Chinese Herbs: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Times

In today's world of too-much-hurry and too-much-worry, peace and enduring happiness can be hard to find. In today's high tech environment, the pathway to health remains constant. One sure approach is to look to times past to seek the wisdom of the ancients. Timeless answers apply to today's modern problems. Ancient traditions applied in modern times can restore harmony to a life out of balance—and balance in life is synonymous with good health.

For thousands of years, the Chinese carefully observed and charted the interaction of herbs in the human condition. The Chinese developed a strategy and system of herb use that remains unsurpassed in the world today. Critical in understanding the basics of this complex system is the foundation upon which it rests: Chinese herbal medicine works by restoring natural balance in the body. Everyone has an innate ability to heal. The proper herbs release this divinely-appointed power to heal from within.

The Law of Yin and Yang describes balance. According to this theory, all things can be categorized in this system. Yin and Yang are opposites and yet complimentary traits. For example, view the following chart:

By analyzing the patient's life and health, the corrective treatment can be prescribed. And by careful examination of the patient, a pattern emerges. This pattern is descriptive of the patient's health status. Treatment by herbs or acupuncture is applied to that pattern.

     

As the pattern of health improves, so does the patient's health and well-being. 

It is paramount that the patient understand the focus of the treatment. In Chinese and Chiropractic medicine the focus is on health, not the offending disease. Here is a helpful analogy: Darkness, by definition, is the absence of light. Darkness is actually nothing; just the lack of something. 

Disease, like darkness, is a simple lack of something—specifically a lack of health. In and of itself, disease is really nothing. As a result, the treatment of health is very different from the treatment for disease. The herbs are designed to restore healthy balance. 

This perspective of health and disease is further demonstrated in the following chart:

Chinese herbs are used to restore maximum health. This process can be quick or it may take a long time. The duration, severity and seriousness of the condition, as well as the patient's ability to heal, are all critical factors in determining the outcome and length of care. Old habits often must be changed. Emotions must be harmonious, and lifestyle needs to be consistent with a healthy body, mind, and spirit.

Dr. Olson has been using Chinese herbs in his practice for over 20 years. He studied for twelve years with Master Guo, a sixth-generation Traditional Chinese Herbal practitioner. The use of Traditional Chinese Herbs is the greatest, most intricate system of natural medicines in the world. Many conditions are best remedied through a personalized herbal approach. The power in Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine is that it changes the condition from a diseased state to one of health. Once the condition is changed, you will no longer need to take the herbs.

Guidelines: 

Normal doses for the herb is 3 pills/capsules, 3 times per day (a total of 9 pills of each type recommended). The herbs may be taken with meals. Plan to continue the recommended herbs until you are instructed to stop them. Discuss them at each visit. Normally herbs will show a positive effect within two weeks. 

There should be no side effects: If you experience side effects, stop taking the herbs and contact the Doctor. It doesn't mean the herbs are bad for you, they are just not right for your particular situation. Herbs, when properly applied, are safe. Many news stories have surfaced about dangers with herbs. The fact remains that herbs, properly acquired and utilized, are safe and very beneficial. 

For a wellness program to be complete, herbs should be considered. When harmony is reestablished in the body, harmony in life becomes attainable.

October schedule

Frequently Asked Questions about Acupuncture:

Q: What is acupuncture?

A: In this treatment, Dr. Olson strategically places extremely thin needles into specific points of your body. The stimulation of these miraculous pressure points will help your body to balance its vital life energy. After the needles are placed, you will comfortably relax in one of our soothing treatment rooms for 15 minutes of energetic rejuvenation.

     Acupuncture is an ancient form of healing originating in China. Its beginnings date back nearly 4,000 years. It began as a philosophy and expanded to become a healing art. The premise is based on the belief that there is a substance that causes all movement and stimulates all life in the universe. This substance they call ‘Qi.’ The best label in our language for this substance in non-religious terms would be ‘life force’ or ‘energy.’ Each and every living being on our planet has this energy in their body. It is channeled in pathways or meridians that run throughout the body. Each meridian connects to a different organ or controls a function in the body.

     If the Qi in the body is of proper quantity and moves freely in its designed pathways, health reigns supreme. When the Qi is out of balance or flows improperly we enter the phase where disease occurs. Disease is when we are not at ease with our environment, and our ability to adapt and react properly is limited. This is when we eventually get ill. Acupuncture is designed to correct imbalance in these meridians to prevent the development of disease as well as to treat problems that may occur in our life.

Q: How does acupuncture work?

A: Acupuncture works by manipulating the energy channels via points along these channels called ‘acupuncture points’ or ‘pressure points.’ Each point has a different effect on the energy in the body. Point selection and the method of working the point is determined. Properly applied needles, lasers, massage, or other forms of mechanical stimulation will ensure correction in the energetic imbalance. When the imbalance is corrected, health returns.

Q: What can acupuncture help?

A: Acupuncture has been used historically for a wide variety of conditions. In our practice, patients who suffered from the following conditions have been helped: multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, headaches of various origins, menstrual problems, infertility, digestive disorders, learning disabilities, joint injuries, arthritic conditions, sinus problems, allergies, frequent colds and flus, depression and many, many more. What acupuncture really treats is health. As your health fully returns, the body fulfills it's innate self-healing work, and symptoms will leave.

Short and Sweet

Mayo Clinic Researchers Say They’ve Cracked The Code To Being Happy: Dr. Amit Sood led the research and says the first and foremost way to be happy is to focus our attention. “You can choose to live focusing on what is not right in your life,” Dr. Sood said. But if we learn to command our thoughts, shifting perspective away from the negative, and embrace the positive, we will be happier, experts say. “Resiliency has everything to do with happiness,” Dr. Sood said. The Mayo Clinic’s research also shows the degree of happiness people enjoy has to do with how resilient they are to life’s many curve balls. Happy people are very good at compartmentalizing and creating boundaries. “So for example, if you’ve had a difficult day, when you get back home, for the first three minutes, forget about it, park it, and meet your family as if they’re long lost friends,” Dr. Sood added. And perhaps one of the biggest hindrances to being happy is too much thinking about one’s self, research shows. “Complainers are never going to be happy,” Ketchian said. “Happiness is a decision.” So why did the Mayo Clinic decide to study happiness? Studies show happier people are healthier people. http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/06/05/researchers-cracked-code-happiness/

Centenarians’ Positive Attitude Linked to Long Life: A recent study published in the journal Aging suggests that having a positive attitude and a sense of humor could play a role in living a longer, healthier life. "The results indicated they had two things -- a positive attitude for life, meaning they are optimistic, easygoing, extraverted, laughed more and expressed emotions rather than bottling them up," said Dr. Nil Barzilai, a study co-author and director of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine's Institute for Aging Research. The study participants also were less neurotic and more conscientious than a representative sample of other Americans. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/centenarians-positive-attitude-linked-long-healthy-life/story?id=16494151

For Headaches, A Lifestyle Change May Be The Best Remedy:

At the Comprehensive Headache Center of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, patients receive a thorough medical history that includes headache patterns, disability and mood assessments. Then the center works with patients to try to identify what triggers their headaches and how they can avoid those triggers in the future.

Some people find relief through exercise. "I write an exercise prescription probably as often as I write a prescription for medication," the headache center’s director, neurologist Carolyn Bernstein, says. She acknowledges it's sometimes difficult to encourage a patient with cracking head pain to get up and exercise. But even a little can help, and according to Bernstein it doesn't have to be jogging for miles and miles. It can be yoga, tai chi or even just a little stretching. http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/05/11/404693609/for-headache-pain-a-lifestyle-change-may-be-better-than-a-doctor-visit

Chiropractic and Acupuncture are natural therapies for those who have headaches.  Because we deal with cause, and not the symptoms, headaches are a natural fit in our practice.  If you or someone you know has headaches, please give us a call, and make the world a healthier place today. 

-Dr. Olson

Getting a tattoo may be a rash decision: Folks in New York who’ve gotten tattooed sometimes receive a little something extra—a “rash, severe itching or swelling that lasted longer than four months and, in some cases, for many years,” according to researchers. "The skin is a highly immune-sensitive organ, and the long-term consequences of repeatedly testing the body's immune system with injected dyes and colored inks are poorly understood," says Leger. "Some of the reactions appear to be an immune response, yet we do not know who is most likely to have an immune reaction to a tattoo." http://www.citylab.com/work/2015/05/tattooed-new-yorkers-report-all-kinds-of-nasty-skin-conditions/394304/

Unhealthy lifestyle can knock 23 years off lifespan: Suffering from heart disease, stroke and type two diabetes could knock 23 years off life and yet they are preventable for eight out of 10 people. "Our results highlight the importance of preventing heart disease and stroke amongst patients with diabetes, and likewise averting diabetes amongst heart disease patients," said Professor John Danesh, Head of the Department of Public Health and Primary Care University of Cambridge and British Heart Foundation Professor. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/11723443/Unhealthy-lifestyle-can-knock-23-years-off-lifespan.html

5 Ways Vinegar Keeps You Healthy: Vinegar has been used for healing since Hippocrates used it to treat wounds. Recently, vinegar has been touted as a cure for everything from an upset stomach to dandruff. Can vinegar really be such a "cure-all?" Modern scientific studies are giving the old folk remedies new life by showing that they can indeed be used to treat modern medical scourges. Read the full article to check out the following ways vinegar can help keep you healthy: Diabetes, Weight loss, Heart disease, Cancer, Stomach ailments. http://www.newsmax.com/Health/Headline/vinegar-healing-healthy-cure/2015/06/02/id/648310/#ixzz3c1pycmau 

Diet soda may do more harm than good: Purdue University researchers reviewed a dozen studies published in past five years that examined the relationship between consuming diet soda and health outcomes. http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2013/07/10/diet-soda-may-do-more-harm-than-good/