. Nelson Song Luo, normally, stomach Qi should descend rather than ascend. What happens to people with motion sickness? In traditional Chinese medicine, the Qi and blood in the inner ear are provided by the san jiao (SJ), small intestine (SI) and gallbladder (GB) channels. The eyes are nourished by the liver channel. In a moving vehicle, the Qi and blood circulation in the SJ, SI, GB, and liver channels are disturbed by abnormal movements, which will cause the stomach Qi to rise, causing symptoms of nausea or vomiting. As a result, people suffer from motion sickness. During an acupuncture treatment, acupuncture points on SJ, SI, GB and liver channels are selected to rebalance the Qi and blood circulation in the inner ear and eyes. In Dr. Luo’s practice at AOMA, some evidence-based effective acupuncture points such as SJ21, SI19, GB2 and P6 (pericardial channel 6) have been selected to treat motion sickness; as a result, patients with motion sickness are soon asymptomatic.

Aside from motion sickness, travel can often cause other symptoms of digestive distress. Ideally, we should eat mindfully and avoid overeating, but part of the joy of travel is to experience new things - and to indulge! But while enjoying the journey of indulging, the destination is often downright miserable. TCM teaches us that digestion begins with the Spleen. On a physical level, the Spleen handles the “Transformation and Transportation” of food. The stomach “governs the intake” of food, but the Spleen extracts nutrients from the food and sends that nutrition to other areas of the body. When we temporarily over-tax our digestive system with high quantities of dense, fatty, greasy, processed foods and alcohol, we shock our bodies and run the risk of developing what is referred to in traditional Chinese medicine as food stagnation. Food stagnation presents with symptoms like abdominal distention, belching, flatulence, nausea, fatigue, low appetite, and even vomiting and diarrhea. This is because the digestive system is temporarily unable to do its job of receiving, transforming, and transporting nutrients because it is overwhelmed. Acupuncture helps calm the digestive tract, and traditional Chinese herbal formulas can help transform food, break up stagnation, and get your digestive system back to optimal function.

Chances are you know someone who experiences either chronic or acute pain daily. Although acute pain is a normal sensation that is triggered by the nervous system to inform your body of a possible injury that may need more care, chronic pain is different. Chronic pain can persist because an injury never fully healed or because pain signals continue to fire in the nervous system. And either acute or chronic pain can greatly interfere with your ability to enjoy travel! Acupuncture sends signals to the brain to reevaluate an injury and turn off any pain receptors that are unnecessary, which can help to relieve chronic pain. Acupuncture also relaxes muscles, increasing blood flow and bringing relief to tight or stressed tissues, often helping with acute pain and promoting healing of a recent injury. The best part? Unlike pharmaceutical pain-relievers, acupuncture is free of cumulative side effects and is completely non-addictive.

Even minor ailments can prevent you from fully enjoying your travel experiences, whether you’re experiencing allergies, the flu, or a common cold. Your immune system is made up of special organs, cells, and chemicals that fight infection in your body. Acupuncture strengthens a weakened immune system by increasing red, white, and T-cell counts and enhancing cellular immunity. It can speed up the healing of infections and normalize the body’s immune response. Regular acupuncture boosts the immune system to prevent illness and can treat conditions such as allergies, colds, and flus.

If, like me, you have the heart and soul of a traveler but not the constitution of one, I highly recommend giving acupuncture a try! It might help relieve your discomfort and get you back to enjoying your journey. And while I hope that your next travel experience is free from any illness, digestive distress, or pain, should you experience any of these symptoms, I hope this article inspires you to think of TCM as a possible solution. Safe travels!

Consulting acupuncturist:

Luo, Nelson Song, PhD., MD (China), LAc.

https://aoma.edu/patients/professional-clinic/providers/nelson-song-luo-phd-md-lac

References:

Holmes, C. “Chew on This: The Role of the Spleen.” April 6, 2016.

https://blog.aoma.edu/blog/chew-on-this-the-role-of-the-spleen

Lattimore, T. “Thanksgiving: The Food Stagnation Holiday.” November 22, 2017.

https://blog.aoma.edu/blog/thanksgiving-the-food-stagnation-holiday

U.S. Travel and Tourism Overview (2019) – Research and Fact Sheet

https://www.ustravel.org/system/files/media_root/document/Research_Fact-Sheet_US-Travel-and-Tourism-Overview.pdf

Topics: herbal medicine, chinese herbs, lifestyle, aoma, tcm, prevention, acupunture, travel

Migraine and Traditional Chinese Medicine

Posted by Nelson Song Luo, PhD, MD on Wed, Jun 30, 2021 @ 01:48 PM

A migraine is a complex neurologic disorder characterized by significant disability due to pain and symptoms associated with attacks. According to the World Health Organization, migraines are the eighth most disabling disease worldwide, the most burdensome neurologic disease, and responsible for 5.6% of years lost to disability. The disability includes missed school or work, inability to perform household chores, and missed time with family and friends. Migraines are most common between the ages of 18 and 44, with higher rates in females, and a peak in prevalence in both men and women in their 40s. 18% of American women, 6% of men, and 10% of children experience migraines. Migraines tend to run in families, and about 90% of migraine sufferers have a family history of them.

There are several types of migraines which include migraine without aura, migraine with aura, hemiplegic migraine, etc. Migraine without aura is the most common type, defined as at least 5 attacks lasting 4 to 72 hours, with at least two defining characteristics (unilateral, pulsating, moderate or severe pain, aggravated or caused by deliberate avoidance of physical activity), at least one related symptom (nausea, vomiting, photophobia-sensitivity to light orfemaleacupuncture-017650-edited phonophobia-sensitivity to sound). Around 36% of migraines have an associated aura. Migraine with aura describes a migraine in which the person experiences some type of sensation associated with the onset of a migraine. The common aura symptoms include blind spots in the field of eyesight, colored spots, sparkles or stars, flashing lights before the eyes, tunnel vision, zig zag lines or temporary blindness.

Four main phases have been described to characterize the progression of a migraine: premonitory phase, aura phase, headache phase, and postdrome phase. In the premonitory phase, functional magnetic resonance imaging study shows evidence of hypothalamic, thalamic, and cortical activation during this phase which correlates with yawning, polyuria, irritability, photophobia, mood changes, difficulty concentrating, and neck pain. The aura phase involves disruptive changes in the sensorium in which visual auras are the most common type. The pathophysiology of migraine in the aura phase is described by the concept of cortical spreading depolarization, in which vasoactive substances, such as nitric oxide, are released, resulting in increased cerebral blood flow. The headache phase is driven by pain perception communicated from peripheral afferents to central control centers for pain, including cortical, vascular, and autonomic locations which make up the trigeminocervical complex. The postdrome phase is the resolution of the migraine driven by vasoconstriction and reduced cerebral blood flow that often presents with symptoms such as fatigue, difficulty concentrating, nausea, and irritability.

The induction of migraine is related to factors such as emotion, body, diet, and environment. Emotional factors include stress, anxiety, tension, shock, depression, and excitement. Physical factors include fatigue, poor sleep quality, shift work, poor posture, shoulder and neck tension, and strenuous exercise beyond daily capacity. Dietary factors include irregular diet, dehydration, drinking alcohol, intake of caffeine, certain cheeses, chocolate, foods containing tyramine, including bacon, yeast extracts, pickled herring, smoked fish, etc. It is recommended to avoid freezing or refrigerating foods that may cause tyramine content to rise. Environmental factors include bright lights, flashing screens, smoking, loud noises, environmental humidity or temperature changes, and strong odors.

In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), a migraine is caused by exogenous wind-cold, wind-heat, wind-phlegm invasion, or endogenous stagnation of Liver qi, Liver fire, hyperactivity of Liver-yang or Liver-blood deficiency, leading to obstruction or malnutrition of the Liver or Gallbladder meridians on the head. In TCM, many techniques can be used to relieve migraine headache effectively, which include acupuncture, electroacupuncture, cupping, gua sha, etc. Acupoints in the Liver meridian such as Liver 2, Liver 3 and Gall bladder meridian such as GB7, GB8, and GB40 are used to treat migraine. Meanwhile, certain Chinese herbal medicines such as Yan Hu Suo Zhi Tong Pian (Yan Hu Suo Pain Relief Tablet) is widely used for migraine. In addition, massage, meditation, and Qigong can also relieve migraine headaches by reducing stress level, relieving head and neck tension and balancing yin and yang.

Topics: herbal medicine, stress relief, aoma, tcm, Austin acupuncture, acupunture, ATX, headache, Migraine

Chinese Medicine for Stress Relief

Posted by Yongxin Fan on Mon, Apr 19, 2021 @ 01:16 PM

 

Chinese Medicine for Stress Relief

How Stress Affects the Body

Our bodies are hardwired to handle stress, but over time too much stress takes a toll on the body.  When we feel threatened the sympathetic nervous system is activated causing the heart rate to increase, the pupils to dilate, and blood to be directed towards the extremities. Digestion can temporarily shut down. This is also known as the "fight or flight" response and is why when we are stressed, we may feel agitated or want to run away from our problems. Cortisol, sometimes called “the stress hormone”, is also released, causing increases in both blood pressure and inflammation while suppressing the immune system. If our bodies continue to experience high amounts of cortisol, symptoms can evolve into anxiety, depression, fatigue, digestive issues and tension headaches.

Stress is defined as an organism's total response to environmental demands or pressures. In a medical or biological context stress  is a physical, mental, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension. Stresses can be external (from the environment, psychological, or social situations) or internal (illness, or from a medical procedure).

Chinese Medicine for Stress Relief

acupuncture for stress

In Chinese medical theory, strong emotions like stress interrupt the body’s energy flowing smoothly. When these strong emotions are present for long periods of time they create a blockage in the body’s “road” system creating an energetic “traffic jam.” Acupuncture increases the circulation of blood and oxygenates the tissues throughout the body while cycling out cortisol and releasing natural pain-killers called endorphins. Other benefits of acupuncture include decreasing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and relaxing the muscles to help the body feel less stressed.

The traditional Chinese medicine approach is to focus on restoring the balance of energy in the body, such as soothing the liver Qi, tonifying the liver blood and spleen Qi, clearing the heat in the heart and liver, etc. A combination of acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine are generally applied and combined to treat stress; diet therapy and exercise is suggested as well.

Case Studies from AOMA professor, Dr.Yongxin Fan

Yongxin Fan acupuncturist

Dr. Yongxin Fan has over 20 years of clinical experience in treating muscular-skeletal disorders, pain, digestive disorders, and psycho-emotional disorders including stress.

“One patient had intense stress from her job and was having insomnia. I treated her with acupuncture and the herbal formula wen dan tang. After the first treatment she was sleeping much better and after two weeks the stress was much reduced.

A patient with more severe stress symptoms (anxiety, panic attack, insomnia, and heart palpitations) recovered in 3 weeks after receiving acupuncture and taking the herbal formulas gui pi tang & huang lain e jiao tang.

Sometimes the symptoms are less severe but still can be debilitating. I had a patient who complained that ever since childhood she cried very easily, making her uncomfortable. I gave her acupuncture and Chinese herbs (xiao yao wan & gan mai da zao tang), and after 2 months she is much better.”

Chinese Herbs for Stress

Chinese herbsThe most commonly prescribed Chinese herbal formulas for stress are xiao yao wan (also known as “Free and Easy Wanderer”), gan mai da zao tang, chai hu shu gan san, yi guan jian, yue ju wan, and gui pi tang. To find out the right herbs for you, make an appointment with a licensed acupuncturist and herbalist. The practitioner will take a full medical history and do pulse and tongue diagnosis to determine the best acupuncture plan and herbal prescription.

Exercise and Diet for Stress

Exercise should be a part of everyone’s stress management plan, as it helps the body produce more endorphins, also known as the “runner’s high”. Many types of physical activity can stimulate this response and each person must find the right type of exercise for him or herself. For some, walking is enough, but others will want to get more of a workout to get their blood pumping and break a sweat.

Taiji, qigong, and meditation are forms of mind-body exercise and have been shown to help induce the “relaxation response.” The relaxation response makes the heart beat slower, muscles relax, breathing become slower, and blood pressure decrease.

As far as dietary therapy, most vegetables and fruits that are rich in color can help the body deal with stress. For example, in Chinese nutrition, blueberries, purple cabbage, beets, tomatoes, and eggplant are believed to be stress reducing. A diet high in calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and vitamins B & E is recommended, as these nutrients are easily depleted by stress.

Fruits and vegetables such as apricots, asparagus, avocados, bananas, and broccoli, brown rice, dried fruit, figs, salmon, green leafy vegetables, and most rich colored fruits are high in vitamin B. Even if you eat a healthy diet, vitamin B complex is a good supplement to consider if you suffer for chronic stress.

  Download our  Intro to Chinese Medicine  eBook

Sources:

Topics: Dr. Yongxin Fan, stress relief, stress management, acupuncture for stress relief

HONORING SHERRY GADDY COOMBES  (1943 – 2021)

Posted by Pam F on Mon, Apr 05, 2021 @ 06:50 PM

IMG_4626

- A tribute from Pam Ferguson (AOMA's ABT dean emerita)

      AOMA alums from our north campus days will remember Sherry Gaddy Coombes with great affection from her years (2004-2009) as student adviser/recruiter. Yes her husband (retired USAF Colonel and Vietnam Vet) Jimmie Coombes was our AOMA President at the time (1998-2009).

     Sherry – a longhorn graduate and long time campaigner against the death penalty – was also an ardent pet rescuer. She had a wit second to none. Time in her office was always informative, and loads of fun. Mutual friends and I met Jim and Sherry regularly for hilarious lunch dates – our last date in March was canceled when she told me she was in hospice care, and she passed peacefully a couple of days after our phone call.

     A few months ago I interviewed Sherry extensively for my recent column in Acupuncture Today about her decade long battle with metastatic cancer that wouldIMG_4627 have floored anyone else. I used a pseudonym for her, and marveled at her ability to survive multiple surgeries, rounds of chemo and ongoing metastases.

     Her secret? Apart from a buoyant love of life and a wonderfully caring family, Sherry worked out rigorously each day for an hour. Besides walking – she completed 30 mins of cardio on her elliptical machine, reps of bench pressing and leg lifting of fairly light weights, some hand weights, partial push ups, stretching and balance practice. Early on she also received Acupuncture from one of our wonderful AOMA deans, and excellent bodywork.

     Sherry always looked stunning throughout the last decade, and claimed workouts helped her maintain the fitness to endure.   I'll never forget her magical laughter each time I called her “the poster child of cancer survival” as she bucked all the stereotypes.

     Sherry is survived by Jim, their two children and five grandchildren. Her obit was in the Austin American Statesman 3/26/2021. A memorial service is planned at the First Unitarian Universalist church on 49th St. Time and date to be determined later. Donations in her name can be made to NOCC (ovarian.org) or Tiger Haven Sanctuary (tigerhaven.org).

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