New family member

We have a new addition to the family. A 12 week old Shih-Poo. That is half Shih Tzu and half Poodle. So I have a Shiatsu dog, sort of. :)

His name is Marley and he is a great puppy!

Good ole liniments

Back in early 2007, I began my exploration into making liniments with Chinese herbs. While my intent was to just use them on clients and my loved ones, I have found a demand for them.

My first batch was made in January, my second batch in June/July. I made a die da jiu (trauma liniment) and a tendon relaxing liniment. At first, if someone had a jar, I would sell it to them that way. Later, I bought some nice amber colored bottles with dropper's to make it easier. When the liniment is handy, it is also easier for clients to use it, rather then have to go to Kamwo and have it shipped. Good for everyone all around.



One positive comment from a man who hurt his knee and didn't know what to do. I suggested his wife lightly massage the trauma liniment into the knee and surrounding area a few times a day. She reported the swelling decreased within hours. I also suggested san huang san but his wife wasn't to interested. :)

More information on treating common injuries can be found in Tom Bisio's book A Tooth from the Tiger's Mouth as well as practical information on prevention, diet and exercise.

And just a small suggestion. After you buy the book, you will read of various products that are good to have on hand for when that injury does occur. Trust me, from experience I can tell you, have that stuff handy. Many things can take days to ship and by then your injury is worse. I highly suggest everyone have some trauma liminent and san huang san, just to name a few. If you are local to me, I can supply both those things. If you know me, you got my number. :)

Peace!

Pain in the neck ~ Part 2

I wrote Part 1 two months ago, click here to read about steps you can take to prevent headaches. Eventually if you are like so many of us, one creeps into your body. So you got a headache. What now? You grab the OTC med's and pop a few. But after awhile, you need more of those pills to ease the pain and after all the reports on the news about various side effects, who really wants to take that stuff?

One thing that has been suggested to me for headaches is magnesium. Be sure to check with your doctor before taking additional supplements though. Personally it has helped me in preventing headaches and I even take less then suggested. A herb called butterbur is known to help with migraine headaches. Always remember to do your research before taking herbs, especially long term. I am not an advocate on taking any single herb long term and rarely take any single herb to begin with. In Chinese Medicine, herbs are prescibed in formula's only.

Got it in the sinuses? Try a drop or two of ravensara essential oil on the sinus cavities and a cool cloth. Have a partner push gently on the following acupoints: Bladder 2, Stomach 3, and Large Intestine 20.

More to come in the next post. For ex. headaches that present in the front of the head, or the sides of the head..... this time I won't wait so long to write the next part. Promise.

One photo to please the masses

OK.... masses is a bit of an over statement. I believe there are 3 people who read my blog. :) THANK YOU 3 glorious people who find me either pathetic or amusing.

I had another glorious day in NYC this week. It was a tad ugly out at first but luckily no rain. Later in the day the sun did pop out. I was up there for an acupuncture appointment and my body was grateful. Before my appointment I was walking about uptown, checking out the Cathedral of St John the Divine. Amazing from the outside, I promise to go back when I have more time to take a tour.

On 110th Street, I saw this crazy guy staring down at me:

Has it really been this long?

I swear my thoughts were always on my blog. However, real life gets in the way. Things such as re-doing my living room. This meant 2 trips to Ikea's as well as countless trips to throw old things away. Out with the old, in with the new. Hours spend assembling tables and shelves, rearranging stuff, ect. Unfortunately I am not done, as I got sidetracked with a weekend spent in NYC.

More tui na studies! Hurray. It was amazing. Good food, one place I can remember called the Zen Palace. Don't go there if you are in a hurry though as we were late getting back to class and missed some piriformis work.

Here is a demonstration going on at Union Square. The place was packed and it was hard to get a good photo but I tried.




Sunday morning before class I sat in the park eating my bagel, watching all the dogs with their humans. Some crazy squirrel tried to eat my leg too! Once he realized I wasn't a nut, he left. Boy was he wrong. :)

All and all, things are moving along fine. I will be holding somewhat regular Tui Na clinics in order to get some practice in. I am hoping that I get a full schedule with that.

My website is coming along. I haven't been able to get with the designer till today for updates/changes but it should go live in no time.

Peace and love!