by angieng67 | Dec 8, 2021 | Acupuncture, Wellness and Nutrition
At Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness in Chicago, we believe that health is about achieving and maintaining balance.
We all become out of balance at some point in our lives. This can be due to overwork, stress, trauma, unhealthy eating habits, lack of exercise, etc. Over time, this takes a toll on our health and can lead to issues such as pain problems, insomnia, anxiety, depression, digestive problems, fatigue, hormonal problems, infertility, weight gain, low immunity, and just overall not feeling like your best self. Whatever your health concerns may be, we look at each individual holistically rather than just as a series of symptoms or diseases. By looking at the whole person and utilizing acupuncture and holistic medicine, we strive to help our patients achieve lasting vitality and wellness.
In the video below, our licensed acupuncturist, Angie Ng, talks about how we help our patients attain wellness through acupuncture, lifestyle and nutritional coaching, herbal supplements, and other natural therapies.
At Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness, we believe health is about balance.
Restoring a Health Balance with Acupuncture video on Youtube
by angieng67 | Jan 19, 2021 | Acupuncture, Stress and Anxiety
Go, Go, Go, and did I mention Go. Does this feel like your life – a constant bombardment of job stress, family stress, and environmental stress? And then you lie down at night, and that deep restful sleep you long for struggles to come. (Boo!) Well you are most certainly not alone. According to a survey from the Better Sleep Council, half of Americans (48%) say they don’t get enough sleep, and less than half of them take any one specific action to help them get better sleep.(1)
Sleep, like the whole of the human body, is complex, and many things may be involved in your inability to get a good night sleep, but for the overworked and stressed out, there is a good chance cortisol is part of the problem. Cortisol is the hormone that governs your hunger cravings, digestion, blood pressure, sleep/wake patterns, a capacity to cope with stress. It is produced in the adrenal glands and helps manage glucose levels in the body.(2) It responds when the fight or flight part of our brain is triggered by stress. This is an ideal response if you are being chased by a bear, but not when our phone pings at us that we have a message waiting or when we see that escalating pile of laundry in the corner. But this is what is happening without us even realizing it and it is affecting our sleep and our health.
I started struggling with sleep when I went back to school for acupuncture (oops ;-p) These are some recommendations that I find work for me:
The Sleep Supplement Regimen
Ashwagandha
The powerful Ayurvedic herb- Ashwagandha, often referred to as “indian ginseng” because of its many restorative benefits, has been shown to boost the immune system, modulate blood sugar, and lower cortisol levels, helping you stay stable through the day. Ashwagandha is an adaptogenic herb. Adaptogens not only increase the resistance to the adverse effects of long-term stress yet the majority are also a tonic, immune-stimulating and increase general sense of well-being.
Tart Cherry Juice
Multiple clinical studies have shown tart montmorency cherry juice to have a positive effect on sleep, helping you fall asleep quicker and stay asleep longer. (3)(4) Tart cherry juice increases melatonin, which can help improve sleep quality immediately, and also improve how your body uses tryptophan, which has been shown to help people fall asleep and stay asleep.
I recommend starting out with 1 tablespoon and ramping up to 2 if needed. Tart Cherry Juice might not be the easiest to find on the grocery store shelves, but many stores do carry it and it is well worth asking the store clerk about. My sleeping life changed when I found tart cherry juice.
Magnesium and Calcium
Magnesium is a critical mineral responsible for over 300 enzyme reactions in the body. You must have it for your cells to make energy, for many different chemical pumps to work, to stabilize membranes, and to help muscles relax. Magnesium is a relaxing mineral, helping all forms of tension- Tense nerves, tense bowels, and tense muscles.
Calcium plays an important role in cell signaling, helping to induce normal muscle contraction and conduct of nerve impulses. Magnesium and calcium are both sleep boosters, and when taken together they become even more effective. (5)
What Else Can you Try?
Ditch the alcohol
It may help you fall asleep, but doesn’t assure a quality rest. As alcohol metabolizes during the night, sleep becomes fragmented and deep sleep decreases. Try having your nightcap at happy hour at least 3 hours before hitting the pillow. (6)
Acupuncture
Acupuncture modulates the hormone system through its effect on the hypothalamus, and stimulates the ‘rest and digest’ part of the brain. A pilot study of acupuncture, three times a week for twelve weeks, showed a decrease in urinary cortisol levels, improved sleep and quality of life for menopausal women. (7)
by Sarah Edwards, L.Ac.
Resources:
(1)https://bettersleep.org/research/sleep-surveys/survey-americans-ignoring-better-sleep-advice
(2)Gottfried, Sara, MD. The Hormone Cure. Chapter 4.
(3) Effects of a tart cherry juice beverage on the sleep of older adults with insomnia: a pilot study. Pigeon WR, Carr M, Gorman C, Perlis ML. J Med Food. 2010 Jun;13(3):579-83.
(4) Effect of tart cherry juice (Prunus cerasus) on melatonin levels and enhanced sleep quality. Howatson G, Bell PG, Tallent J, Middleton B, McHugh MP, Ellis J. Eur J Nutr. 2012 Dec;51(8):909-16
(5) http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/01/06/8-natural-remedies-that-may-help-you-sleep.aspx
(6) https://health.clevelandclinic.org/2014/12/why-you-should-limit-alcohol-before-bed-for-better-sleep/
(7)A pilot randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled trial of traditional acupuncture for vasomotor symptoms and mechanistic pathways of menopause. Painovich JM, Shufelt CL, Azziz R, Yang Y, Goodarzi MO, Braunstein GD, Karlan BY, Stewart PM, Merz CN. Menopause. 2012 Jan;19(1):54-61. doi: 10.1097/gme.0b013e31821f9171.
by angieng67 | Dec 19, 2020 | Acupuncture, Fertility, Herbal Medicine, Wellness and Nutrition
Fertility concerns are increasingly becoming some of the most common reasons people are seeking acupuncture treatment. The reason for this is quite clear – both anecdotally and through studies, acupuncture has been shown to help boost fertility naturally. The reasons why fertility acupuncture works, however, is unclear to most people, and it is a question that I get asked quite frequently as an acupuncturist who specializes in fertility. This blog entry will attempt to explain how and why acupuncture helps to naturally promote fertility as well as give some helpful fertility boosting tips.
Fertility Acupuncture Increases Blood Flow to the Reproductive Organs
One main reason why acupuncture can help boost fertility is that it helps increase blood flow to the reproductive organs. By bringing more oxygenated blood to the ovaries and uterus, acupuncture can help bring more nutrients to the follicles and improve the quality of the endometrium, or uterine lining. More nutrients to the follicles means healthier and better quality eggs, which in turns means increased chances of conception and a successful pregnancy. More blood flow to the uterine lining also helps to increase the quality and thickness of the lining, making it more receptive to a fertilized egg for implantation.
In addition to acupuncture, there are other natural ways to increase blood flow to the reproductive organs. Exercise, femoral artery massage, refraining from smoking, drinking adequate amounts of water, and managing stress are other healthy ways to increase blood flow to the reproductive system.
Click here for a Youtube video demonstrating femoral artery massage.
Acupuncture Helps Decrease Stress
Stress can be a big contributor to infertility. Recent studies have shown that women with a high level of a major stress marker took 29% longer to conceive compared to those women who had lower levels. When you experience stress, your body responds in such a way that can be detrimental to fertility. Stress can trigger the sympathetic nervous system, or the “fight or flight” response, setting off a chain reaction that takes resources away from your reproductive system. This can cause your blood vessels to constrict, limiting blood flow and nutrients to your reproductive organs. Stress also can adversely affect the hypothalamus pituitary adrenal axis (HPA), which regulates the release and timing of sex hormones. This can disrupt ovulation, causing late ovulation or lack of ovulation altogether. If that wasn’t enough, stress causes the release of the stress hormone cortisol. High levels of cortisol can inhibit sexual mood and arousal. Therefore, being stressed out is not conducive to being in the mood for sex, and this limits opportunities for conception to happen. In men, this can even lead to erectile dysfunction.
Acupuncture is a great way to combat stress and help boost fertility. It causes the body to release natural “feel good hormones”, like endorphin and serotonin, and can decrease the presence of the stress hormone cortisol. This can bring about a sense of relaxation and well-being, even just after one treatment. By relaxing the mind and body, acupuncture turns on the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which is the opposing system to the “fight of flight” response generated by the sympathetic nervous system. The PNS helps the body to relax, slows down heart rate and respiration, and restores resources to the digestion and reproductive systems. Your acupuncturist may use points like Yin Tang and Shen Men, which are considered spirit calming points, help patients relax. These effects of these relaxation points can often be experienced immediately upon insertion.
Besides acupuncture, there are other natural ways to combat stress. Physical activity like moderate exercise, yoga, and walking are great stress reducers and help keep the blood flowing. Meditation and deep abdominal breathing are also great ways to calm the mind and stimulate the parasympathetic nervous response.
Click here for a Youtube video demonstrating deep abdominal,or diaphragmatic, breathing.
Click here to check out Circle & Bloom, a fertility focused guided meditation program.
Acupuncture Can Help Balance Reproductive Hormones
Several studies have shown that acupuncture and electro-acupuncture can have a normalizing effect on reproductive hormones, thereby increasing fertility. One such hormone is estrogen. Estrogen is a key hormone when it comes to fertility as it plays a critical role in ovulation and the proliferation, or rebuilding, of the uterine lining. Additionally, it helps to make the vaginal canal more receptive to sperm by increasing fertile mucus and opening up the cervix to allow sperm to enter the cervix. It also contributes to female libido. During menopause, estrogen wanes, causing diminished ovulation, vaginal dryness, and lower libido, resulting in diminished fertility or complete infertility. By helping to normalize estrogen levels, acupuncture can help improve the very important fertility functions of this key sex hormone.
Another important reproductive hormone is FSH, or follicle stimulating hormone. FSH controls the menstrual cycle and stimulates the growth of the eggs in the ovaries. Too much or too little FSH can be a problem. Not enough FSH can mean that the ovaries do not get the message to ripen and release an egg for ovulation. More commonly in women with fertility issues, FSH levels are high, indicating that the ovaries are not responding to the hormone and therefore may not be ripening and releasing eggs. The pituitary gland in turn produces more FSH to try to force the ovaries to respond. This can be a sign of diminishing ovarian reserve. By stimulating more blood flow to the ovaries, acupuncture increases the response of the ovaries to FSH, therefore signaling to the pituitary gland to produce less FSH. Acupuncture has a normalizing effect on FSH and many women with high FSH see their FSH levels drop after getting regular acupuncture. This is particularly important when it comes to women going through IVF. Fertility doctors will often cancel IVF cycles if FSH levels are too high as this can be an indication that the ovaries will respond poorly to IVF drugs. Getting acupuncture before and during an IVF cycle can increase ovarian responsiveness to the follicle stimulating drugs given, potentially increasing the quantity and quality of the eggs retrieved. I have personally seen many cases of women who’s baseline FSH levels dropped dramatically as well as number of eggs retrieved increase significantly after receiving regular fertility acupuncture treatments.
Besides acupuncture, eating a whole foods diet rich in antioxidants, fiber, good fats, and healthy proteins can not only lead to better health, but also enhanced fertility. Antioxidant rich foods like colorful fruits and vegetables can help combat the aging process as well as improve egg and sperm quality. Foods like wild caught salmon, walnuts, avocado, and olive oil are high in good fats like omega-3s, which can improve ovulation and implantation. Eating fiber and protein rich foods while avoiding processed and sugary foods help maintain a healthy BMI, healthy blood glucose levels, and decrease insulin resistance. Being overweight and having insulin resistance are key factors in PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome), one of the leading causes of infertility and anovulation.
Click here for Acubalance Wellness Centre’s (not affiliated with Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness) Fertility diet.
An Acupuncturist’s Perspective on Infertility
From an acupuncturist’s perspective, infertility can be caused by blocked energy, or qi, stagnated blood flow, and energetic imbalances in the organ systems. We evaluate each patient individually and determine what systems may be out of balance or blocked and choose points accordingly. For example, the Kidney and the Liver systems play very important roles in fertility from a Chinese Medicine perspective and often become imbalanced due to constitution, lifestyle, diet, and stress. If these systems are found to be out of balance, an acupuncturist will choose points to support the Kidney and Liver systems, such as KD3, CV4, UB23, UB18, LV8, and LV3. By harmonizing specific organ systems in the body and freeing up the flow of blood and energy, we try to restore health and reproductive function to the body. Many patients notice improvements in the regularity of their menstrual cycles, a decrease in premenstrual and menstrual symptoms, changes in the quality of menstrual blood, improvements in mood, energy, and sleep in just a few sessions. In addition to acupuncture, we often use dietary and herbal supplements to naturally correct imbalances and promote fertility.
Our acupuncturists are well trained and highly experienced in treating patients experiencing infertility. We have helped many patients who are trying to conceive naturally as well as patients who are going through fertility treatments, such as IUI and IVF, improve their chances of success. Through fertility acupuncture, electro-acupuncture, heat therapy, herbal therapy, and dietary/lifestyle counseling, we customize each individual’s treatments to optimize fertility naturally and improve responses to fertility medications. Fertility acupuncture has also been shown to increase embryo implantation after IVF transfer by as much as 65% according to some studies. Many of our patients achieve pregnancy within 3 menstrual cycles or less. We also work with male patients to improve sperm quality and quantity.
By Angie Ng, L.Ac.
by angieng67 | Jan 26, 2018 | Acupuncture, Clinic News
We are excited to share that Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness has been featured as an inspiring story in VoyageChicago Magazine. The article from VoyageChicago Magazine has been copied below. The original article can be viewed here http://voyagechicago.com/interview/meet-angie-ng-acupuncture-balanced-wellness-loop/.
Meet Angie Ng of Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness
Today we’d like to introduce you to Angie Ng.
Angie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I didn’t realize it, but my interest in Chinese Medicine began as a child growing up in a traditional Chinese household, where food and herbs were commonly used to address everyday ailments. My family members were always talking about the energetic properties of food, and how certain foods could be useful in alleviating discomforts like belly aches, toothaches, fever, and sniffles.
Despite having an early fascination with natural healing methods, the practical side of me decided that I should study business as an undergraduate and eventually join the corporate world, first working in banking and then in IT. While this provided a stable income, I never really felt fulfilled in my work, and I knew I had to make a change – I just didn’t know what. I spent over a decade sitting in cubicles and performing at mediocre levels at jobs I didn’t really enjoy. It wasn’t until I had my first acupuncture treatment that something clicked and I realized my calling.
I had always been a proponent of healthy living and a believer in the body’s innate ability to heal itself if given the right resources. I just never realized I could make a career out of this belief until I witnessed the power of acupuncture first hand. I started seeing an amazing acupuncturist for some chronic pain and stress I was experiencing.
My acupuncturist helped reduce my pain and calm my emotional stresses by painlessly and strategically inserting tiny needles to help stimulate the natural healing processes in my body. The treatments were relaxing, rejuvenating, effective, and had no side effects. I was hooked! Within months, I had enrolled myself in acupuncture school and began the long and arduous journey to becoming a Licensed Acupuncturist.
13 years later, I can say that I feel more fulfilled in my career than I have ever been. I recently moved my acupuncture office to a beautiful space in the Chicago Loop, where we help people with pain problems, fertility issues, stress, anxiety, and much more. We use not only acupuncture, but also adjunctive therapies like cupping, tuina, guasha, and herbal supplements, as well as dietary and lifestyle advice to naturally assist the body’s healing processes and restore balance back to the body.
Having come from a corporate background, I know all too well the struggles and stresses of balancing work and life that many of my patients experience. It brings me so much satisfaction to be able to help them in any way I can to feel better physically and emotionally.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road to becoming an acupuncturist was long and not always easy. Having a mortgage and other bills to pay, I continued to work full time while going to acupuncture school on nights and weekends. It was a very tiring 3 years. Additionally, while in acupuncture school, they focus on teaching you how to do acupuncture. What they don’t teach you is how to start and run a successful acupuncture practice.
My background in business and IT definitely came in handy here, but it was still a struggle nonetheless. Marketing, finding a good location and office space, negotiating a lease, hiring help, billing, budgeting – these are all things essential to running an acupuncture business but were barely mentioned in acupuncture school. Making the transition from full-time computer programmer to full-time business owner and acupuncturist was one of the most challenging things I have ever done, but also one of the most gratifying.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness story. Tell us more about the business.
Acupuncture for Balanced Wellness is an acupuncture and wellness practice in the Chicago Loop. We treat a wide range of health concerns, but we most commonly provide treatments for pain problems, fertility issues, stress/anxiety, weight loss, and facial rejuvenation.
We truly understand the struggles and stresses of work/life balance, and we pride ourselves on providing safe, natural, holistic, and highly individualized treatments to our patients. Our office space provides a relaxing oasis, where people can receive acupuncture and other natural therapies to help restore health and balance back to their bodies, amidst the hustle and bustle of Downtown Chicago.
In addition to offering acupuncture services, we also offer other natural healing therapies at our wellness practice, like massage therapy, chiropractic services, and Muscle Activation Techniques (MAT).
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
It’s difficult to say what aspects of my life and business can be attributed to luck. You can say I was lucky to have a background in business and IT (specifically web development), and that those skills may have given me an advantage in starting a successful acupuncture practice. Many highly skilled acupuncturist have little or no business skills and subsequently have a very hard time starting and staying in business.
You could also say that I was lucky to be born ethnically Chinese so that I had exposure to the healing powers of Chinese Medicine from a very early age. Additionally, I was lucky to find a very good acupuncturist (Dr. Leon Chen) to give me my very first acupuncture treatment and inspire me to pursue a career in acupuncture. Whether these factors can be attributed fully to luck is questionable, but I do know they played a big role in leading me to a lifelong and rewarding career in acupuncture and holistic medicine. I do feel very lucky to be where I am today.
Contact Info:
by angieng67 | Sep 5, 2017 | Acupuncture, Pain
One reason for people to seek the services of an acupuncturist is for the treatment of pain. Up to half of the patients that visit us at the clinic come due to some musculoskeletal pain complaint, namely shoulder/neck pain, back pain, hand/feet pain and headaches. Patients come for 3 to 6 consecutive treatments and find their pain reduced enough for them to do their daily activity unhindered by the pain they originally felt. At which point, patients would only visit the clinic for maintenance sessions either every other week or once a month, occasionally increasing the frequency when needed.
Recent academic studies by the National Institute of Health (NIH)[1] and Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)[2] as well as popular publications such as the New York Times [3] all report on the benefits of acupuncture in cases of chronic pain. In these articles, and articles like it, scientists describe how acupuncture affects neural and hormonal reactions in the body to mediate pain in the body.
But how does acupuncture work to reduce pain in the Traditional Chinese Medicine sense? Simple: Acupuncture induces movement. In the two and a half millennia that Chinese medicine has been existing in some shape or form, the words ‘Proper Movement is Life’ underpins virtually all of health giving techniques that Chinese medicine has to offer. The fact that pain, and ultimately death, is a result of malignant non-movement (i.e. stagnation) is a core understanding of all Chinese medicine doctors through time.
Qi (‘Chee’) and Blood are two vital substances in the body that promotes health by its orderly movement and it is the stagnation of these substances that cause pain. In some cases, this stagnation can be likened to what western medicine ‘circulation issues’ causing numbness, tingling, cold hand/feet, muscle tension, fatigue and ultimately pain. As Qi and Blood have nourishing and warming effects, Chinese Medicine also puts weakness and non-vitality of the skin and limbs as symptoms of this issue.
Qi and Blood flows in an internal body system called meridians and collaterals. Meridians and collaterals are similar to the western idea of the ‘circulation system’, but far more than just being a passive system of tubes and vessels, the Chinese Medicine concept of meridians and collaterals is more vital and energetic. It is by observing this system that acupuncturists can diagnose disharmonies that occur deep within the body. And, it is also by observing this system that acupuncturists can treat disharmonies by inserting acupuncture needles to affect the body and move Qi and Blood. Meridians and collaterals serve both to diagnose and treat disharmonies in the body.
Ever wonder why an acupuncturist put some needles in your legs for your back pain or needles in your hands for shoulder pain? It is because the needles far from the pain sites are the in same ‘meridian’ or is complementary to the meridian that traverses your area of pain. It is through the documented research and work of philosophers and practitioners since the Han Dynasty (202 B.C to 220 AD) that allows for this deeper level of understanding on where to place needles to achieve benefits. Simply said, acupuncturists, in effect, influence the rate Qi and Blood that flow locally in this system by stimulating the area of pain with needles. And, through the understanding of channel flow and channel relationships, the local insertion of needles are enhanced by needles inserted in specific areas far away from a local area of pain.
Besides acupuncture, Chinese medicine practitioners have different methods to increase Qi and Blood flow in painful areas, such as Tui Na, Gua Sha, and Ba Guan Fa, commonly known as ‘cupping’. These accessory techniques complement acupuncture treatments in order to move Qi and Blood. These accessory techniques use differing characteristic qualities to promote the movement of Qi and Blood. Namely, Tui Na uses bodywork and compression of specific acupuncture points to stimulate the movement of Qi and Blood; Gua Sha uses scraping of the skin and the inherent function of the skin to disperse stagnation; And Cupping uses the suction of cups to dislodge deep seated Qi and Blood stagnation in order for the body to be able to regain Qi and Blood flow naturally.
Pain is a part of the human condition. It is a sign of the progress of time and change. Pain is also a way for your body to indicate disharmonies, which is inevitable in a system as complex the human body. Acupuncture provides a way to mediate pain and reduce its occurrence safely and effectively.
by Michael Jamlang
[1] https://nccih.nih.gov/health/acupuncture/introduction
[2] http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/1357513
[3] https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/11/acupuncture-provides-true-pain-relief-in-study/
