Give the Gift of Health this Holiday Season
Give the Gift of Health this Holiday Season There’s so much to be said about gift giving around the holidays, some people love it, some people not so much, and others scrap it all together! That being said, if you are looking for the perfect gift, why not create a gift bag of self care and health! Here’s some ideas that will definitely please almost anyone! (NOTE: We are not affiliated with anyone below, we just like the product!) The gift of Meditation! Face it, we all need it, so get the loved one in your life a year long subscription to a meditation app, there’s so many out there with Headspace and Calm the leader of the pack. A Rose Quartz Eye Mask. At first glance this seemed silly, but if you believe in the energy of crystals (like we do!) it makes perfect sense. I think we are all feeling Zoomed out, so pick up one of these for a friend and yourself. https://wthn.com/products/rose-quartz-eye-mask?sscid=c1k5_8zson& A Weighted Blanket. Ahhhh, people love weighted blankets because they relieve anxiety and they help you get a more restful sleep. Something about the weight just feels yummy and Amazon has a plethora of this at all different price points! Ban.Do Feeling Feelings Card Deck. This is a deck of cards to help navigate your emotions and feel your feels. Great for anyone, but especially teens. The prompts on the cards are great for supporting your emotional awareness and growth. Not only that, but 50% of the proceeds go to The Loveland Foundation, an organization that supports the mental health of communities of color, especially Black women and girls. https://www.bando.com/collections/wellness/products/feeling-feelings-card-deck?ranMID=42983&ranEAID=TnL5HPStwNw&ranSiteID=TnL5HPStwNw-x8C.Kji3SxQ5Hy._tZ0Ybw We know the holidays can be a time of excess– excess food, excess sweets, excess alcohol. So, how about a non-alcoholic apertif that has a pleasant infusion of herbs, Gentian to support the liver and orange peel and ginger for the digestion to name a few. You can still party without the cost the next day! Check Ghia out! https://drinkghia.com/products/ghia?sscid=c1k5_90790& An essential oil sleep formula? My friend, Valerie Bennis’ award winning company Essence of Vali has a lovely sleep formula she’s made, it comes in mist, balm and in drops. I apply some drops on a tissue and tuck it under my pillow case or close by so I can inhale the scents all night long. It’s truly a treat and all natural, cruelty free- only good stuff. https://essenceofvali.com/collections/natural-sleep-aids Speaking of essential oils, how about a diffuser? If you are working at home, turn your office into a pleasure palace of scents — different oils can keep you calm or energize you when you are in a lull! There are so many diffusers out there at all different price points, grab one with a pack of essential oils and have fun! Lastly, it wouldn’t be prudent if we didn’t let you know that we offer gift cards as well. Maybe someone in your life is just stressed out, or maybe they’ve been dealing with something for awhile, if you’ve read this far you probably love acupuncture and want to turn someone in your life onto it. We offer gift cards at any price just email christina@berkeley-acupuncture.com and she can get you set up! Thanks for reading and have a wonderful holiday season! May your month be full of sweet tranquility, a thousand laughs and memories to last a lifetime!
Breaking Down PCOS
Breaking Down PCOS PCOS is one of the most common endocrine disturbances. Many women are not privy to the fact that they have PCOS until the endocrine disturbance becomes so problematic that their periods become non-existent, this is called amenorrhea and is brought on by anovulation. Diagnosing PCOS With PCOS, there are mandatory symptoms and then additional signs and symptoms that can further confirm the diagnosis. To qualify for a diagnosis of PCOS, a patient must only exhibit two of the following: Anovulation, hyperandrogenism or polycystic ovaries (an ovary with 12 or more follicles measuring 2-9mm). Other signs and symptoms which are less important are weight gain, menstrual cycle disturbances, hirsuitism, hyperinsulinemia (or other insulin issues), acne, alopecia or thinning hair, skin tags and acanthosis nigricans. A word about weight gain– research shows about 60% of women that have PCOS are overweight, in our experience at Tao to Wellness, that is not accurate. In our clinical experience, about 60% of women actually tend towards being on the leaner side. We wanted to share this finding because if you are not exhibiting classic text book symptoms, but are still wondering, don’t necessarily rule this diagnosis out just yet. Lab work is extremely valuable and usually provide the initial clue. Usually a patient comes to us with lab work from their OBGYN, but know that we are happy to order labs as well. The most common lab finding in PCOS patients is a high LH with a normal FSH in a 2:1 ratio. Whenever we see this in the clinic, even if the patient is having normal periods, this is a clue that PCOS is possibly in the beginning stages. Other lab findings: High LH (low or low/normal levels of FSH, 2:1) High Testosterone (especially Free T) High DHEA (high in half of women) Low SHBG (This is Sex Hormone Binding Globulin and is controlled by hormones. Testosterone inhibits SHBG and estrogen and thyroxine stimulate SHBG. Women with PCOS have a 50% reduction in circulating SHBG, which is a response to the increased Testosterone.) High Androgens High Prolactin (20% of women have high levels, because of increase pulsatility in gonadotropins) Possible High Estrogen (E2) High TSH False OPK’s (Ovulation Prediction Kits) Women with PCOS ovulate late in the cycle, if at all and when they do, the quality of the egg is compromised due to the late ovulation. Not always, but often, a woman may receive a false positive on an OPK test. This is due to excess androgens produced by the cyst entering the bloodstream and altering the HPO (Hypothalmic Pituitary Ovarian) axis. Usually estrogen is also high in relation to progesterone, which causes an increase in LH and testosterone. In turn, the hormonal cascade causes no ovulation. A woman may think they are ovulating because of the positive OPK, but she isn’t. The test is only detecting the LH surge. This results in a false positive. How Chinese medicine can help There are a few scenarios from a Chinese medicine point of view, but one that is usually consistent in PCOS is, there is always excessive damp. Dampness can wreak havoc in the body and throw the hormone system off which results in, as mentioned, anovulations and compromised egg quality. Acupuncture is wonderful for PCOS, it moves the damp, it communicates directly to the hypothalamus and resets the feedback loop between the brain and the ovaries. The hormones become regulated again, inflammation is decreased in the uterine environment, digestion and sleep are enhanced so that repair and rejuvenation can occur. Chinese herbal medicine is also an extremely effective modality in treating PCOS. By combining acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine, patients achieve predictable cycles faster. At Tao to Wellness, we are proud to have a full granular Chinese herbal pharmacy, which grants us the freedom to customize formulas for each patient. In working with PCOS, we find that using many different herbs and formulas to mimic the different phases of the menstrual cycle gives us the best results. For example, if a patient has a four week follicular phase and a one week luteal phase. We would utilize different herbs to adjust the timing of that cycle. Chinese herbal medicine can also increase blood flow to the uterus to enhance the lining, regulate the hormones and relax the mind. And particularly for PCOS, Chinese medicine has specific herbs to dissolve the waxy capsule that make the ovaries polycystic. With PCOS, Chinese nutritional guidelines are also of the utmost importance in order to balance the communication between the brain and the ovaries. This is a delicate balance. There are many foods that claim to boost fertility, but in the case of PCOS, we often need to limit those foods because of it’s effect on estrogen. Instead, we rely on different foods to help regulate the right hormones, bring down inflammation and support blood flow.
