Blog for acupuncture and home therapy - Cozy Acupuncture in Salem, MA

What If Your Knee Is Swollen?

4/28/2015

MMA Vol. 17 When Your Knee is Swollen is added to Home Therapy page.
What if your knee is swollen with water?
Do you go see a doctor to remove water?
You may not need to do that.
Please find out what you can do at home, visiting the following.

http://www.cozyacu.com/uploads/2/9/0/8/29085181/mma_vol._17_if_your_knee_is_swollen.pdf

Sankan(LI3) for Blurry Vision

4/25/2015

Sankan (LI3) again. 78 years old female patient was complaining about blurry vision of her left eye. After general treatments, I asked her to look at a picture on the wall with her sitting on the table. That was a picture of a flower and she said all the picture was blurry and she could see the leaf but couldn't see the stem. When I touch Left Sankan (LI3: located at the base of the index finger) with thicker part of a round-tip needle, she told me she could the picture clearly. She had been told by a doctor that she had cataract and needed a operation. I don't say the operation is not necessary, but it is interesting that just touching a specific acupuncture point changed the condition of the vision.

Ichu (BL40) for Dizziness?

4/15/2015

A patient who had dizziness came in. After I treated her front side, I checked her back. When I check her left Ichu (BL40) which was located at the back of her knee, there was swelling and pain with pressure. While I was treating the point, she was saying that her neck became loose gradually and after the treatment, her dizziness was gone. The next time when I saw her, she said there was no dizziness since the last treatment and when I checked her Ichu (BL40), there was no swelling at all. Ichu (BL40) is usually used to loosen up the low back, but in this case, it affected the neck, leading to the disappearance of dizziness. I realized that it was also good to check Ichu (BL40) even when the problem was related to the neck instead of the low back.

Need Yin or Yang Ki?

4/10/2015

In the Root Treatment, when I tonify Yin Meridian, I make a choice between tonifying Yang Ki (Eki/Defensive Qi) and tonifying Yin Ki (Eiki/Nutritive Qi). In most cases, Yang Ki is tonified but sometimes Yin Ki has to be tonified. How should I differentiate? When I check each meridian by light strokes or pouring Yang Ki, if Yin Ki should be tonified, the pulse pounds in all meridians, but at the time of the most proper meridian, the pulse pounds less. So for example, if the less pounding meridian is Liver, the pulse doesn't pound and gets better when a little heavy "light stroke" or Yin Ki is applied to Liver Meridian. I distinguish how to use Yang Ki and Yin Ki like this. This may change, though.

Point absorbing tears?

4/9/2015

Sankan (LI3) is a very convenient point and is good to use for eye problems as well. But the technique to use the point for the eyes is a little different from the one for the ears. I don't insert needle because I use a round-tip needle, but the depth of pressing the point should be shallower. This point is often used when a patient can't see clearly. Yesterday I used this point for a patient who had watery eyes. She reported that she had felt that tears had been sucked through the tubes attached to the eyes while I was touching the point with a round-tip needle. That's interesting.

Sankan (LI3) for Ringing in ears

4/8/2015

When I was inserting needles, I was using this point for ringing in ears, but even just touching with Teishin (round-tip needle) is effective in reducing the noise in the ears. I tried tonifying Yin or Yang, but dispersion works better. I was thinking chronic ringing in the ear should be difficult to improve, but I'm using this point for a woman in her 70s who have had ringing in ears since she was a child, and the point is working well. However, angle and depth of Teishin seems important.

How long to tonify Yin?

4/4/2015

When they tonify Yin (Eiki) in Yin Meridian, generally speaking it is good to tonify a little longer, that means more than 6 seconds. So I was counting at least 6 seconds sometimes. But it seems better to remove even if it is just 3 seconds or so if Ki reaches the point. It depends on the patients but if it is too long, the pulse tends to pound even if it was good when light stroke was applied to the point.

Ichu (BL40) for low back pain

4/4/2015

BL40 is very well known point for low back pain. Many masters have suggested the effectiveness of the point. I have been using the point but not so sure it was as effective as the masters said and have used various points for low back pain. Recently I feel BL40 is the best for low back pain after all.

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