Notes from Your Acupuncturist (2025)

22/11/2023

📣 New podcast episode! What’s the deal with acupressure mats?

Patients have been asking my opinion on acupressure mats for years. I finally got tired of saying, “I don’t really know,” so I decided to try one out for myself.

If you don’t know what an acupressure mat is…picture a thin rectangular mat, like the kind you used to lie on at nap time in kindergarten, and it’s covered with rows of plastic circles, each about the size of a quarter, and each plastic circle has several short plastic spikes sticking out of it, and you lie on it. It’s like a plastic bed of nails.

So I bought an acupressure mat, and then I thought…why stop with mats? So then I bought a whole bunch of other acupressure tools and asked my coworkers to test them out and report back.

And that’s what we’re diving into in this episode—how these tools work, and why you might want to use them for yourself. You’ll learn:

1. The fascinating history of the acupressure mat, and how I’ve incorporated mine into my daily self-care routine

2. The principles of acupuncture meridian and point therapeutics that support the use of acupressure mats

3. Uses for other acupressure tools such as rings and rollers (including special guest appearances from two of my coworkers, Ali and Sandra!)

I’ll be honest…I went into this little acupressure mat experiment a bit skeptical. I’ve seen some pretty grandiose claims on social media. I don’t think acupressure is a cure-all, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how much I’ve come to love my acupressure mat. Acupressure is a safe, easy, inexpensive, and effective form of self-care, so I hope this episode inspires you to try it out for yourself!

Listen wherever you get podcasts, or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

17/11/2023

Did you know that humans are bioluminescent?

That’s right, we humans are capable of photon emissions—the same process that makes lightning bugs light up a summer evening and those creepy anglerfish at the bottom of the ocean dangle a glowing orb to lure prey into their giant maw.

Our photon emissions are too weak to be perceived by the naked eye, but we glow, it’s true. And there’s research suggesting that acupuncture makes you glow even more. One 2020 case study used used a hyperspectral imaging device, which detected an increase in photon emissions on areas of the skin where acupuncture needles had been placed.

I don’t fully understand the science of all this glowing, but I’ll tell you what it means to me as an acupuncturist.

A needle pierces the skin, and becomes a beacon, drawing your attention, stirring up energy, releasing stagnation, and directing qi onward to other parts of the body that need help. It’s like a magic wand, sending up sparks and creating change. And all this energy that’s moving and swirling around in response to the needle—it’s the body’s yang qi. Yang is moving, warming, and yes, light. That’s what bioluminescence is: a preponderance of yang qi so strong, it makes a creature glow.

But can there be too much yang? Yes indeed. Excess yang qi is chaotic hyperactivity rather than meaningful movement, a raging fire instead of glowing warmth. Can acupuncture stimulate too much yang qi?

Well there’s an interesting footnote from that study I mentioned. Researchers detected an increase in photon emissions immediately after needles were placed, but after 30 minutes, the level of photon emissions dropped back down to baseline, or even lower. So a needle temporarily increases yang qi, but after a while, things settle back down and balance out.

People will sometimes ask me if there’s such a thing as too much acupuncture. Not really, I’ll say. Your body takes what it needs from the needles and nothing more. And the results of this study seem to support that. Acupuncture won’t send you in the wrong direction, and it doesn’t force anything upon the body.

But it does make you glow.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

09/11/2023

There are so many ways Chinese Medicine can help you thrive through perimenopause and menopause. It reduces the discomfort of hot flashes, night sweats and anxiety; it promotes better sleep and aids energy; it benefits the musculoskeletal system; it even you refocus and reimagine your next phase of life. And that’s not all! Check out Episode 26 of the Notes from Your Acupuncturist podcast: Thriving Through Perimenopause and Menopause, with Clarissa Kristjansson, PhD. Listen wherever you get podcasts. Love and gratitude!

08/11/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Thriving Through Perimenopause and Menopause, with Clarissa Kristjansson

Have you ever found yourself in a difficult and confusing phase of life, wishing you had a guide—someone to sit you down, pour you a cup of tea, help you make sense of it all and show you the way forward?

If you’re navigating perimenopause or menopause, Clarissa Kristjansson is your person.

Clarissa is a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner, educator, and an internationally recognized expert on perimenopause and menopause. She offers a wealth of practical advice and recommendations for weathering all of the changes that come with this phase of life, and encourages women to view this time as a holistic journey, and an opportunity for renewal and refocusing.

In this episode you’ll learn:

1. Why menopause is called the Second Spring in Chinese Medicine, and how it offers the perfect opportunity to rest, restore, and reflect on where you want to go

2. Why the TCM concepts of Jing (essence) and Ming (destiny) become even more important during this phase of life

3. Practical advice to help you feel your best amid the hormonal changes of perimenopause and menopause, including deliberate nutrition, mindful movement, and living in harmony with the TCM body clock

4. How to create space for nourishing body and spirit through Yang Sheng Fa or “nourishing life practices”

There’s so much good stuff in this episode, and so many moments of gentle wisdom from Clarissa. Even if you’re not a person going through perimenopause or menopause, trust me—there’s something for you here too. As Clarissa reminds us, Chinese Medicine brings you back to the essence of you. That’s something we can all benefit from, in any stage of life.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

Listen on Apple, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app. Or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

05/11/2023

I love hearing what other acupuncturists’ and patients’ favorite points are. Our favorites reveal something about us—what we need, what we hope to share with the world, something fundamental about who we are.

My favorite point to needle on other people is Du 20, the point at the top of the head, aka Bai Hui or One Hundred Meetings. All of the body's yang channels converge at this point, and I usually needle it first, to help a person relax into their body before I start placing more needles. My favorite points to have needled on me are Kidney 3 (behind the inner ankle bone) and Gallbladder 40 (in the depression below the outer ankle bone). Both points feel very grounding and fortifying to me, and I love to massage them on myself at the end of the day.

So how about you…what’s your favorite? Why do you love it?

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

25/10/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Becoming a Curable Person, with Jason Moskovitz

One of the things I love about doing this podcast is reconnecting with people I knew years ago, seeing where life and practice has taken them, and hearing some of the wisdom they’ve accumulated in the decades since we first met.

Jason Moskovitz is one of those people. We both studied acupuncture at Yo San University in Los Angeles, and in our recent conversation he reminded me of an oft-repeated saying from one of our shared teachers, Master Hua-Ching Ni:

“There are no incurable diseases, only incurable people.”

And really, that’s what this episode is about: becoming a curable person.

Some of the highlights include:

1. Expanding our understanding of the concept of root and branch in Chinese Medicine, and why roots of disease often reach far beyond physiological dysfunction, and into a person’s life circumstances, genetics, history and community

2. Why relief from suffering is rooted in connection, and how to practice and cultivate connection through self-care

3. The importance of asking for help, moving through pain and discomfort, and being both a student and teacher

4. How meditation, movement and other self-care practices cultivate intuition, which Jason calls “a truth from inside your own being”

You’ll also hear about Jason’s journey of incorporating meditation and movement practices into his own life to show up and be more present as a parent, a partner, and a practitioner. I loved this conversation with Jason, and I hope it can serve as a reminder that we all have the potential to be curable humans.

Listen wherever you get podcasts, or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

20/10/2023

Recently a study of nearly 300,000 people in the U.K. examined the link between depression and daily habits. Researchers concluded that daily habits do indeed influence your risk of depression, even among people who have a genetic predisposition.

I find stories like these both exciting and exasperating. Exciting because they’re empowering! You DO have agency over your mental health! Small changes DO make a difference! And exasperating because once you actually read the list of daily habits that could reduce your risk of depression by up to 57%, it’s like…of course. OF COURSE these practices benefit your mental health. In fact, stop reading right now and take a few seconds to think of some daily habits that could benefit your mental health.

Okay now let’s compare your list with the one from a team of scientists. Here’s theirs:

1. Get a good night’s sleep, preferably 7-9 hours.
2. Exercise
3. Eat a healthy diet
4. Limit alcohol
5. Don’t smoke
6. Limit screen time and be less sedentary
7. Spend time with friends
8. Have hobbies

Any surprises there?? I didn’t think so.

Now, the science underpinning these findings is really interesting. Researchers looked at markers of inflammation, changes in brain chemistry, genetic risks, and a host of other metabolic, neurologic, and immunologic factors. Very nerdy! I love it.

But here’s the take-home message for me: Most of us already know what we need to do to be healthy. Sure, we all need guidance from time to time. But our instincts are right. We probably don’t need a team of researchers to tell us we’ll feel better if get adequate sleep, eat healthy food, and spend time with people we like, doing things we enjoy.

Your body is not going to lead you astray. It wants to survive and thrive. Trust it. You already know what to do.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

15/10/2023

Is acupuncture safe? What are the risks and side effects? The latest episode of the Notes from Your Acupuncturist podcast explores acupuncture’s safety record and possible adverse events. Learn why it’s one of the safest forms of medicine, why some “side effects” are actually signs of a beneficial therapeutic response, and how acupuncture might even surprise you with a few unexpected side benefits. While no form of medicine is completely risk-free, acupuncture comes pretty close. Listen wherever you get podcasts!

13/10/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Is acupuncture safe? Exploring the risks and side effects

In recent weeks a news story has been making the rounds about a woman who suffered a double pneumothorax as a result of an acupuncture treatment. A pneumothorax is just a fancy way of saying a collapsed lung, and although it’s exceeding rare for acupuncture to cause one, it is a possible adverse event. So I thought this would be a good opportunity to talk about the risks, side effects, and safety record of acupuncture.

Acupuncture is safe. Really, really safe. But like all forms of medicine, it is not entirely risk-free. So let’s talk about what those risks are, and how worried you should be about them.

Episode highlights include:

1. Potentially serious, yet extremely rare adverse events that may occur as a result of acupuncture, including pneumothorax, infection, damage to peripheral nerves and blood vessels, and organ damage. Learn about the many safeguards built in to the practice of acupuncture to minimize these risks, including training, testing, licensing, and the universal use of single-use, disposable needles.

2. Less serious, slightly more frequent, but still pretty rare potential side effects, including bleeding, bruising, pain at the needle site, temporary worsening of symptoms, lightheadedness, and fainting. Learn why some of these shouldn’t even be considered side effects, and are more likely signs of a positive therapeutic response.

3. A little perspective: the potential risks and side effects from acupuncture pale in comparison to other forms of medical care. It truly is one of the safest forms of medicine.

4. Not only is acupuncture extremely low-risk, it often produces bonus side benefits such as better sleep, more energy, and a calmer, more relaxed mood.

While no form of medicine is completely risk-free, acupuncture comes pretty close. It’s safe, it’s effective, and it might even surprise you with a few happy side benefits. So, now you know the risks…time to go get some acupuncture.

Listen wherever you get podcasts, or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

29/09/2023

Sometimes a patient will tell me that they start to relax and feel better before the first needle even goes in.

This is because the work of healing has already begun.

The work of healing happens when you settle your body into a comfortable seat and allow your muscles to let go. It happens when you roll up your sleeves and pant legs, ready to accept healing touch. It happens when you take a deep breath and put away your phone. It happens as soon as you schedule an appointment. It happens the moment you ask for help.

The work of healing has no starting point.

Healing doesn’t begin or end.

Healing ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, lies in dormancy for a while and then moves in all directions.

That’s why you start to relax and feel better before the first needle goes in. Because you are already healing.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

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20/09/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Lunar Acupuncture: Harnessing the Power of the Moon for Healing, with Dr. Michelle Hamilton

Have you ever had more insomnia during a full moon? Have you ever felt more introspective or melancholy during a new moon? Have you ever wondered if the pull of the moon might be affecting your physical body, your emotional state, and your life? We know the moon affects the tides, and our own bodies contain about 60% water—so why wouldn’t the phases of the moon affect us as well?

Licensed Acupuncturist Dr. Michelle Hamilton has spent a lot of time exploring these questions, and has developed a unique treatment approach she calls Lunar Acupuncture, using the energy of the lunar cycles to amplify the effects of her acupuncture treatments, and help patients take a more active role in manifesting their own healing. Her approach is based on insights from her patients, collaboration with other practitioners, and a deep respect for the key fundamentals of TCM.

In this episode, we discuss:

1. How to harness the moon’s cycles to promote healing, set intentions and manifest goals
2. How the phases of the moon and astrological cycles correlate with certain physical and emotional changes, and how they can help amplify the effects of acupuncture or other natural healing modalities
3. How non-acupuncturists can apply the principles of lunar acupuncture with non-needling techniques, including acupressure, crystals and essential oils. As Michelle says, “You don’t need to be an acupuncturist to utilize the power of acupuncture.”

I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation, and one of the things that struck me most about Michelle is her genuine curiosity and enthusiasm for learning, collaborating and sharing. She approaches her work with a deep sense of wonder and a desire to grow and benefit others. It's a reminder for all of us to embrace curiosity in our own lives, and to never stop seeking knowledge and understanding.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

**Curious to learn more about Lunar Acupuncture? Use coupon code NOTESFROMTHEMOON to save $80 off course enrollment!** You can learn more about Michelle, her practice, and her courses at her website, https://www.drmichellehamilton.com

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15/09/2023

I think it’s good to remember that disease is not an individual failing.

Many westerners, particularly those interested in things like holistic health, self care and personal development, tend to see the state of a person’s health as the product of their personal decisions: what you eat, whether or not you smoke or drink alcohol or use drugs, how much exercise you get, the steps in your self-care routine, the type of work you choose to do, even where you choose to live.

But we have to remember that health is rooted in families and communities. And in genetics, and epigenetics. If you’ve mostly enjoyed good health in your lifetime, congratulations, a lot of that has to do with luck. And if you haven’t, keep in mind that you’re the product of generations before you, and their decisions, and the factors that were beyond their control, and all the accidents of fate in your own life, and the people around you, and their ancestors too.

Health is not a through-line in your own self-contained life. It’s a web spreading out, connecting past and present, connecting neighbors and coworkers and friends and passers-by. The health of one affects all.

Illness is not a shortcoming. And good health is not a hero’s triumph. We’re all in this together.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

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06/09/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Unraveling Long COVID: A Chinese Medicine Approach with Luriko Ozeki

Licensed Acupuncturist Luriko Ozeki of Iyashi Wellness has specialized in pediatrics for many years. But at the start of the covid-19 pandemic, she took on a new role: offering telemedicine services for adults who were suffering from the effects of long covid, and desperate for help. She’s gone on to work with many long covid patients, both adults and children, using Chinese Medicine to help guide their bodies back to a healthy and balanced state.

Long covid is estimated to occur in at least 10% of severe SARS-CoV-2 infections, and it’s estimated that around 200 million people worldwide have some form of long covid. And those numbers are likely higher due to undocumented cases. One study published in the Lancet found that two-thirds of long covid patients required a reduced work schedule or weren’t working at all. Even if you haven’t been personally impacted by long covid, chances are you know someone who has.

Fortunately, Chinese Medicine offers real help to long covid patients. In this episode, Luriko and I discuss:

1. What long covid is, how it manifests in the body, and the physiological systems it affects
2. How Chinese Medicine theories of disease progression, including two of our classic texts the Shang Han Lun and Wen Bing, inform an acupuncturist’s understanding of long covid and our treatment approach
3. The concept of a latent pathogenic factor, and its relationship to inflammation and the body’s immune response
4. Practical tools for helping the body expel pathogenic factors and fortify its infrastructure, so it can be in an even healthier state to fight off future infections

You’ll learn about heat pathogens, cold pathogens, latent pathogens, phlegm, dampness, levels of disease and all of the other fascinating topics that Chinese Medicine practitioners love to talk about!

As Luriko reminds us, Chinese Medicine has developed over thousands of years against a backdrop of epidemics and infectious disease. So it’s uniquely suited to help remind the body of its innate intelligence, and remember how to be healthy again.

Listen wherever you get podcasts, or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

01/09/2023

When acupuncturists talk about flow, we usually mean the flow of qi through the body’s meridians. But there’s a different kind of flow that’s important to our physical and mental health.

It’s the kind of flow that happens where you’re so engrossed in something that you lose all track of time.

It’s called a “flow state,” a phrase first coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. He was curious about why people dedicated hours of time and effort to activities for pure enjoyment. He studied painters, rock climbers, chess players, long distance swimmers, and others who became so absorbed in their activities that they lost all sense of self, and simply surrendered to the experience.

Have you felt it?

Flow state doesn’t only happen for athletes and artists. You can experience a flow state when you’re reading a book, or doing a jigsaw puzzle, or cooking dinner.
When you hit your flow state, you feel purely present in the moment. The world falls away. It’s just you and your activity, merged as one. It feels marvelous.

Flow states have been studied extensively over the years, and research shows that the more flow you experience, the better you feel. But flow states are easily disrupted and difficult to re-enter. One interruption, one ping from your phone, and your flow state dissolves.

People tend to lose all track of time when engaged in a flow state. But it’s important to remember that time spent does not equal flow state. Doomscrolling is not a flow state. Internet rabbit holes, television binge-watching, staring at screens…these are not flow states. These are time-sucking diversions. How can you tell the difference? It’s pretty simple. A flow state feels good.

Flow doesn’t just happen as qi courses through our meridians. Flow is something we make. It excites and calms at the same time. It captivates the attention while expanding the mind. It isolates us from distraction, while connecting us to something greater.

And flow is out there waiting for you.

What’s your flow state? How do you lose yourself and surrender to the present?

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

P.S. This Note was inspired by the excellent book Stolen Focus by Johann Hari. I highly recommend it for anyone who feels their attention being hijacked in our digital age.

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23/08/2023

📣 New podcast episode! Challenging Systems of Oppression and Reclaiming Ancestral Practices with 李道玲 Camellia Dao-Ling McDermott Lee

When 李道玲 Camellia Dao-Ling McDermott Lee contacted me about coming on the podcast as a guest, I knew that theirs was a perspective I wanted to hear and share. As a biracial member of the Asian diaspora, and a fifth-generation Taiwanese healer, Camellia has spent years trying to understand why their own Asian family members would express disdain for the ancestral healing traditions of acupuncture and Chinese Medicine. Was it internalized racism? Survival instinct? Perhaps even, love?

Camellia's narrative is interwoven with tales of war, empire, and anti-Asian racism that profoundly impacted their family's choices. Their unique academic path, against the backdrop of societal issues of racism, colonialism and systems of oppression, all coalesce into a captivating exploration of identity, heritage, and healing.

We discuss:

1. The history of acupuncture in the United States, the financial barriers to acupuncture education, and broader issues of cultural appropriation, gentrification, violence, and displacement.
2. The far-reaching implications of Orientalism on marginalized groups, and the structures of power, money, and domination it reinforces.
3. The inherent reciprocity at the foundation of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the importance of participating in energetic exchanges on both the individual and community levels.

We also talk about Camellia’s new book, Elemental Healing: A 5-Element Path for Ancestor Connection, Balanced Energy and Aligned Life. Camellia shares why they were inspired to write it, and the lessons and guidance it can offer to all of us.

Camellia generously shares their unique perspective on the challenges and rewards of reconnecting with ancestral practices amid a labyrinth of cultural and systemic pressures, while offering a poignant reminder of the necessity to challenge our perceptions and strive for empathy and understanding. This episode serves as a call to action, urging us to consciously dismantle these structures of harm through our interactions and conversations.

Listen on Apple, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app. Or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

17/08/2023

“That’s where I hold my stress,” a person will tell me, pointing to their neck and shoulders, or jaws, or upper back, or forehead and temples.

Can you relate?

Many of us tense up these strategic areas as armor against an unpredictable world. We’re preparing for an attack that may or may not come, but it’s best to be ready just in case.

But why these areas?

The head, the jaws and face, the neck and shoulders, the back…these are yang parts of the body. Yang is hard, active, expansive and forceful. It’s the skin and muscles and tendons and ligaments that protect our squishy yin interior—the vital internal organs. We don’t tend to talk about holding stress in our lungs, or liver or kidneys, because those organs are busy doing the important work of keeping us alive. They need their yang protectors to step in and run interference.

Tight neck and shoulders? That’s your Gallbladder meridian protecting its yin partner, the Liver, which is responsible for directing all of the body’s cycles. It’s also the Urinary Bladder meridian protecting its partner the Kidneys, which are the root of our constitutional strength and longevity.

Tension in your face and jaws? That’s the Stomach meridian protecting the Spleen, which is responsible for digestion, and the Large Intestine protecting its partner the Lungs.

What about tension in the shoulder blades? That’s the Small Intestine protecting the Heart, the seat of our emotions.

The top of the head is where all yang channels converge. So tension in your head…that’s every yang channel on overdrive, giving their all to shield every yin part of you.

We tense up these areas without even realizing it. We berate ourselves for holding on to physical stress. “Why can’t I just relax??” we ask. But think of it this way…tension is also protection. It’s survival. It’s love.

Life throws stressors at us and the body responds in brilliant ways to safeguard what is most precious.

Take a deep breath, and say thank you to your endlessly wise body. You might just feel some of that tension start to let go.

Love and gratitude,
Your Acupuncturist

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10/08/2023

“Isn’t acupuncture just a placebo?”

It’s not. Here’s why.

Acupuncture works on animals, babies, and skeptics. You don’t have to believe in acupuncture for it to have a therapeutic effect.

In research studies, “real” acupuncture and sham acupuncture will sometimes produce similar results. But further investigation shows that they have different mechanisms of action, and “real” acupuncture usually results in longer term relief.

A placebo is something that has no intended therapeutic value. But acupuncture is delivered with intention and purpose. The practitioner’s intention, and the energetic exchange between practitioner and patient, are all elements of healing.

Learn more about acupuncture and the placebo effect in episode 20 of the Notes from Your Acupuncturist podcast! Listen wherever you get podcasts, or subscribe on Substack and never miss an episode!

Notes from Your Acupuncturist