Peaceful Mountain Acupuncture

Harnessing the POWER of the INTELLIGENCE of the COMMUNITY

2009-12-24T12:02:00.000-08:00

One of the things I have been trying to develop is a way to have an intelligent, rational discussion about health care in our society. I do not feel as the current national discussion is intelligent, rational or respectful. How can we expect to change this broken system if we are using broken thinking? I want to start by addressing the inherent, yet hidden power of the innate

$147B in costs, with no end in sight

2009-07-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

Last night it was reported on the national news that our country spends 147,000,000,000 every year in health care related costs due to obesity. This is sad, for many reasons. For each of the individuals that are obese and the impact on their lives, their health, happiness and longevity it is a condition that affects everything they choose to do, or are limited from doing.It also has an enormous

New Web Site

2009-07-16T13:44:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a long, long time since I have posted anything. My life has taken many turns over the last 2 years since I was actively posting on this site.I have moved to Rio Rancho New Mexico and had a great job. After a year and a half of flying the company closed its doors. The time of unemployment has been hard. But I am still hanging in here.I have not left the world of acupuncture,

A new Venue

2008-02-16T10:11:00.000-08:00

Hello all,I just created a new blog as I feel that the content of that post does not fit into my acupuncture writings. I invite you to check it out. "http://stalkingthewildpendulum.blogspot.com/"Let me knowMichael

What am I doing these days????

2008-01-26T10:53:00.000-08:00

Hello all, It has been quite a while since I posted anything. The few of you that read this may be wondering what ever happened and what I am doing.I am living in Rio Rancho New Mexico. I am NOT doing any acupuncture, but am working in an entirely new field. I am learning to operate the computer system for a laser scanner and digital camera system that is in a fixed wing airplane (Cessna

Trying something new

2007-12-02T14:46:00.000-08:00

I am trying something new to get my voice into the fray. I have published an article on integrating the medical paradigms. I would appreciate it if you would follow the link and read it and send me your thoughts.RespectfullyMichaelhttp://www.associatedcontent.com/article/459005/beginning_a_conversation_about_integrating.html

!Salud!

2007-11-17T10:06:00.000-08:00

Hello again,It has been a very long time since I wrote anything for my Blog. But it has been an interesting and challenging time. As usual with my blog I will not go into my personal saga other than to say it has been eventful, to say the least.About a month ago I saw an excellent documentary on the Cuban medical system. The movie is called "!Salud!" You can find a link to it above and at http://

Amazing results

2007-08-11T13:56:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, back when I was supervising in the student clinic at the Asian Institute of Medical Studies we had a patient that has a serious, life-threatening condition. Her blood does not clot, she has a genetic condition that will always be with her. Can you imagine, for a paper cut she will HAVE to go to the hospital, it is not a choice; her blood will continue to seep and or spurt out

BIG NEWS

2007-08-10T14:31:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago I said I had some big news to write. So here goes.I have decided, after much Soul searching, to close my practice and move back to Albuquerque New Mexico. There have been many deciding factors in this decision, but it is, in the words of R. L. Wing, a conflict in the environment. As per usual with my thoughts I will back up a few paces to lay in some groundwork then finish with my

Thoughts

2007-08-03T08:51:00.000-07:00

Well I am going to do something that I have not allowed myself to do on this blog. I am going to express some thoughts I have about society and ways of addressing some of the issues facing our times. I could try to wrap this around TCM and describe it as a "Pattern of disharmony", which it is, but I have yet to determine an adequate label for this particular pattern. If you don't like my thoughts

Are you Sickened by Sicko?

2007-08-02T16:10:00.000-07:00

I went to see Michael Moore's Movie Sicko this week. I was very impressed by it. Setting aside any political commentary about Mr. Moore I thought his approach to this subject was illuminating.I am treating two physicians and a nurse. Before I saw the movie I asked them if they had. They all said no, BUT the two females said "I don't need to see it, I live it everyday." The male said he did

A bit deeper

2007-07-07T10:41:00.000-07:00

I posted the last article as a way to start a discussion about concepts, languages and limitations. I figured Yin/Yang theory is as good of a place to attempt this as any other concept I can think of.I am in the middle of another interesting book "A Brief History of Qi" (look in my bookstore) that has spurred me along in this thinking process. One of the issues I deal with, both as an

An old note from my days in school

2007-07-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

Chinese Acupuncture and MoxibustionBasic knowledge and theory of Yin Yang1) The opposition of Yin and Yang.Everything in nature has two opposites, namely yin and yang. The opposition of yin and yang is reflected in their ability to struggle with, and thus control each other. If for any reason this mutual opposition results in an excess or deficiency of yin or yang,

A completely different meaning of "acupuncture"

2007-07-05T11:51:00.000-07:00

For the last month or so I have been practicing archery. It is an amazing discipline to enter. I am sensing a more palpable link between my thinking/awareness and my physical beingness.In shooting, once one gets the physical stance sorted out and smooth the next step becomes "consistency." This can manifest in many ways; are my arrows grouped together or all spread out over the target, or did

Approval of a BAD idea

2007-05-23T10:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I heard that the FDA has approved "continual birth control" as a way to minimize pain from different menstrual irregularities including endometriosis. I find this hard to understand. From a TCM perspective this is another bad idea in the continuum of different options for treating gynecological disorders. I have already written about 'botox injections' as one way of stopping

Frozen Wind

2007-05-11T16:02:00.000-07:00

The doctor told her she had a tumor in her brain and that surgery was the best option. When they got into the tumor they found that it had grown around an artery in her brain. While scraping the tumor off the artery, the artery was 'nicked' and she had a massive stroke. She survived, but will never be the same. The right side of her face is severely affected, her speech is seriously impaired,

More than 9 Volts

2007-05-04T07:16:00.000-07:00

It has been an interesting time. I have been seeing quite a few individuals with various physical injuries. The gentleman with the back pain I wrote about recently is doing very well. He left to return to his summer home, but he did so standing upright and with a smile on his face. That was nice to see.I have been using the micro-stimulation (e-stim) device I have on many of my patients. It

Yao Tong Xue

2007-04-16T08:31:00.000-07:00

Last week I had the pleasure of meeting and treating a gentleman that has had severe back pain, steadily getting worse for the last 30 years. When he walked into the treatment room he was bent over, and shuffling along. I asked him "Is there any position you can get into that will be less painful?" He said "I have to lie face down." I got him into position as carefully as I could.There are a

Is this for real?

2007-04-06T08:29:00.000-07:00

I have a google alert in my e-mail system, so anytime an article gets published on the net about acupuncture I get a once a day notice of this. It is pretty amazing. I would never read through the thousands of news sources to see if any particular story is interesting. Some are very interesting. There is all kinds of really interesting research going on by mainstream sources. It is very

End of the Quarter

2007-03-23T16:46:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I took the time to write a blog. Things have been going well, I have been very busy in my clinic and with teaching at Asian Institute of Medical Studies. I have enjoyed teaching this quarter, though it was a LOT of work.I have been attempting to develop a new study to see if the protocol I have for treating endometriosis is as effective as I believe it to be. So I am

My Bookstore

2007-02-18T09:50:00.000-08:00

I have had several people ask where to find the music that I play during my treatments, or where they can find good books about acupuncture and or Traditional Chinese Medicine. So I took my sisters advice (She always has GREAT idea's).I have created a "book store" through amazon.com. It is a collection of different books, music and resources. The nice part is it does not add a penny to the

Another stretch of the envelope

2007-02-15T15:58:00.000-08:00

One of the classes I am teaching this quarter is "Acupuncture Techniques." This is the final of a series of three classes. I enjoy teaching this class because I get to cover some of the different techniques such as electro-stimulation, intra-dermal needling, auricular acupuncture and "gwa-sha."A few weeks ago we were covering the electro-stimulation. It is relatively new in the eyes of

How often does this happen?

2007-01-23T06:56:00.000-08:00

So here is the question of the day. When was the last time you heard of, or saw a major movie release that has Chinese Herbal Medicine as an integral part of the story?Last week I was going to see one movie when I saw a poster for "The Curse of the Yellow Flower" starring Chow Yun Fat. I had never heard of this movie, but that is not surprising as I do not go to the theatre very often. But

An Update, and another unsual response

2007-01-16T17:24:00.000-08:00

Well, last week I had the pleasure of seeing the lady with the 3rd degree burns again. She is such a nice lady. I thought she was doing better after the last treatment, but I was mistaken. It is not that she is in more pain, but she is not getting any results from the treatments. She thinks she is getting more relief from the massages. So I encouraged her to continue to get the massages

Focusing on the work, and working on my focus

2007-01-10T06:33:00.000-08:00

It was great to have a break from teaching. The classes all went very well, everyone pased, even if just barely. Over the break I bought a new book on Chinese herbology; Jiao, Shu-De "Ten Lectures on Medicinal's." He is amazing. These lectures take the understanding of herbology to a completely different level; Jiao, Shu-De has been studying and working with Chinese herbology for over six

A serious case for an acupuncture treatment

2006-12-30T19:18:00.000-08:00

Just before Christmas I had the honor of meeting a new patient. She came in and told me she had been getting acupuncture and massage. it was helping her a lot.I asked her what she was getting treated for and she told me "3rd degree burns over most of my back, 60 some years ago." This was the start of our conversation and treatment.I find her to be a true inspiration. I can only imagine the

Ginger, as you have never thought about it before

2006-12-24T10:11:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago my Mom was telling me about an article she read; I believe it was in Newsweek. Anyway it was "Health from A-Z." I was expecting her to mention acupuncture, or Chinese Herbal medicine. She surprised me, as she is known for doing.N is for nutrient. The one that she was telling me about is Ginger, or what we call Sheng Jiang. Settles the stomach, warms the center. Is also gaining

A bit of a break

2006-12-23T11:15:00.000-08:00

It is nice to have a bit of time between quarters. I am attempting to catch up on all the paperwork, and year end stuff.All the students did well enough to pass the herb class. Next quarter is going to be challenging for all of us. I have been teaching the herb class two hours a week; next quarter and the following quarter it will be two two hour classes. It is going to be a challenge to keep

One more try

2006-12-18T21:13:00.000-08:00

I have had a few people tell me that my Home Page is too busy, and that it does not reflect anything about me.So I decided to redo my web page again. Please surf over and tell me what you like, but more to my interests: what does not work or make sense in your mind.ThanksI will think of something interesting to share soon

Graduation

2006-12-17T08:02:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the graduation ceremony for the Asian institute. It was a very nice ceremony where we took a moment to honor the students, their families and friends as well as the faculty.It is an interesting place for me to watch these fine students step across the bridge, complete their formal education and enter into the working field of acupuncture.I have come to respect each of the students.

Some you win, and Some you loose.

2006-12-14T07:33:00.000-08:00

The presentation yesterday was interesting. I added one slide to the presentation after I posted it on my blog. That slide read:The FIRST and hardest step is to QUESTION YOUR OWN ASSUMPTIONS. If you feel that the integration will not work, I am asking you to consider why you feel that way.When I read that statement I had the distinct feeling that I was equivalent to being a Muslim in a church

Am I crazy, or just shooting myself in the foot?

2006-12-12T08:58:00.000-08:00

At the prompting of my sister, bless her heart, I am going to share this presentation I am giving to the University of Arizona’s Cancer Support Group. This is a group of doctors, social workers, nurses and research fellows that meet monthly to talk about all forms of cancer care and research. I was attending for over a year, trying to get my foot in the door. The U-of-A is building a new

Gold Medalist using Acupuncture

2006-12-11T17:56:00.000-08:00

It is always interesting to read when an Olympic Gold Medalist gives part of the credit for her healing to acupuncture. It is also entertaining to read that she is a Black-Belt Taekwondo competitor and SHE WAS AFRAID OF THE NEEDLES. It took a lot of pain to get past her fear. Now she loves it. Sounds familiar.I was treating a lady over the weekend that is nearly terrified of the needles.

Inflammation as a precursor for disease?

2006-12-10T11:10:00.000-08:00

Occasionally I get to listen to "Talk of the Nation ~ Science Friday." I usually enjoy the discussion, but it is nothing that catches my fancy to write about. Well, there are exceptions to most everything, this being one of those exceptions.The discussion was about how Western doctors and scientists are seeing a link between inflammation at one point in a persons life and a deeper disease, like

Respect the Desperation

2006-12-03T14:58:00.000-08:00

As you may know I surf different blogs looking for good blogs acout acupuncture, TCM, herbology, or women's health issues. I have mentioned and linked some of these blogs.One thing that becomes clear to me is that many, many women that have menstrual irregularities are feeling everything from isolation to depseration to frustration that their doctor's just don't get it.I understand this from a

Some things get me STEAMED!!!

2006-11-29T19:10:00.000-08:00

So I guess in all honesty I need to admit that today was not a good day. I was in a car wreck and while everyone is OK I know myself well enough to know that I am still upset by it. Be that as it may.I was surfing around today when I read a blog that seriously offended me. It seems that someone got the brilliant idea of using BOTOX as a way to treat painful menses. Go to "http://

Dr. Mos' Minute

2006-11-29T17:30:00.000-08:00

Dr. Mos' Minute

Working with my focus

2006-11-29T06:53:00.000-08:00

I have written about this before, but when I get busy teaching I do not take as much time to build my business, then before too long I am not seeing enough patients. Then my focus shifts and I expend the energy needed to build my clinic. Kind of a see-saw activity, a reflection of the duality of this world.I have decided to circumvent this if I can. I am going to try an 8 week advertising

Almost Emergency Acupuncture

2006-11-19T08:58:00.000-08:00

Yesterday while I was supervising at the school clinic I got a call from a woman that needed "emergency acupuncture" and wanted to see if we could fit her into the schedule. The clinic schedule was full, but I had an opening afterwards in my clinic. At 4 she came in with her husband.She is a very thin, hispanic lady, about 36 years old. She has severe asthma, and the asthma is causing panic

Powerful Seeds

2006-10-29T10:51:00.000-08:00

A few months ago I wrote about using 'auricular medicine' or ear seeds to treat some of the patients I am honored to serve. It has been interesting, sometimes these seed work extremely well, sometimes they do not seem to have a direct effect. I suspect that when there are not obvious results one out of two things has happened. Either I mis-locacted the seed (imagine close to 200 points on each

Five-Phases: Revisited

2006-10-19T19:25:00.000-07:00

Today in the Materia Medica class I had a rare chance to utilize five-phase theory in conversation. I guess to get there I better back up a bit.If I were as talented in computer work as my sister I would just paste in an image for you to look back at as I explain what I am talking about, but, alas I do not have that level of proficiency in the blogospere. Though I did finally get a picture up

Well, that wasn't what I expected

2006-10-13T20:50:00.000-07:00

As I have mentioned I am teaching the single herb, or materia medica class this quarter. This is the first of three quarter's of single herbs before they start at least another complete year of herbal formula's and strategies.Chinese herbolgy is quite intricate and complex. Not only do we have to know the function of each herb, its 'properties' (hot, cold, etc) the channel (meridian) it enters

A new Look

2006-10-06T07:22:00.000-07:00

Last week I was talking with my sister, she runs a GREAT WEB SITE AND BLOG. Her website "http://www.largocanyon.com" Largo Canyon is predominantly about her facilities 26 miles off the closest paved highway in the four-corners area of New Mexico. Her blog is about what it is like to live "up the canyon." She has some great stories to tell and I encouarge everyone to go visit her site, her blog

I have seen this before

2006-09-30T12:29:00.000-07:00

A couple of years back, at the beginning of my blog I wrote about how I was seeing a lady that her emotional life was significantly affecting her physical life. In her case she was unable to eat solid foods, she was literally unable to 'stomach' what had happened and more importantly how she thought about what had happened.I had written a blog and posted it about this new patient I am seeing.

A new Quarter begins

2006-09-26T11:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got tot teach the beginning class of Tuina, the Chinese Medical Massage. It is an intersting class, and as always I know that I will learn a lot during the progression of the class. I will be teaching this two hours a week for three quarters. In that amount of time I better learn something!!! I am also teaching the herbology, or Materia Medica for the school. As I wrote about

Gearing up for the Fall Quarter

2006-09-22T11:31:00.000-07:00

I have to remember to be careful what I ask for. It does come true. Case in point, I have wanted to teach herbs, or "Materia Medica" at The Asian Institute. I struggle with the decision of how deep to teach, how deep to test. I know that if I go to deep to fast I will lose all of the students before they get through the three quarters of the class. I also know that Materia Medica was hardest

Rebellious Wei Qi?

2006-08-23T12:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was talking to a massage therapist here at work about the class I am teaching: Acupuncture Therapeutics: Immunology. It is an interesting challenge in that TCM does not recognize that there even is such a thing as an immune system. As with all things in Chinese medicine we talk about it in a totally different way.In TCM it is the "Wei Qi," or what is also called the "Defensive Qi"

Window's of the Sky

2006-08-09T15:38:00.000-07:00

I do not get acupuncture very often; it is just one of those things. I do a fair amount of needling, I supervise a LOT of treatments and I teach, but actually getting needles on a routine schedule has been more or a wish than a reality. Such it is... But on Monday I had a GREAT treatment.I have been a bit down lately. Just all kinds of things piling up and feeling very in-effective in discovering

An update

2006-07-29T17:22:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I wrote about a lady that was going "very deep in her process" and how I felt that was being reflected in her pulses. Well it's time for a little update.Today when she walked in I noticed something was different. When I asked her how she was and what was going on she told me that, "After I left the last time I saw you, everything has changed. I am not seeing things the same way. I

A student says something intriguing

2006-07-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

Last night while teaching the Immunology class one of the students asked me if I had ever heard of the "Rife Microscope?" "No, what is it?" I asked. She said this inventor in the 20's or 30's created this microscope that allows one to see actual living cells, bacteria and viruses.Google is such a handy little tool.... go to this web site: "www.navi.net/~rsc/rife1.htm" or the second one "

I have been debating this for a while

2006-07-22T09:38:00.000-07:00

As my family knows I have been contemplating and observing news reports about viruses for several years. This all started back in acupuncture school when I read the book "The Hot Zone" which is about the ebola virus. That book opened my eyes to the complexities of viral infections. Viruses are so intriguing to me, they can be active or 'alive' then switch to inactive or inert, then when the

A pulse reflecting the process

2006-07-08T15:35:00.000-07:00

I am seeing a patient that is going extremely deep in her process. She is questioning every aspect of her life, including why she is seeing me, as well as every other thing ~ Life, Work, Husband, you name it...What I am finding to be very interesting is how her pulses are reflecting her process.Last appointment she was very external. Things in the outside world were bothering her, a lot. Her

Another moment in the Spotlight

2006-06-21T08:38:00.000-07:00

A year ago I had the opportunity to have a "small-business makeover" courtesy of the Arizona Daily Star. I hooked up with the business coach, Karen and she helped me to focus my business. I wrote a blog about that in July ~ "A Moment in the sun," well apparently the journalist liked what she wrote and wanted to follow up on my story.It was good to refocus and see how far I have progressed, what

Some times it does not work

2006-06-16T11:07:00.000-07:00

It is interesting how my mind works. I minimize the effects of treatments that work and ponder the ones that don't. I do not think much about the lady with neck & back pain for 17 years that I was able to help in 3 treatments, or the lady that had hot flashes every 90 minutes for the last 6 years that I was able to help. Or any of the other wonderful stories I can share.The one I am thinking

Trying to decide

2006-06-14T10:30:00.000-07:00

I have received some interesting feedback from the blog about stopping a woman's cycle. I have also started a discussion about this on-line at the acupuncture school. That has been interesting too.One of the students asked if I was going to write to USA Today to see if they would be interested in an editorial opinion piece. I am trying to decide if I want to do that.My tendency is to keep my head

Roasting, again

2006-06-06T10:29:00.000-07:00

Somewhere over the last week, whoever is in charge "out there" turned the BLAST FURNACE on to Full Roast. It has been over 105 every day for the last week. This becomes one of the 'four seasons' ~ "You've got to be kidding me!!!" is the name of this season.But on to a more professional level. It has been interesting to me to watch the reactions I get from the University whenever I talk to

Pardon me, But that is not very wise

2006-05-26T07:28:00.000-07:00

Last week I ran across an article in USA Today about how Western medicine is now able to make a woman stop her menstrual period ~ completely.Now, excuse me. I know I am a guy and therefore I have no clue what a woman experiences. But I do know a few things about the way the body works, and I cannot see any realistic medical benefit from not allowing the body to flow through its normal cycle. I

This is Truly Amazing

2006-05-08T10:43:00.000-07:00

Every year I have to take a 'Continuing Education Course," the state, as well as the National Certification board requires at least 15 hours of training every year. I think this is a good thing and I have learned new things at every course I have taken. This years was no exception, but it did raise the bar for others to compare with.The course was called "Auricular Medicine." Dr.'s Huang and

Still Walking

2006-05-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

I got to do my presentation to the University of Arizona's Cancer Support Group on May 2nd. To say that I had butterflies in my stomach would be a mild understatement. Though I learned a long time ago if you have butterflies in your stomach the thing to do is get them to fly in formation!The presentation went very well. I could not help but notice that the number of attendies was down by about

Chipping Away

2006-04-25T14:02:00.000-07:00

This week I got to see the lady with the neck pain.Her pain level has dropped from the 9 level it was to a consistent 5. That is huge, and I do appreciate this change. But not as much as my patient does. ;-)She said "I am almost afraid to talk about it because I do not want to jinx whatever you've done."The trapezius muscle at the top of her shoulder has loosened up so it is now more like a

Surrounding the Dragon

2006-04-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

This week I had the pleasure of meeting and treating a lady that has had severe, chronic neck pain for the last 17 years. It causes severe headaches, almost daily.Whenever I do an intake I always ask about pain. I ask my patient to 'quantify' the pain on a one-to-ten scale, with ten being unbearable. Once I had a young woman say her headaches were about a 13. OUCH!!! was all I could say. This

Finally making in-roads

2006-04-05T16:20:00.000-07:00

Well next month I get to give a presentation to the University of Arizona's Cancer Support Group. This is a group of doctors, nurses, psychiatrists and others that meet monthly to discuss new research in cancer and how to improve the "journey of cancer." I have been going there for over a year now. I keep trying to make in-road into the world of oncology. No bites yet...This presentation will

The Tongue that does not lie

2006-03-10T10:08:00.000-08:00

One of the diagnostic tools that we use in TCM is noting the color, shape, thickness etc, of the tongue. There are some truly amazing things one can see by looking at the tongue. If you are skilled enough and observant enough it could honestly be said that the tongue does not lie. Though we all know the individual using the tongue may lie, but that is another story.A few months back I was

A different way of Teaching

2006-02-18T05:53:00.000-08:00

Two things come to mind this morning that I want to share. First of all I have registered a web domain and am in the process of creating my web page. If you know of any really cool alternative medicine web pages please send me the address so I can check it out... http://www.pcflmntn.comThe other area I have been thinking about is my teaching method; and how, like most everything else I do, it

Bond's of Motherhood

2006-02-08T07:33:00.000-08:00

Today I heard an interesting story on NPR. It seems that modern science is finding something new and unexpected in every mother's blood. Fetal cells from her babies.The placenta is an amazing sac that encases the fetus as it matures before delivery. It has been accepted that the placenta keeps the baby's cells inside and away from the mom's cells, otherwise her immune system would turn against

This does not fit

2006-02-04T13:53:00.000-08:00

It is always interesting to me when I run into a case that does not fit the model. Let me give you an example.I am treating a lady for "dermatitis" which usually manifests as a variety of "Wind Heat erupting through the skin;" although often there are more signs of heat than of wind. It is called Wind because it suddenly appears or disappears; heat because it shows as red skin.My patient has

Keeping MY Focus

2006-01-25T13:33:00.000-08:00

It is interesting to watch my clinic, as long as I keep my focus on building my clinic it grows; but as soon as I let my attention wander, even for a second it seems, my clinic starts to decline.OOOOPPPSSSS, don't let that happen....Currently I am doing many things that require my attention. I am teaching, and while I really do enjoy that it does require attention and focus. I find that if I am

Surgical Complications

2006-01-17T12:23:00.000-08:00

I have been seeing a woman who had surgery ten years ago for a hernia. She has been in constant pain since then. Some relief now and again, but overall it has been an issue in her life since the day of the surgery.She was told that it is due to the scars from the surgery and to have more surgery would porbably only make things worse.Ten years is a long time.She came to me from a former patient

Year of the Dog

2006-01-15T21:25:00.000-08:00

In just a few weeks it will be the CHinese New Year. We are leaving the Year of the Rat and entering the Year of the Dog. I only find that to be significant because I was born in a Dog Year.I truly think this year my clinic is going to take off and exceed my dreams. My personal life is going to change too, but since I never write about my personal life I am not going to start now...I have

What a year!!!

2006-01-03T12:22:00.000-08:00

It has been just over a year since I moved back to Tucson. I am amazed to sit back and look at what all has been happening and what is on the horizon.I am busy teaching two classes this quarter for the Asian Institute of Medical Studies. As always I enjoy teaching, though this load is keeping me running. I have to prepare lecture notes for each class and quizes.I am reaching out in a more focused

The Little Toe

2005-12-09T13:34:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I was giving a treatment to a lady that was experiencing a lot of tension/tightness in her right hamstring. She has been coming in for treatment to resolve hip pain from a car accident, so hamstring pain was not completely unexpected.My treatment and the results were unexpected, from her perspective at least.I told her I was going to stick a needle in her little toe. She

Something I have never seen before

2005-12-03T12:54:00.000-08:00

This last Thursday when I was at The Asian Institute of Medical Studies ,teaching a class, I found a copy of the latest New England Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine in my 'mail box.' I did not look at it as I was teaching a class and focused on that.Today I had some time inbetween patients so I opened up the journal, only to find an article on TONGUE ACUPUNCTURE!Now I know you all thought

It is bound to happen

2005-11-22T08:56:00.000-08:00

Today I am pondering the impact of practicing medicine when a friends health is being impacted. Today one of my patients came in and told me she is waiting on the results of a breast biopsy. She has a genetic prevelance towards breast cancer and her yearly mamogram has some areas of concern. The biopsy was last Thursday and the results will be told to her later this morning.I am realizing many

A comment I don't understand

2005-11-18T05:35:00.000-08:00

I really enjoy writing this blog and reading the comments made. But there is one set of comments I just don't get.The woodworkers that say how they were surfing and found my blog. Without exception the format of their response is identical, though the links they put in are different. This leads me to think it is some kind of a program that crawls the web and post comments in blogsites. That

Interfacing the Medicine

2005-11-15T05:48:00.000-08:00

One of my many projects lately has been trying to reach out to allopathic doctors to develop a refferal network. Some of the doc's are slightly interested, some are highly skeptical. But that is an improvement from five years ago, so at least there has been some movement in the paradigm.One of my challenges in this adventure is that the doctors want to do research, I want to treat patients.

They were on to something

2005-11-02T16:17:00.000-08:00

It is always interesting to have a patient come in and tell their stories of the week. Today I had the pleasure of treating a 74 y.o. man for hip pain. He had his hip replaced 4 1/2 years ago and "It has never been right." I saw him last week for his initial treatment. This week I had a report."When I left your office my hip felt the same as when I went in, nothing had changed. Then in the

Qi Knows

2005-10-21T14:39:00.000-07:00

Last week I was treating a 37 y.o. female for chronic neck and shoulder pain and tension. She has had this tension for a couple of years and working as a food server for a living does not help it…This was the second treatment I have given her; the first one helped a lot and she has not had the ‘tingling’ sensation running down her arms since then.I was inserting the needles into the neck and

A Different Pulse

2005-10-01T09:51:00.000-07:00

Last week while I was giving a treatment to one of my elder patients I spent a fair amount of time feeling his pulses, in particular I was feeling for any abnormality in the “Heart” pulse.This gentleman has a ‘heart-murmur’ that is caused by mitral-valve prolapse. The mitral valve is what keeps the blood in one chamber of the heart before it gets pumped into a different chamber. When the valve

It's always Good

2005-09-14T10:41:00.000-07:00

Today Ihad the pleasure of meeting and treating an 80 year old man. He has had some neck pain for the last six months. No known cause, no trauma; what we call in TCM "lost pillow syndrome."Anyway, he is a great guy. I hope I have his energy, vitality and health when I am his age.We went through the "ten questions" (more like 100 in actuality) and he probably thought I was more than a little

This is SO WEIRD!!!

2005-08-17T11:11:00.000-07:00

This week I have been practicing a series of 'invisible needle' techniques. I have written a little about this before, but once again this is a slight variation on what have seen before.The theory of "5-element" or "5-Phase" acupuncture has a long history. There is an entire school of acupuncture that is based on this system. In short it is an understanding that one "phase' of energy leads to, or

Thanks, I needed that!

2005-08-10T13:29:00.000-07:00

As you may know I have been focusing on 'perimenopausal' women in my clinic. It has been very rewarding to me to hear how the treatments are helping. I do not think that as a guy I have any clue, whatsoever, about hot flashes.One of my patients came in on her first treatment and repeorted that she was having hot flashes every 90 minutes. Can you imagine that? She has been experiencing this

An Ear, Revisited

2005-07-25T07:38:00.000-07:00

One of the many things I am doing these days is performing auricular acupuncture in a very comprehensive program we have created at Peaceful Spirit Therapeutic Massage here in Tucson. The two primary protocols are for smoking cessation and maintaining a healthy weight. I say the programs are very comprehensive because in addition to the ear acupuncture we also have a psycho-therapist and

How does this work???

2005-07-18T17:37:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I was giving a treatment to a nice lady that has had severe chronic neck pain for the last two years. She took two falls within two weeks and has been in pain ever since.This afternoon I was giving her an intial treatment, complete with the 10,000 questions. "And we leave no part unquestioned" to paraphrase an old Arlo Guthrie song. After the needles were in and she was relaxing

A moment in the Sun

2005-07-13T12:46:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I started working with a business coach and I have written about narrowing my focus. This work has really help me. Personally and Professionally. Last Monday the article appeared in the local newspaper. It was great. A lot of fun and five new patients out of it. Follow the link in the title to read the actual article.I enjoyed the interview and the entire process. I have

Paradoxes within Practice

2005-06-25T12:16:00.000-07:00

One of the patients at the assisted living facility is a gentleman of 86 years. In addition to surviving dementia he also has very high blood pressure, in the range of 180/120. What is so surprising to me about this is that we all have a very hard time finding his pulses. My ‘Western Analytical Mind’ would state if he has high blood pressure his pulses would be easier to feel. That is not the

Picking up the pace

2005-06-10T20:00:00.000-07:00

It is a very rewarding experience to see my clinic growing. To be working as hard as I can to promote and develop my clinic to the point that it is self-sustaining. In all the myriad meanings of the word.The Tui Na clinic is doing very well. The students I have been supervising have developed their skills, taught me many lessons and developed a good working relationship with the patients. In

You want to do WHAT?

2005-05-31T21:47:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of treating a gentleman that has been surviving the effects of a stroke for nearly 30 years. When he was 29 years old he had a massive stroke as he was diving off a spring-board into a pool. He did not discover acupuncture for nearly 28 years. He has been coming to the Acupuncture school nearly every week for the last two years and has been making steady

Resentment ~ How it affects health.

2005-05-25T15:15:00.000-07:00

In an interesting series of events I have been blessed with three patients that are all dealing with various issues of gall bladder dysfunction. Each patient is presenting with different ‘issues’ but have a similar underlying ‘gall bladder issue.’ Two of my patients have had their gall bladder removed, the other has avoided the knife so far. It is always interesting to me to see how allopathic

The Connections of a Family

2005-05-01T11:12:00.000-07:00

I am treating a woman, 74 y.o. that has had a severe digestive issue for the last year. She has been unable to eat much, if any, solid foods; she has had to live off ‘ensure’ and other liquid food supplements. She has been to her gastroenterologist, and cancer specialist; they can find no physical reason for her digestive disorder. She had her gallbladder removed 30 years ago and while her

Accessing One’s True Nature

2005-04-27T18:14:00.000-07:00

As I wrote about in my last blog I have been impressed with the effects of auricular pellets, or ‘seeds’ (even thought they are made of stainless steel they are commonly called seeds). Over the last two weeks I have seen something else from the seeds.Last week I put two seeds in both of the ears of my water-aerobics instructor. She has continuous back pain and I thought it was worth a try.

It just goes to show

2005-04-14T19:58:00.000-07:00

I had the honor a few weeks ago of giving a treatment to a truly world-class athlete. I have asked her permission to write about this, because it is so amazing to me.Pam Reed just completed a world-record 300 mile no-sleep run. She took just under 80 hours to complete this amazing feat. Imagine starting at 6:00 a.m. Friday morning and running without stopping for sleep until Monday at 2 in

More Subtle than Physical

2005-04-08T16:13:00.000-07:00

I have been supervising a student clinic for the Asian Institute of Medical Studies, the clinic is a Tui Na Clinic in an Assisted Living Center. I have had two students last quarter and they returned for another quarter that will end at the end of May. It has been a great clinic.One of the things that is always interesting to me is to see these patients respond so well from Tui Na. The

Narrowing My Focus

2005-03-30T20:30:00.000-08:00

I have been graced to receive a business coach for the next three months. It is part of a “Small Business Makeover.” Karen is a great, energetic, vibrant coach and she is helping me refine my business. The idea is if all goes well we will get the story in the local newspaper to get both of us some publicity. (I know I certainly need it!)One of the first things she helped me realize is that my

The Power of Discernment

2005-03-13T19:23:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I saw an interesting story on the national news; this young marine received two “purple-heart” medals resulting from injuries he received while in Iraq. One was a shrapnel wound, the other was a bullet that hit is right hand. This is the injury that got me thinking.The bullet entered his right hand, just distal to the wrist, in the “knife-hand” area; the bullet penetrated through

It Surprised Me

2005-03-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

Last week I was working with an 86 year old patient. He is an interesting guy, but due to his dementia all he has is now. The past is gone and I do not know if he thinks about the future at all. Actually that is a good place to be, NOW IS THE MOMENT OF POWER. But of course it is better when one can remain there through choice.Anyway. This is the first time I have worked with this man, as I

All Things Considered

2005-02-28T20:20:00.000-08:00

What’s new? Yesterday, as I was driving into the day I heard an interesting radio report on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” program. The program was about this guy in New York that is a Jazz Musician, Medical Laboratory Assistant and is also involved in medical research. His area of research is in cardiac rhythm dysfunction. He says a “normal” heartbeat follows a 4-4 rhythm. As

Where Do I Draw The Line?

2005-02-23T20:32:00.000-08:00

I had an interesting experience today that I am still digesting and attempting to discriminate what is my truth about it. Let me explain.I have been attempting to find some way to interface with Western Allopathic medicine in some format that is both useful to my patient’s, while being one that benefits my own journey. In this adventure I contacted a local cancer center, attempting to offer

The Truth of my medicine

2005-02-17T14:56:00.000-08:00

Today I have been reflecting on what is the TRUTH of my medicine. By that I mean why do I practice and study acupuncture? What is it that I want to accomplish in my interactions and treatments? I am deeply contemplating this issue as I sense that it has changed, or my relationship to the medicine has changed, or my awareness of and need to be clear about my unique approach to this medicine has

Boundaries: A Function of the San Jiao Meridian?

2005-02-15T09:26:00.000-08:00

This week I have been thinking of the San Jiao Meridian. The San Jiao is unique in many ways, but the most intriguing is that is does not have an organ system complex associated with it in the same manner as the other meridians. There is a physical substrate for the Heart, Lungs Spleen, etc, but not so with the San Jiao. The name San Jiao translates as the “Three Openings;” a reference to

Qi

2005-02-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

One of the interesting aspect of Chinese medicine is the concept of “Qi.” This energy has been called everything from vital-life -force to bio-medical energy. There are some allopathic diagnostic machines that can measure the amount of “energy’ that is in a person, but I do not feel that is “Qi;”I understand it to be a quantified measurement of the electro-magnetic force-field of the body. Qi