As acupuncturists, pain from sciatic nerve irritation is one of the most common, and urgent, complaints that we see. Cases can vary from the acute entrapment-- caused by muscle spasms, misalignment, or a bulging disc-- to the very chronic and intractable. We often work with cases of sciatica that have been resistant to multiple steroid injections, medications, even surgical interventions. How can acupuncture help in these cases?

Although all many unwelcome changes are a natural part of aging, we can delay the progress of deterioration, prevent the severity of symptoms, and maintain a healthy condition through the use of therapies that enhance our natural health such as acupuncture and herbal medicine.

“Honey, can you please call my phone? I lost it… again…”

“You just need to pay attention to where you put things,” my husband reminded me. It wasn’t so much as an “I told you so,” and it didn’t irritate me; but that word “attention” stuck with me. The last time it stuck with me was when I was in acupuncture school and one of my mentors did an entire lecture on “attention and intention.”

Due to its robust evidence base, acupuncture is recommended by the American College of Physicians as a first-line treatment for chronic low back pain. Acupuncture is one of the best non-drug treatments for pain available-- but why?

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is known to be closely associated with reduced exposure to daylight, so as we near winter solstice on Dec 21, it's really time to keep an eye on how you're feeling. Here are a few of our favorite tips to elevate your mood and fend off the SAD--while also keeping your sanity during the holidays!

In the clinic lately, I have been seeing more and more patients with depression. This is an issue that many people I love suffer from while those around them never even know. Everyone feels sadness from time to time. It is a natural and useful emotion when needed. But sometimes sadness or a low mood may linger and begin to interfere with our daily lives.

You may have heard the words "cupping therapy," and perhaps even seen the marks that are left behind after a session, but what is cupping therapy really?

A big difference between Eastern medicine and Western medicine is how to view the mind. In modern Western medicine, the mental and emotional ailments are treated by focusing mostly on the brain. However, traditional Eastern medicine uses a more holistic approach in treating mental and emotional ailments. In traditional Eastern Medicine theory, there are three basic elements in our life, which are Jing (精), Qi (氣) and Shen (神).

Based on the emerging science, we now know the status of the microbiome to be influential, if not pivotal, to many common health conditions. This includes nuisances like acne, eczema and allergies, for sure, but also includes obesity, cardiovascular disease, IBS and GERD, autoimmune diseases, and even neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

The truth is that in our current age, to be healthy is to go against all the odds. A research report issued this year from Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy found that only 7% of American adults are metabolically healthy, as measured by blood pressure, blood sugar and lipids, degree of overweight and obesity, and presence of cardiovascular disease (such as heart attack and stroke).