Acupuncture for Seasonal Allergies

Spring is near, and with its arrival comes longer days and warmer temps. For some of us, Spring’s arrival also means the dreaded return of allergy season. Cherry blossoms and flowers be damned, it’s hard to enjoy the beauty in bloom with itchy, watery eyes and sinus congestion!

Antihistamines can be helpful, but they don’t address the underlying root cause of seasonal allergies. During an acupuncture treatment, not only are acute symptoms addressed, but also the underlying cause in order to rebalance the body and provide long-lasting relief.

The Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) understanding of seasonal allergies relates to a deficiency of our body’s defensive wei qi. In order to support and strengthen the wei qi, points along the Stomach, Spleen, Lung and Large Intestine meridians are selected. The TCM approach to treating allergies dovetails nicely with the Western medicine (WM) understanding. From a WM perspective, seasonal allergies are a form of hypersensitivity that occurs when anti-bodies are produced by a type of white blood cell called lymphocytes in response to airborne particles, like pollen. In addition to the bloodstream, lymphocytes are also found in Peyer’s patches located in the large intestine and spleen.

Acupuncture treatments for seasonal allergies will include needling points along the arms, legs and face, as well as some very powerful points in the ear. Patients often experience immediate results of symptoms like sinus congestion and stuffy nose, and over the course of 3-5 treatments, see long term resolution of their symptoms.

If you’re interested in learning more about how Acupuncture can help resolve your seasonal allergies, book an initial consultation with one of our Registered Acupuncturists at A Balanced body today.

Nourishing Your Body in the Winter with Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine

For some of us, “winter eating” means Christmas cookies, creamy drinks and heavy meals - hey, a baggy sweater can hide all manner of sins! This kind of eating is totally normal and seasonally appropriate, but there are a few tips and tricks to keep you feeling well throughout the cold, dark Winter and help keep the blues away.

Winter Self-Care

Winter represents Yin within Yin - the utmost darkest time of the year before Yang begins to rise again in the Spring. Lean into the season and take things slow: practice gentle movement without over exertion (like one of Jessica’s yoga classes), meditate, journal regularly, or lose yourself in a book. Winter is the perfect time to engage in self-care practices like going for regular maintenance Acupuncture and Massage Therapy treatments.

Five Element Acupuncture, TCM and our Emotions in Winter

Five Element Acupuncture is a contemporary framework for understanding how our inner workings interplay with the universe around us. Each element has a season associated with it - for the Winter, we turn to water. Five Element also offers us an emotional resonance, and for Water, it’s fear. Fear can be a place of deep growth and healing, but can also stir up anxiety and low mood.

If you struggle with anxiety and depression in the Winter, our upcoming Acupuncture and Yogassage workshop will help you transition between the seasons. Click here to book and learn more.

The organ associated with Winter is our Kidneys. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the Kidneys are the source of our essential Qi, the spark that gave us life and keeps us going. It’s important to eat with our Kidney’s well-being in mind as we transition into the winter to prevent burnout. Did you know acupuncture and Chinese medicine can treat adrenal fatigue? It’s real and translates to Kidney Yang deficiency from a TCM perspective!

Cooking for Your Kidneys

You can turn your kitchen into an at-home treatment space by following some TCM food therapy guidelines:

• Cook foods at a lower temperature, for a longer period of time.

• Enjoy foods that are in abundance in the fall and winter: squashes, root vegetables, dark leafy greens.

• Always keep some bone broth on hand. The collagen from broth is so nourishing and replenishes Qi and Yin we so desperately need during the winter.

• Think dark: the colour associated with our Kidneys is black. Try to incorporate dark-coloured foods like black beans, blueberries and blackberries, black sesame seed, miso soup, and sea vegetables.

• Take care to avoid certain foods that are taxing to the Kidneys during this time of year. This includes anything high in salt or containing added salts, MSG, or excessively watery, damp and cold.

Our west coast Winters are dark, rainy, and cold but remember, this too shall pass.

If you’re interested in learning more about how Acupuncture can help treat adrenal fatigue, hormone imbalance, anxiety or low mood, book an initial consultation with one of our Registered Acupuncturists in Victoria, BC.