By Tracy L. Hackett, AP, DAOM

QiGong is the core practice of TaiChi and other martial arts. It has been practiced since at least the Neolithic period in China, exemplified by illustrations carved into stone. Dao-Yin, the ancient word for QiGong is also characterized in the Mawangdui silk scrolls from 168 BCE. So what do these legendary practices have to offer to people living now?

A path toward inner peace and deeper awareness becomes more available to you with regular practice. There are many masters and teachers out there with books, DVDs, classes, and workshops. How do you know if it’s even for you? Trying a few simple exercises may give you a reasonable idea of what could be in store for you studying with a teacher who resonates with you.

Let’s start with a preliminary visualization and activity to build a foundation then add what is referred to as the Five Healing Sounds. The beginning of any practice of this nature must start with the cornerstone concept and experience of Qi. Think of Qi as both a particle and a wave. It is part of the substance of things but also that which gives form. There is no concept of ‘zero’ in Yin-Yang theory, no such thing as ‘nothing’ per say. You are a vital energetic being in a soup of energy that is constantly changing form and transitioning through states. All of this flux of matter, energy, and consciousness is of varying densities and vibrations of Qi. All organized aspects of Qi have a vibrational quality. Some of these vibrations are healing and harmonizing, some are not. The pivot is a neutral that rests within the quietest place in our minds and intentions (heart).

We can tap into those inner most intentions, in part, through a meditative practice called the Microcosmic Orbit. Sit in a comfortable position with your feet planted on the floor about hip distance apart. Rest your palms on your thighs with your arms comfortably extended toward your knees. Close your eyes and focus on the sensation of your breath and how its rhythm moves your body. Breathe deeply and slowly, then become aware of your spine and your head sitting atop of it. Place the tip of your tongue just behind your front teeth. Then visualize a pearl of bright, clear diamond-like light at the very base of your tailbone. As you breathe, visualize the pressure of your breath moving that pearl up your spine over the top of your head and down your midline back to the tailbone. Do this circuit three times watching the pearl become larger and brighter each cycle and at the end of the third cycle, visualize the pearl resting at an area about three finger widths below your navel and inside your abdomen between 1-3 inches (depending on your body weight) called the Lower Dan Tian. As you breathe visualize the light becoming brighter, then see it separate into two more pearls. Move one pearl up to your solar plexus (middle Dan Tian) and the third pearl up to the area between your eyebrows (upper Dan Tian). It may take some practice but you can hold the feeling of the three pearls with your breath and inner awareness or mind’s eye. A deep sense on calm typically sets in with this practice alone. Once you feel comfortable with this visualization and feeling the vibrational aspect of your being, you can add the sounds.

The Five Healing Sounds correlate with the Five Elements of Chinese Medicine, which in turn have several other sets of five aggregates (tastes, color, smell, etc.) that have relationships with specific organs and their energetic relationships with the mind-spirit.

So in practice, for example, say you worry too much, thinking through a problem to the point of fixation with multiple competing forecasted narratives of outcomes. This would be considered “Overthinking” and the organ’s energy most negatively affected by this ‘emotion’ is the ‘Spleen’. The organs in TCM theory are partially related to the actual physical organ in your body. The “Spleen” is an energetic pathway of function in your system related to your digestion or assimilation, the energetic aspect of your spirit that is connected to your intellect or “discernment”. The sound or vibration that helps balance the Qi flow in these energetic relationships is: “Hoo”.

It is a sound you make as the breath passes through your lips, different from a sharp, short spoken word, so that you can feel it resonate in your body. The same follows for the other organ relationships. Remember, there is no primacy to these relationships. Each aspect and quality in the system of relationships has its own weight and importance. Think of them sitting on interconnecting circles rather than a line of heirachy. The interconnecting circles concept is related to the meridians, energetic channels, that run along the body creating an integrated system of systems. It is a large concept to digest all at once. Start with the basic meditation and one emotion that you struggle with and let me know how you do.

Tracy L. Hackett, AP, DAOM is an Acupuncture Physician and Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACTCM at CiiS, San Francisco, CA) practicing in Jupiter, Florida. She has found health through holistic medicine herself and brings the same to others since 2005. She specializes in the treatment of pain and GI issues. She has also developed nearly 30 new acupuncture points for the treatment of digestive issues, pain (post-concussion, jaw, neck, low back, pelvic), and neuropathy.

There has been a lot of press recently on this ancient method of pain relief from China. Why would Olympic athletes trust this method to help them maintain top-notch performance while competing for the highest achievement honors in the world?

Because it works to alleviate muscle soreness, spasm, and tension. By creating a superficial ‘bruise’ with the suction, the body’s natural healing response is triggered to repair the ‘damaged’ area.

Cupping Therapy is the method of using glass, plastic, bamboo, or suction cups to create localized pressure by a vacuum. Chinese medicine practitioners have been using this healing modality for thousands of years. In ancient times they utilized this technique by using heat inside glass or bamboo cups. Acupuncturists and Chinese Medicine practitioners/doctors of today also use plastic “suction” cupping sets, which also uses a suction to create vacuum type of feel. The “vacuum” made inside the cups causes the blood to form in the area and help the healing in that area. (This “vacuum” technique is utilized by all cupping instruments mentioned above)

Cupping therapy has been found in ancient records dating back 3500 years and it is still used today by many Acupuncturists & Chinese Medicine practitioners/doctors. New advancement in technology and materials have been integrated with cupping therapies and its uses now range for many different treatments and applications.
In Acupuncture & Chinese medicine we utilize several methods of usage with “cupping”, depending upon the patients needs. Only Acupuncturist Physicians and Doctors of Chinese medicine have enough knowledge, clinical experience, & expertise to differentiate the appropriate diagnostic and treatment method for each individual patient.
Acupuncture & Chinese medicine practitioners/doctors use cupping for several different purposes. Here are a few:

1. The body contains Meridians. These meridians are energetic pathways in the body which the energy of life called Qi (“chi”) flows through. It flows through every body part, tissue. and organs. Like acupuncture, cupping follows the lines of the meridians. There are many meridian pathways within the body which these suction cups can be placed. Using these meridian (energetic) pathways, cupping can help to align and relax qi, as well as target more specific maladies. By targeting the meridian (energetic) pathways, cupping strives to ‘open’ these channels – the paths through which life energy flows freely throughout the body, through all tissues and organs, thus providing a smoother and more free-flowing qi (life force). Cupping is one of the best deep-tissue therapies available. It is thought to affect tissues up to four inches deep from the external skin. Toxins can be released, blockages can be cleared, and veins and arteries can be refreshed within these four inches of affected materials. Even hands, wrists, legs, and ankles can be ‘cupped,’ thus applying the healing to specific organs that correlate with these points.
This treatment is also valuable for the lungs, and can clear congestion from a common cold or help to control a person’s asthma. In fact, respiratory conditions are one of the most common maladies that cupping is used to relieve. Three thousand years ago, in the earliest Chinese documentation of cupping, it was recommended for the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis.  Cupping is also used for facial rejuvenation.

2. Lympathic toxins released – the healing aspect of cupping therapy is through the release of toxins in your body. The suction from the cups can penetrate deep into your tissues causing the tissues to release harmful toxins. The cupping draws fresh blood and lymph into the tissue to accelerate the healing response. It triggers the lymphatic system, clears the blood vessels, and stretches and activates the skin.
3. Myo-fascial, trigger point, musculotendon, Musculoskeletal cupping, is used when there is injury, either chronic or traumatic, the fascia is also affected, not just the muscles, ligaments and tendons. If the network of fascial planes is disrupted due to scar tissue adhesions (sometimes referred to as knots), restrictions in function and mobility will result. Decreasing mechanical connective tissue changes following inflammation or trauma,
Decrease trigger Points (presence of hypersensitive, tender tissue within themuscle belly)
Decrease myofascial dysfunction, scar adhesions, scar tissue
Decrease myofascial syndromes; i.e. faulty patterning due to hypertonic muscles.

***** NOTE: As there are several cautions and contraindications with any treatments modalities and a necessity of a thorough and correct diagnosis of each individual patient is required.

No other practitioner who utilizes this treatment modality has the expertise needed to maintain long term success in health and well being. Only highly trained and knowledgeable practitioners such as an Acupuncturist & Chinese Medicine Practitioners/Doctors should be performing such treatments.

Some symptoms of estrogen dominance:

• Breast swelling and tenderness
• Anxiety and mood swings
• “Fuzzy thinking”
• Irritability
• Fatigue
• Loss of ambition
• Slow metabolism
• Water retention
• Loss of libido
• PMS
• Weight gain
• Insomnia
• Thickening of endometrial lining, clotted menses
• Increased risk of uterine fibroids
• Increased incidence of ovarian cysts

Many of these symptoms are related to stagnation of qi, blood and damp against a background of qi or yang deficiency from the perspective of Chinese medicine.

For 25 years it was assumed by general doctors that women produced minimum amount of estrogen after menopause until research have shown different. Chinese medical textbooks states that yin becomes increasingly vacuous until a woman stops having regular periods. Before menopause women’s levels of progesterone decline, while estrogen levels remain stable or even increase. This leads to a situation where estrogen levels is high in relation to progesterone, which is referred to as estrogen dominance. The term estrogen dominance was composed by Dr. John Lee, who advocated for natural progesterone supplementation.

Estrogen is produced mainly in the ovaries and progesterone is produced predominantly by the corpus luteum. When the egg quality begins to decline in perimenopause, the quality of the corpus luteum also declines, leading to lower progesterone levels and relative estrogen dominance. Many perimenopausal women are periodically anovulatory, which means that estrogen goes unopposed during those cycles.

Another factor which become more prevalent over the last two decades is the amount of xenoestrogens we are exposed to. Xenoestrogens are found in everything from sunscreen to plastic water bottles, our water supply which contains synthetic estrogen because of the widespread use of birth control pills. Cooking with non-stick coated cookware and microwaving food in plastic containers releases xenoestrogens into our food.

In my practice I suggest a combination of diet and lifestyle advice along with acupuncture, herbs and supplements to help women achieve an appropriate balance between progesterone and estrogen as they head towards menopause.

And here’s some advice I give my patients when they ask me how they can help themselves:

• Take care of your liver. It is your best defense against estrogen dominance because it’s job is to eliminate excess estrogen. Minimize your alcohol intake and, to stimulate your liver, drink water with lemon juice first thing every morning. There are a few simple supplements that you can take just a few times per week to help your liver function at its best.

• Research endocrine-disrupting chemicals in cosmetics, processed foods, cookware, and cleaning materials and cut your exposure to xenoestrogens as much as you can. Look at labels, many chemicals in cosmetics are derived from petroleum products.

• Get rid of your plastic containers and plastic water bottles. Plastic is a petrochemical product and in part of its degradation process, off-gasses into water and foods.  Use glass containers and ditch your microwave. Cooking your fast or processed food in the plastic containers they were frozen in is non-nutrition.

Any questions you have about how you can rebalance your hormone health, set up a consultation with Dr. Hackett. We can go over your current labs, order new tests, and formulate a strategy for you to get back to feeling your best.

Flu & Cold Prevention

We all know that washing of the hands frequently is very important, but did you ever notice how much you touch your face and eyes during the day? This is where transmission can be immediate. Be careful about hand sanitizers that have bactericidal chemicals because that chemical also kills off the natural bacteria your skin has to prevent outside invaders. Good old soap and water are the best.

At my office, if someone has the flu, which is spread by respiratory droplets, we will disinfect the room used to see the patient before seeing the next patient. This is to protect us and the next person.

If you live with a loved one that is sick, it’s always best to sleep in a separate room, especially if they are coughing all night (unless you want to get sick as well). Of course, many times it’s hard to avoid people that are sick around us. An atomizer with essential oil of eucalyptus can help sterilize the air of viruses traveling in droplets.

Natural Remedies That Help Block Colds & Flu

But, my most important preventive strategies are the natural remedies I have come to depend on to stay as healthy as possible during the winter months. I’ve linked my favorite products to this message for your benefit. My favorite TCM formulas are Yin Qiao (sore throat feverishness) and Gan Mao Ling (chills, body aches) for managing the early symptoms before you get really sick. There are smaller sizes available when you click on the links.  Adding Vitamin D3 5,000 IU daily to this mix provides another boost to the immune system. I’ve discussed the many benefits of vitamin D3 over and over. This vitamin is what saved me when I had the flu last winter. Reboost 

Here’s the trick I use to BEAT THE FLU:

If you definitely have the flu (high fever, body aches, respiratory symptoms, cough, congestion, runny nose), then take 25,000 IU of Vitamin D3 at the first signs of fever or flu-like symptoms. Repeat this dose daily for 3 days. When I had the flu last winter, my fever broke in 12 hours using this with two other natural remedies. Can you imagine beating the flu this quickly with natural remedies? Having my own experience with it, I know these remedies are powerful when used appropriately and sourced from high-quality manufacturers (such as the ones featured here).

The other remedy has been shown to have activity against both Influenza A & B. Remember, during any given flu season, the circulating Influenza virus could be predominantly one or the other. In the past, if the flu vaccine missed which strain became the more predominant one during a season, this rendered the vaccine less than 50% effective. With the flu vaccine a toss-up, it’s best to have an arsenal of natural remedies with proven efficacy against the flu. What are these natural remedies?

And what about colds and sore throats?

Now for the day to day sore throat that may start after exposure to the common cold, I use products like oregano oil and clove oil. Oregano has anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial properties. So, it is an all-around great anti-infective. Clove oil also has anti-microbial properties. These oils are basically made by these plants as their natural antibiotics. Clove also offers the added benefit of numbing the throat. You can make it into a spray using a spray bottle and mixing with filtered water. You control the strength by the number of drops you add to the spray bottle. You can also spray clove oil in the air if you’re on an airplane to protect you from germs flying in the air (but that may seem a little paranoid to those around you).

Here’s to getting through cold and flu season unscathed by a big one! May you ward off most colds that come your way, and get through any that you succumb to as fast as possible.