Sick and tired of always being sick and tired?
Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine are Uniquely Suited to Treating Chronic Illness
Many of my new patients tell me when they first come in that they have to budget their energy expenditures. For them, a normal friend outing will require half a day or more of recuperation. A typical day of work, even at a beloved job, leaves them without enough energy to fix and eat a meal. Some are too sick to socialize or work. It is so rewarding to me to see these longstanding difficulties begin to turn around, as my patients regain their ability to enjoy and participate in life.
If you are reading this, you, too, may have consulted countless doctors, sometimes getting a diagnosis and sometimes not. Even when something is clearly wrong, many ailments do not show up on blood work or imaging. Or abnormal bloodwork does not turn up a diagnosis. Or the diagnosis in conventional medicine has no treatment. Sometimes frustrated patients are told to lose weight or exercise more, two things that their body has long ago declined to do despite dedicated and sustained efforts.
Do any of the following situations resonate with you?
feeling somehow cursed because, unlike your loved ones, you can’t eat a slice of pizza (or some other common food) without debilitating pain or running to the toilet?
Is your internal thermostat off, to the point that you are sweating and wanting to rip your clothes off and stand in front of a fan while others seem perfectly unbothered? Extra points if this temperature dysregulation is not occuring during menopause.
Does a normal sized meal sit uncomfortably on your belly, so that you eat less than everyone else at the table, and yet mysteriously still gain weight?
Do you track public restrooms or have a tried and true way to ask to use the employee restroom because you can’t run an errand or watch a movie without getting up to pee (or poop)?
Are you contemplating a very serious, potentially life-threatening surgery because you are running out of treatment options and would rather risk that than keep feeling as badly as you do?
Are you a pro at googling your symptoms and suggesting potential diagnoses to your medical providers because you long ago learned that waiting patiently for the doctors to figure it out will not work?
Your fatigue and symptoms are the opposite of feeling sexy, making it hard to engage fully in intimate relationships?
If this is you, I first want to commiserate with the long journey you have been on. I know recovery is possible, and that when it comes, the deep wisdom of having suffered for so long will be a gift for others around you.
I can say this confidently because I have seen so many very sick people get better. The medicine that originated in ancient China and spread throughout Asia, now referred to as Traditional East Asian Medicine (TEAM) is uniquely suited to treat chronic illness. When you explain your bizarre conglomeration of symptoms, I hear things that were described in ancient texts, and feel excited to begin an effective treatment that will restore confidence in your own body’s ability to interact with this world and experience joy.
Let me warn you, I will ask a lot of follow up questions! It is my job to determine whether your body has not enough or too much of certain substances; to find out where things are getting stuck or are falling out. Then, in very basic ways, we get to work.
If something is stuck, we open through; if blood or cooling fluids are missing, we help the body make more; if there is too much heat, we cool it; too much cold, we warm it. If an organ’s function is going in the wrong direction, say stomach qi is going up when it should go down causing nausea, vomiting, or regurgitation, we help it find the right direction. If something (like urine) is falling out too frequently, we help it to stay in. If a particular system is weak, we strengthen it.
Persistent symptoms become less frequent, and less intense. Interestingly, it is not uncommon to see patients make other, unrelated and positive life changes as they start to feel better. Slowly, being chronically unwell becomes a memory, a hard thing that someone went through and came out of on the other side, stronger, more confident, and, for having suffered deeply, more compassionate.
I know this can be hard to believe, so here it is from a recent patient, describing her experience: Ann is an ancient eastern healer reincarnated. I am beyond grateful to have found her as I have been struggling for the majority of my life with multiple ailments, and in only 5 sessions I have experienced remarkable changes in my health already. The combination of the herbs she prescribes and her style of acupuncture are without a doubt a game changer for me and I can't wait to continue to see how wonderful I can feel! She is truly a gifted practitioner and healer. Thank you Ann! —O.H.
Your mysterious illness is not mysterious to us. If you are tired of seeking a solution to feeling unwell and are ready to get off of the sick train, book an appointment below.