Everyday Acupuncture Podcast

We tend to associate acupuncture with China. But auricular therapy was first developed in France, and then wandered its way back to the Middle Kingdom. And yes, there is a story to be told there. Listen in to find out about why the ear is one of the most powerful and effective acupuncture microsystems. And how it can be used to treat everything from back pain to digestive problems, to endocrinological disorders.    

As with so many paths that open to us in life, our guest in this episode did not set out to make a deep study of Parkinson's. She stumbled into it by first helping a number patients who had foot injuries. And from there has delved deeply into neurobiology, brain chemistry, Chinese medicine, and psychology in her study of how long-term physiological shock can effect brain chemistry and movement disorders.  Our conversation touches on the triggering events that can lead to Parkinson's, and how recovery is a transformative DIY project. This episode is longer than our usual podcast, and not only is packed full of helpful information for those affected by this condition, but also may challenge you to open your perspective on this disease. Especially if you don't have Parkinson’s, some of this material may uncomfortably challenge how you think about this illness. But, curiously enough, the people with Parkinson's find it oddly comforting that someone really gets something that is fundamental at their core.  List

We rarely think of our feet as the amazing complex multi-boned platforms that allow us to walk upright. And in fact they are sensory organs with a deep affinity for balance, movement and listening to the environment.  This is an encore interview with our guest Mary Bond, who joined us on EAP020 for a discussion of Presence and Movement. We'd planned to talk about feet, but got delightfully sidetracked with breathing and how that opens the spine.  Today's show not only takes deep look into foot function and movement, but also touches on neuroplasticity and how expanding the movement in our feet not only helps with balance and comfort, but expands the neural maps of the body in the brain.   

We seek out medical practitioners because we want to know. There is a problem and we want it gone. Sometimes the process of discovery is not difficult, and health concerns are quickly resolved. But then there are those issues that linger for years, decades even. They defy the insurance reimbursed scans and lab tests. They might be "managed" by a drug. But who wants to be on a medication for the rest of their life? Or a cascade of side-effect reducing medications. These confounding issues are harder to get a handle on. Beginning with a mind open enough to encompass a wider range possibility can lead to overlooked or surprising solutions. Listen in as we explore the vital role of "not knowing" and how it can lead to a deeper sense of understanding.

The Chinese medicine perspective on physiology connects and diverges from the conventional Western view like a blue highway meanders around an Interstate.  Our guest on this episode speaks fluently from the perspectives of both modern biomedicine and the ancient art of Chinese medicine.  What's more, in looking through the lens of embryological development and the way modern surgeons use the "spaces between" for laparoscopic surgeries , he illuminates the connections between organ systems that the Chinese noted thousands of years ago. And furthermore gives us a way to understand why the acupuncture channels don't show up when dissecting the body. 

Research is a funny thing. On one hand, most of us think of it as the most dry and boring stuff you could possibly read. On the other hand, we see it as the Holy Grail of truth when it comes to understanding the effectiveness of medical interventions. As with most things in life, the truth is much more complex and nuanced. In this episode our guest introduces us to nonlinear and complex adaptive systems approaches to researching medical interventions. Listen in to find out why  double-blind studies are useless for understanding the emergent  outcomes and nonspecific effects of acupuncture.

The classics of Chinese medicine describe the digestive system in terms of what today we'd call a compost pile. Indeed we symbiotically live with, and are dependent on, a population of microbes that outnumbers our "human" cells.    Our modern day war on the bacterial world is perhaps a bit misguided. And rather than trying to assassinate a few bad bugs, it might be a better idea to cultivate a diverse population of other microbes that naturally work to keep the troublemakers in check.    Our guest in this episode takes us into the world of beneficial bacteria and how we can use food to eat our way into a better balance with our own personal microbial community.

We often imagine we want the latest in medicine's technological innovation should we find ourselves or a loved one in the midst of illness and suffering. But there are moments when our most advanced technology, while it can save lives, can not reach into the spaces inhabited by human spirit.    There is no pill or procedure that brings us vividly into the unfolding moment. But, there is a practice. And that is what we will explore in this episode.    Our guest in this program stands at the crossroads of conventional clinical medicine, psychoneuroimmunology, compassionate care, contemplative practice and research into the transformative role of becoming present to all the moments of life.    Listen in for a conversation on how presence relieves suffering, and how every moment is worth fully inhabiting. 

What does creativity have to do with health? Plenty if are going to navigate the inevitable changes that life brings in a way leads toward cultivating resilience and adaptability. Our guest today, while trained as an artist and designer, has acquired a knack for helping others to connect with the creativity and beginner's mind awareness that gives us continuous access to the gifts of this moment. Listen in for a discussion of discovery and connection that is available to all of us, and how to remember your way back into your innate brilliance.

We are all are touched by death. Many of us know something about it. Few of us understand the process. And while the tools of modern medicine often accompany the dying, death is not a medical condition. Our guest in this episode is country doctor and long-time practicing acupuncturist. He did not set out to use acupuncture to aid the dying; it evolved out of his care, compassion and willingness to sit with his own not-knowing as he accompanied his patients. Listen in for some stories of transformation and how acupuncture can ease the transition between worlds.  

Many of us fire up a meditation practice only to find ourselves sitting in an overwhelming riot of thought and agitation. Isn't this practice supposed to calm us down, lower blood pressure, ease the migraines, and maybe give our recurring assortment of anxieties, troubles and tribulations a nudge to the curb? Yes, that's the common story, but the reality of a clear mirror held up to the mind will not have you feeling like those just-so poised and apparently calm models on the Internet. You'll probably want to get away from the noise and chaos between your ears. And that's a good reason to learn to sit in the storm. Our guest today has decades of experience with both meditation and acupuncture. And in this show we will get into the details of why you shouldn't believe everything you think, and why healing often defies the logical stair-step process we think it should take.

Pain is one of the most common reasons that people seek out an acupuncturist. And while the results can at times be stunningly effective, there are also situations where the process of healing unfolds in a slower, or frustratingly stutter-step way.    In this episode we explore the role of the nervous system and its role in patterns of chronic pain. And we dig into some of the various ways that acupuncture not only effects our physiology, but our neurology as well. 

We learn so much from the animals in our lives, and often they hold up a mirror to us about who we are in the world and how life can unfolded with so splendidly when we are simply, exactly as we are in the moment.    And like us, our pets have health concerns, especially as the years gather. Today's guest is a veterinarian who practices exclusively with acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, and other natural healing modalities.      Listen in and found out why one of your pets might like cool hard surfaces for a nap, while another prefers to snuggle on a soft warm bed. 

The birth control pill has been lauded, and for good reason too, as a way for women to take charge of their reproductive choices. And while it does a fine job of preventing conception, for some women it is not without paying a physical, emotional or psychological price. Our guest today has taken a closer look at the bitter side of the pill and brought to light some common side effects that generally are glossed over. She also shares with us some unique and interesting ways of combining  high tech with good old-fashioned body literacy. Thus helping women to take charge of their fertility by cultivating a deeper awareness and connection to their own natural rhythms without altering their natural hormonal balance.

While skin issues appear at the surface of the body, in fact, they are the external expression of interior imbalances. In today's show we learn about treating skin conditions from the inside out. And delve into anti-aging treatments that both will knock a few years off your looks and help you to inhabit a greater state of health and wellbeing. 

All kinds of questions can come up when you've decided to find an acupuncturist.   Where to begin? Which style of acupuncture is best for me? How do I make sense of the differing kinds of training that people billing themselves of "acupuncturists" get? How will I know it is helping me?   All these are really good questions. And worth asking of any medical practitioner when you think about it.   Our guest on this show has studied both in the USA and in Asia, is the president of an acupuncture school and has some pertinent advice on what to consider when you are considering acupuncture.

Birth control pills are generally thought of as a side-effect free medication that prevents pregnancy and can help to regulate a troublesome period. It's true it prevents ovulation, which in turn removes the possibility of conception. However, its synthetic hormonal tide not only creates profound mental and emotional shifts, but it can cause problems with conceiving for years after discontinuation. Our guest today focuses in on fertility through the lenses of conventional medicine, Chinese medicine, and functional medicine to give us a deep dive look into how the Pill not only effects women on the physical level, but on the mental and emotional levels as well.

In this episode we discuss with a long time Zen practitioner the curious human habit of having conversations with people who are not present, in places that we don't actually inhabit.    While the common image of meditation is one of peaceful stillness where the mind idles along like the purring of a kitten, the reality is that meditation more often than not drops us into the center of a what feels like a madhouse.    Listen in and find out about how meditation is not so much for stillness on the cushion, but for a chance at equanimity off of it. 

This episode is one of a series that was recorded at the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture's symposium in St. Louis, Missouri.    In this interview we go behind the scenes in the hospital and see how Dr. Christopherson used acupuncture to help patients come out of anesthesia, treat a wide variety of pain and help the staff of operating rooms find their own most lucid balance.    She also shares with us some personal experiences using acupuncture to help her husband with circulatory issues, and how she treated supposedly untreatable conditions. 

This episode is one of a series that was recorded at the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture's symposium in St. Louis, Missouri.    In this interview we take a look at how acupuncture has been integrated into this Cincinnati clinic that focuses comprehensive well-being instead of symptom control.