Jessi wants to have a little girl, and her husband wants a little boy.  But secretly, they’re thrilled about having a baby, boy or girl

Congratulations Jessi, and we’ll miss you this year come September-ish!

Speaking of brilliant beginnings, we’d like to invite you to watch this clip from Martha Stewart’s tuesday show.  One thing that is very exciting to us is to see the message of wellness spreading to a mainstream audience.  We believe everyone can benefit from lifestyle changes that go beyond changing to a more holistic choice in physicians providing care.  We encourage all our patients to really examine their lifestyle and lifestyle choices including diet, exercise, stress relief, and other self-care measures.  On her tuesday show, Martha welcomed Dr. Alejandro Junger, who promoted his detoxification program.  We encourage you all to watch this video, and think about what benefits such a detoxification program might hold for you.  This clip was taken from Dr. Junger’s Facebook page – if the link doesn’t work, just cut & paste into the browser!

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=874028627469

One of the things that people have the hardest time with is changing their diet, and often the diet is THE source of a lot of their health issues…detoxifications like Dr. Junger’s program, and any detoxification program that incorporates fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, and juices are a great way to help people begin making the changes they need to experience wellness!

Snap out of it!  None of that is real.  Stop allowing your mind to take you to the scariest “what-if” places, and just open the gift.  When you do, you’ll first notice that it Acupuncture doesn’t hurt.  At least not as much as a facial or hair waxing (or, so I’ve heard).  It certainly hurts less than waking up sore the morning after your first workout in six months.  I won’t lie to you, acupuncture can hurt.  The intensity of an acupuncture treatment ranges from the very gentle Japanese style to the more aggressive Korean and Chinese styles.  For most acupuncturists trained in the Unites States, acupuncture was new to them too.  And because of this, most US trained acupuncturists tend toward the gentle Japanese style.  Now, I can’t tell you what kind of training MDs or DCs (chiropractors) get in a weekend course, but Licensed Acupuncturists who spent four years in a Master’s program should be able to accommodate even the most sensitive  of patients.  I know I can.  So, go ahead, now you can take it out of the gift box and take a closer look at Acupuncture.

Okay, so we’ve learned that acupuncture is not painful, at least it doesn’t have to be.  The second lesson is that acupuncture sensations are different than pain.  Just like heat, cold, and pressure, it is a matter of timing and degree.  Some heat on a sore muscle may be great, but too much heat will scald your skin.  With acupuncture, the objective is to insert the needle into the acupoint location while avoiding nerves and nerve endings.  Nerves, even the tiny ones inside pores and hair follicles will produce pain when stimulated.  Fortunately, the objective of acupuncture DOES NOT include poking nerves, which is what many people have been led to (mistakenly!) believe.  Poking nerves causes sharp pain, whereas a properly inserted acupuncture needle is often imperceptible as it glides through the skin and into the muscle layer where it produces a dull-achy sensation.  Like mild pressure or heat, you feel something, but it is not painful.

After the needles are successfully inserted, a feeling of relaxation sweeps through the body.  It is not dramatic.  You probably won’t have a psychic vision of past relatives, but you do relax.  Some patients fall asleep, while others rest quietly or listen to relaxing music.  Sometimes the energy-sensations felt at acupoints will come and go, sometimes the feeling of a pulse can be felt, other times patients will feel an energy-sensation where there is no needle.  Mysterious? Yes, but nothing to fear.

The gift of acupuncture, like a jewel, contains many facets.  The primary facet is that acupuncture does not cause pain or stress (except in the unknowing mind), rather it promotes relaxation and healing.  Although there is some mystery left in the workings of this ancient medicine, there is also much that we know.  We know acupuncture causes a release of beneficial biochemicals into the blood stream; endorphins relieve pain and elevate the mood, serotonin is our natural antidepressant and GABA is our endogenous anti-anxiety remedy.  Acupuncture’s exceptional pain relieving and mood elevating properties are reason enough to fall in love with this gift.  And there’s more to love about it.  Acupuncture also benefits the immune system.  Not only can acupuncture boost a weak immune system, it can calm an overactive immune response too, such as with Rheumatiod Arthritis or other auto-immune diseases.  Wow, how could all of this fit in such a tiny box?!

We have not yet unwrapped acupuncture completely; in fact, it may never divulge all of its mysteries.  But, at least you can stop being fearful of this healing art and begin unwrapping the rest of your holiday gifts.  For a list of conditions that acupuncture treats well, please visit www.integrativemed.com and click on services, then acupuncture.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Tim Walsh, L.Ac.

“Physicians and health organizations today are divided into two basic schools of thought when it comes to Lyme disease – those who recognize it as a potentially chronic and debilitating disease that requires a comprehensive treatment approach, and those who continue to regard Lyme disease as a primarily benign illness that can easily be treated with a short course of antibiotic treatment.” – The Lyme Disease solutions pgs 15-16

This paragraph summarizes the controversy that is tick-borne diseases (TBD’s).  The best known of these is Lyme disease (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease), but this category of diseases also includes the following (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/tick-borne/)

• Lyme disease
• Babesiosis
• Ehrlichiosis
• Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
• Southern Tick-Associated Rash Illness
• Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever
• Tularemia
• Anaplasmosis
• Colorado tick fever
• Powassan encephalitis
• Q fever

We work to promote  understanding of this class of diseases, since our practice sees several patients diagnosed with Lyme disease.  One of the advantages of the internet is the broadly available information on ANY subject.  That ‘s also one of the drawbacks, because frequently people don’t know how to qualify the information that’s available as trustworthy information.   To promote understanding, and to help people have at least one quality source of information, we often recommend print titles and articles.

In the case of Lyme disease and other TBD’s, we have one go-to title.  The Lyme Disease Solution, by Dr. Kenneth B. Singleton demystifies the many issues surrounding Lyme and other TBD’s.  Dr. Singleton writes in a comprehensive step-by-step fashion about everything Lyme, from its origins, to the ongoing medical controversy, including Lyme’s wide variety of symptoms and the difficulty of diagnosis and treatment.  He also uses a Case study approach, talking about  several cases he himself participated in as a physician.  For more online reading, Dr. Singleton highlights a celebrity Lyme patient – author Amy Tan’s own struggle with Lyme disease chronicled on her website (www.amytan.net).  She also chronicles her struggles with this disease in her memoir The Opposite of Fate.

These Books are currently available through Amazon.com.  They are not yet available by Kindle, but can be requested in this format by clicking on the link displayed on the Amazon product page for either title. We request that anyone visiting those product pages be sure to click the link to request these items be formatted for Kindle.  The links are posted below.

http://www.amazon.com/Lyme-Disease-Solution-Kenneth-Singleton/dp/1439226989/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262015052&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Fate-Memories-Writing-Life/dp/0142004898/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262016631&sr=1-1

Medicine has changed for the better because of this.  Everyday, more and more practices are opening to provide a variety of options promoting wellness.  Options are individualized, as it’s become better understood how our environment can affect the health of each person differently.  This is especially true in our own practice as Integrative Medical Associates.  Our team works with each individual to plan the care that is best for them, to help them achieve and maintain wellness in their lives.  Click on the link to visit our current website (link pending).  We’re in the process of updating our site, so the link to our new website will be added soon.

Because this is our first blog entry, we wanted to start by stating that our vision is wellness, and individualized wellness.  Everyone is different, and everyone’s experiences of wellness are different.  For this blog, there will be general entries, and there will be posts by the members of our staff. We will also talk about products and practices that we recommend.  Our goal in writing is to give an idea what our practice offers, as well as give each of our team a little time to shine. We will also have some of our friends write about their wellness journeys from time to time, and members of our team will respond to a few select questions each week.  It’s our hope that we can reach out and offer more in this way, to promote wellness and show others ways to achieve wellness in their lives. Please enjoy all that we have to offer in our blog!