Dealing with the C-Word: Cancer !

Surviving Cancer and Treatments with the Help of Acupuncture

Acupuncture has been around for thousands of years and the last ten years of clinical studies have provided mounting scientific evidence that acupuncture, indeed, reduces specific symptoms associated with the side effects of cancer-related treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation. 

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) actively funds and helps to facilitate ongoing research and evaluation to better appropriate the use of complementary medicine such as acupuncture. 

In fact, the United States Library of Medicine and the National Center for Biotechnology Information provide an online library and database through www.pubmed.gov of completed scientific studies that show hundreds of clinical research projects that support the fact that acupuncture is a beneficial therapy for those undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments. A quick search of "acupuncture cancer" brings up over one thousand results. Not all of these results are relevant to acupuncture, but many are. 

One recent article published in the July 2014 edition of Annals of Palliative Medicine takes a look at several different complementary and alternative medicine modalities that were effective in alleviating side effects of cancer therapy and improving on quality of life during cancer treatment. 

In one study, acupuncture was found to significantly reduce the severity of the main symptoms suffered by cancer patients such as cancer pain, chemo-toxicity, lumbar pain, chronic postoperative pain. In another study, acupuncture was found to be a safe way to reduce arm circumference in breast cancer related lymphedema of the arm and reduce hot flashes and sleep disturbances in breast cancer survivors.

A recent medical journal study concluded that acupuncture is now considered an effective alternative treatment option for preventing delayed chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting and in promoting better quality of life for patients.

A common side effect during radiation therapy is severe dry mouth known as xerosomia. Acupuncture was found to be successful in reducing xerostomia in one study jointly conducted by the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Shanghai University Cancer Center.

Being diagnosed with cancer and commencing treatment can be a scary event, but there are ways to control the unwanted side effects of cancer treatment by adopting a holistic perspective on the process. Finding a skilled acupuncturist who is well-versed in traditional oriental herbal medicines will help control the negative consequences of cancer treatment. 

Acupuncturists who enhance their education with information about 8-Body Type Constitutional oriental medicine will have an advantage when assessing cancer patients and formulating an acupuncture and herbal treatment plan to prevent common cancer treatment side effects.

By incorporating acupuncture and traditional oriental herbal medicine in a cancer treatment plan, doctors and patients will be pleasantly surprised to find that cancer patients are better able to endure chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

Acupuncture Points are like Electrical Switches that Turn On and Off!

A Light Bulb Moment!

Most of the time, I place acupuncture needles on the arms and legs, away from where the pain is actually felt. Many of my patients wonder why I place acupuncture needles where I do when the pain is somewhere else on the body. The reason is that acupuncture points act like electrical switches that turn on or turn off energy to different parts of the body.

Think of your body like a house. In the house, there are different light bulbs that turn on and off. The electricity is energy that runs throughout the house, just like the energy that runs throughout your body. However, in order to turn on or off the light bulb, we do not actually touch the light bulb. Instead, we flip a switch on the wall that is away from the light bulb. There is usually circuitry in the house that runs from the light bulb to the switch that controls whether or not the energy flows to the light bulb.

This is how acupuncture works. Our body has complex circuitry that allows the skilled acupuncturist to increase or decrease the energy juice that runs throughout the body. This is how the acupuncturist is able to help keep a body balanced.

All Energy is Not the Same

In Asian medicine and Asian philosophy, everything and everyone is influenced by two complementary energies, yin and yang. Yin energy is more subdued, demure, dark, calm, passive, feminine, small, cold, wet, and downward. Yang energy is more radiant, vibrant, bright, active, aggressive, masculine, large, hot, and upward. Yin and Yang are always present together for dynamic energy in the same way that mankind is propagated by both the male and female species. One cannot exist and continue without the other.

For example, let us think about a growing plant. It starts off as a seed and the roots grow down into the cold and damp ground. This is the yin energy at work. Yet the stalk and leaves grow upward toward the hot sunlight. This is the yang energy at work. When there is perfect balance, the plant grows healthy and strong. However, too much yin energy and not enough yang energy could cause the roots of the plant to rot and the plant will die. Conversely, too much yang energy and not enough yin energy could cause the plant to shrivel up dry and die.

The human body works in the same manner. Perfect balance is what helps a growing baby turn into a healthy adult. Even within the human body, our organs have to balance yin and yang energy to develop and work properly. For example, internal organs must have balanced nutrients and circumstances to develop properly. If one type of energy outweighs the other type of energy, then you have imbalanced development that leads to health issues later in life.

Why is it that two people could eat the same exact foods and yet have different digestive consequences? This is because they have different energy balances at work on the internal organs, such as the stomach, small intestine, or large intestine.

The skilled acupuncturist will consider all of your symptoms and exacerbating circumstances to determine factors that are contributing to your health ailments, then develop a plan of action to bring all your energies back to balance.

Balancing Yin and Yang Energies

When your health seems out of balance, the skilled acupuncturist will zoom in on which side the imbalance tilts and then figure out a strategy to return to equilibrium. For example, imbalance could be either too much yin energy and not enough yang energy. It could be the opposite: too much yang energy and not enough yin energy. When treating a patient, a skilled acupuncturist is attempting to either increase one energy or reduce another energy in hopes of striking the right balance. When the right balance is reached, your unwanted physical symptom will naturally disappear.

The imbalance could be limited to your kidney function or your liver function. It could be your stomach function or your intestine function. Whatever is going on inside your body will be revealed by the clues your body gives by reacting to specific conditions. That is why the acupuncturist is always asking about the details of your physical body functions. We want to know how your body reacts to heat and cold. What kinds of foods do you digest well and which do you have a difficult time? What happens after you have a night of gluttony?

Your acupuncturist will become more intimately aware of your poop and pee than your own mother has ever been. You will learn to appreciate the finer details of how your body expels human waste, including the color, texture, and time. Why? Because this information will enlighten the acupuncturist as to which way the imbalance of your energies tilts.

Once the acupuncturist has figured out which organ is imbalanced and which way the imbalance tilts, then the acupuncturist can turn on and turn off the switches that allow the yin and yang energies to flow to the specific internal organs.

Balanced energies can be more quickly reached by hastening the effectiveness of acupuncture by supplementing diet with traditional Asian herbs (usually in the form of a tea or granules). The acupuncturist who is also skilled in oriental medicine will know which herbs have the right type of energy balance to assist in getting to your right energy balance.

Just like staying physically fit, the road to balancing yin and yang energies is a lifelong process. Healthy people know that exercising one time will not make a fit person of you for the rest of your life. You must make it part of your lifestyle to incorporate physical activity to stay fit. Similarly, reaching a balance of yin and yang energies at one point in your life does not mean you will stay balanced for the rest of your life. You must maintain this balance by getting regular checkups with your acupuncturist and addressing the dynamic changes that influence your health.

Enjoy the journey!

Family Acupuncture Clinic, Inc.

3525 Lomita Blvd., Suite 101

Torrance, CA  90505

310-303-3338 Telephone

E-mail address:

torranceomd@gmail.com

Our mission is to help as many people as possible to get well naturally and to educate them about Acupuncture and Asian medicine, so they in turn can educate as many people as possible!

www.AcupunctureTorranceCA.com

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