Hello everyone,
I hope you are all doing well! About a year now since the last newsletter – and indeed the Year of the Fire Rooster seems to have brought about a lot of..well… I’ll try to sort it out at my annual Jacksonville Chinese NY talk on February 17th (see below)
The major news is the primary relocation of my practice (and home) back to Ashland. With leaving two sons together in an apartment by PCC college in Southeast Portland, I’ve officially entered the ’empty nest’ phase, as described in ancient Chinese texts (actually…not).
I am now available in Ashland every week (usually T-F), now alternating with visits to Portland a couple days every other week to work as an in-house acupuncturist at the NWEA corporation (for those keeping score, this is the opposite of what I had been doing for the last 2 years). At NWEA I’ve been given freedom, and trust, to operate independently as the employees have acupuncture insurance, I also prescribe herbs….I’m not sure there is anywhere that has quite the model for practice that evolved there. I’ve heard there are acupuncturists working at Nike, and I’m sure with other large corporate groups, but I doubt it is set up like this. At some point I’ll write about my experience there and perhaps demonstrate a way for newer acupuncturists to be able to find similar positions. Many coming out of acupuncture schools are facing high student debt and a confusing insurance environment.
So….I’m feeling fortunate to be back in Ashland, particularly for these snow-dusted days where the sky is still seen. The photos here are from Lansu Chinese Gardens next to NWEA in Portland, a nice place to take a break from work 🙂 For this time, Ashland is just ‘easy’ compared to the big city, and it’s good to be back with great clients, friends, music connections. I really get the differences in the lifestyle and the cultures. It’s been like groundhog day showing up here every two weeks for the last couple of years and seeing the difference between the places. I could probably do a decent comedy routine about how the people are different comparing the Ashland Coop to New Seasons or People’s in SE Portland. It’s been good to get a bigger perspective, and I plan to keep that up and travel and so on.
Relatively, people in Southern Oregon have more time and opportunity to explore and experiment with what they need for healing and self-care. And so – everyone has advice! Even me. I’m revamping and consolidating my bulk herb pharmacy as I am convinced of the value of having cold/flu herbs on hand to actually boil – especially with cold/flu scenarios – and the compliance is high in that situation. The cost of bulk herbs is going up and sometimes not available – hopefully we can keep this cultural exchange happening in a sustainable way going into the future. The mainstay in my practice is making up customized granular herbal formulas, independently or concurrently with acupuncture.
I’ll repeat that old chestnut that if I was Health Czar (might as well really integrate Russians into Medicare for all), I’d start a maintenance program where even the healthiest are educated to get a massage every month and acupuncture once a season. So, if you haven’t come in in a while, maybe its time for a tune up. Booking appointments is easy now by visiting this booking page, which is also accessible from the homepage of this site. Booking online has been universally a positive process, and was crucial as I went solo over the last year and got too busy to pick up the phone. So we’ll keep with it, though I now have a new assistant at the desk, Natasha, who will be helping with moxa, making tea etc… So excited 🙂
– – – – – – – – – – – –
Being on the board of OAAOM (our state organization) I see big integration of acupuncture into the mainstream as imminently occurring, which is great; but, there are some real challenges ahead. One big challenge will be the economic pressure from all kinds of interests to mainstream and ‘scientificize’ the profession – which….could be really not about science but rather economic control. We all want quick and painless results, and acupuncture can definitely deliver. I find it important to facilitate a certain kind of experience in the treatment room – through design and intention – that isn’t usually how things are done in a fast-paced modern medical clinic. I don’t think adding a quick week-end course in ‘medical acupuncture’ or ‘dry needling’ added to the practice of other physicians is going to be as effective or as safe as someone with 3-4 years of post-graduate training. But despite these concerns, I think at some point we will all have to live together, allopathic-style practitioners without much training in the classical ways, and practitioners who have been through TCM college, etc . We LAc’s need a solid place at the table as the system ramps up to acupuncture being a major force in terms of availability, insurance, etc. If you are an acupuncturist reading this who isn’t in OAAOM – join now!! I know now from personal experience how committed the board is in helping your interests (not to mention you’ll get a good deal on CEU courses and other benefits).
I believe it’s imperative to educate and insure there is recognition and integration of the fundamental concepts (channels, qi, etc) of this ancient medicine. As Chinese medicine spread throughout different cultures, those cultures implanted their own ideas and concepts – and in modern times – I totally get that we want an intelligent integration of solid science with the old ideas. The Spark in the Machine: How the Science of Acupuncture Explains the Mysteries of Western Medicine is an excellent book that in one part explores how fascia (the thin sheath of fibrous tissue enclosing muscles and organs) in fetal development relate directly to ancient concepts of the acupuncture meridian theory – affirming underlying connections between organs, disease patterns, emotions, etc, that are fundamental roots of classic Chinese Medicine understanding. It posits that the acupuncture meridians/channels develop as fascially-transmitted electrical system very early in fetal development…. before even neural pathways or neurotransmitters/hormonal factors come on the scene! The book describes very interesting and far-reaching new scientific theory and research. This kind of work evolves the coming together of two radically different paradigms, and shows that the old theories actually give us new understandings. As the title says – the science (rooted in the “proto-science” of TCM/Daoist theory) of acupuncture can explain the mysteries of Western medicine….fascinating stuff.
– – – – – – – – – – – –
Finally, I’ll be continuing my annual talk as part of the Jacksonville Chinese New Year event this Saturday – February 17th – the Year of the Earth Dog. I’ll be at City Hall at 12:30, but be sure to catch the parade! Lots of great speakers, events, arts and crafts for the kids…
In the yearly stems/branches sequence this follows the creative confusion of the Fire Monkey (2016) and the critical pickiness of the Fire Rooster (2017). The Dog is always faithful, and can show us so well how to rest, and bark… and… stay tuned, as will I, as I retreat and prepare to review and do the annual assessment largely based on Liu Ming‘s material. I think we’ll have a lot of experience from the past year to consider this time around… 😉
All the best,
Ken
www.centerforchinesemedicine.com
4 comments