The summer seems to be upon us early. In the traditional Chinese calendar the Summer is considered to come earlier than June 21st, but maybe in this Wood Horse (‘Pony’) year it is kicking in already no matter what calendar you follow! When I give talks I often emphasize that a good maintenance program, if everything is generally okay, would be to receive an acupuncture once a season (as well as a good overall massage treatment once a month). Receiving a treatment seasonally things can be looked at both in terms of the season to come, and how the body itself is doing ‘seasonally’. For example – with Summer coming it is a hotter, drier time of year – so the advice beyond the treatment (and herbs) would be on using cooling and moistening foods, staying out of the sun too much, etc. Someone who has ‘Summer’ inside – who has a hot and dry condition internally – who tends to run dry (thirst, dry skin, get feverish, restless, constipated, etc.) – might doubly need to adjust as Summer approaches to stay balanced. We also may find that how we are doing at a time of year relates to our behavior/condition on the opposite side of the year. For example, if we have a hard Winter with colds and flus, we may have overdid it and exhausted ourselves the Summer before in some ways. So in line with helping balance all that, I’m offering a 20% discount off the usual rates for a session for those who haven’t come in a awhile…just mention the newsletter please.
The Chinese say that the Wood Horse is a good year to get educated, in general. Zuriel Devine has fixed up the front porch so its a rather nice place to be – even when the weather is warmer. Often folks pause there to have something to drink – and read up on things. I was off in February and March having an adventure in Laos (and Cambodia) with my son Samuel – and it was quite a trip – and very educational. Our first stop was at Pommalok farm (https://www.facebook.com/pommalok.donsangphai) near Vientiane, the capital of Laos. I was introduced to the family there by my cousin Larry Korn – who wrote the famous Rodale book “One Straw Revolution” about sustainable farming practices in Japan. Zak, as the representative and clear English speaker of his family’s farm, had contacted Larry as they were interested in promoting organic farming and the use of local herbs. It wound up that Sam and I went there to check it out – and we very graciously were invited to stay a few days and see what they were up to. Under the ‘galleries’ section of the webpage are photos of the place, a video of Zak showing some local herbal brew he was preparing, and a perhaps entertaining video bit of myself doing acupuncture one morning and showing Zak’s sister how to do moxibustion. The family already had some knowledge, as people do there, of points and moxa and accessories hanging around. I was really struck by a few things they were really doing right – in the face of a dictatorial government, a high amount of poverty in that region of SE Asia generally – they were providing education (classes for local children) and showing that the old ways could combine with new directions in healing and farming. They work hard when its time to, as farmers do, but in between I experienced an ease and relaxation in their family style that we might emulate. (Even their dogs seemed happy)
Meanwhile back in the U.S. – Ashland particularly – all seems relatively posh and pristine… I found myself feeling fortunate to have so many herbs of all kinds (bulk, powder, pills) so easily at my disposal. I’m thinking that perhaps I need to encourage the use of the bulk (raw, unprepared) ones more than I do – as far as treating acute respiratory (Lung) conditions and for external washes – as Zak was doing in that video. Many times I’ve seen them work magic with stubborn bronchial conditions – even after clients went through rounds of pharmaceutical treatment. I’m starting to feel inspired to try to get other acupuncturists in the area, who generally don’t carry bulk herbs, to carry at least the ones for these conditions. Its good to have other options besides antibiotics. Maybe its a new vision for me. We’ll see. I’ll write more about colds/flus etc in the next (Fall) edition – since that’s the appropriate time.
Finally, with the ACA (‘Obamacare’) coming in we are seeing a new round of insurance plans that cover acupuncture in some form. We’re trying to learn about that, figure it all out – and adapt. More availability of this successful, relatively inexpensive, and safe method of help for the citizenship at large can only be a good thing. This is one of the best alternatives going to modern allopathic medicine. As you probably know or have experienced – acupuncture and herbs can treat such a wide variety of pains, illnesses, and conditions. And perhaps most fundamentally, prevent them from coming around by enhancing optimum health (and happiness) throughout the cycles.
Ken