Hello Mitesh,

Portland’s a little warmer since last we talked. Fluctuations between sunshine and rain are the norm these days. I, for one, try to steal a walk when the sun is out. It warms my body and spirit. 

Since I last sent a newsletter, we entered into the New Year according to the Chinese calendar and we just passed the equinox. We’ll talk about the New Year and the seasonal changes from the Chinese medical view and give some pointers on how to use our local seasonal conditions to vitalize our mind, body, and spirit.

• Clinic Update: Quarterly Bookings
• Seasonal Insights: Year of the Wood Dragon and Qingming
• Health Tips for the Season: Allergies
• Educational Opportunities: Yoga for Functional Core Strength

Clinic Update

Quarterly Bookings

Feeling like it is time for you to put your health first and get on top of your health goals? We still have a few time slots available for Spring Quarterly bookings. 

Quarterly bookings are when a patient commits to a time slot, either weekly, biweekly, or monthly for a three-month period (in this case from the beginning of April until the end of June) in which specific health goals are co-created and the patient is supported in achieving those goals. 

In our experience, creating a clear time frame with specific goals is a more effective way to improve health than simply making an appointment when symptoms pop up.

At its core, holistic medicine is about being pro-active rather than reactive about your health! 

Quarterly bookings are a great way to get ahead of things and stay well in the upcoming season.

These bookings can be cancelled or rescheduled just like regular appointments and can be made for in person or telehealth visits. 

If you are interested feel free to give us a call at (503) 926-7985  or text us at (503) 461-2569 with questions or to get on the schedule. 

Seasonal Insights 

Year of the Dragon and Qingming 

So, the year of the dragon, huh? Sounds a bit fantastic for sure. But bear with me and I’ll talk a little bit about Chinese thinking.

About three thousand years ago, people in China observed the natural phenomena, their patterns, and how they shaped the world. They attempted to systematize this so they could practically prepare for changes in the weather. They then codified these into calendars and stories.

Some of the greatest myths revolve around water. “When will the rains come, will there be too much, how do we manage the waters appropriately?”. One of these myths is about the dragon.

The dragon of China isn’t the greedy dragon of Western mythology. For the most part, the dragons of Chinese mythology are of great benefit and are revered. The dragon that is colored like fresh shoots of grass is deeply revered because it appears in the night sky during spring. As it emerges night in and night out, more and more of it appears. And with it comes the rain. With the rains, come the fresh shoots of grass. New life begins. The cycle continues.

The dragon is a symbol of luck and fortune.

If you want to know more about the role of the dragon in Chinese culture, check out this fantastic blog post.

But we march onwards and spring forth with the seasons. If you look around, you’ll see lots of buds beginning to burst. Some plants are fully open, and some are just peeking out. But the buds are undeniable. The shaking at the roots we talked about last time has now moved up and is shaking at the tips of the branches. As the shaking continues, the young green of the buds is shaken off and the myriad of colors of spring are revealed. It is beautiful!

And it is messy!

Those buds will flower, and those petals will fall. And they will be a beautiful mess. And now we begin our spring cleaning. We open the windows; we invite in sun and air. We sweep away the winter and get ready for the hard work of spring before the heat of summer.

The Chinese commemorate this time of year with the Clear Brightness (Qingming) Festival. During this festival, the Chinese sweep the tombs of their ancestors and pay their respect.

So, take some time and honor yourself, the people you admire, and take some time to enjoy the days and your home.

Seasonal Health Tip

If you don’t have seasonal allergies, I’m jealous. For a while, I was one of you.

I miss those days. But a few years ago, my allergies came back. And they are terrible. Well, not always, but some days they are unbearable.

The approach I use for patients and for myself is multilayered. Not all layers have to be used, but certain layers should be used before others and certain layers should be used alongside other layers.

The first layer, is personal hygiene. Keep those nasal passages clear with a saline rinse. If you happen to have any food intolerances, be careful during this time of year not to cheat. If eyes are the point of contention for you, you can rinse them with a saline rinse as well.

The next layer is space hygiene. Consider running an air filter. You’ll want something that can handle your specific allergen. If you are allergic to something that is lighter and will float in the air, an air filter might be a good fit for you. You’ll want a HEPA filter with a MERV rating from 11 to 13. Again, higher isn’t necessarily better, but it is more expensive and louder. So, if your allergen is filtered at a MERV rating of 11, go for it. You’ll want to make sure that you get the right size filter for your room. A bigger room requires a bigger fan to move and cycle all the air. You’d think bigger would be louder, but because it can move more air it isn’t necessary to have it going full blast all the time and won't necessarily be super loud. An air filtration approach works well if your allergen floats in the air. 

If your allergen is something that settles, that means cleaning - vacuuming, washing pillows and bedding, and even your pet is key. 

One big tip is to consider cleaning with a mask on.

There are many more steps you can take for indoor cleaning and GoodRx has a well-developed article on it. 

So, what if you want to go outside or to a friend’s home? What else can you do?

There are some standard over the counter medications such as Claritin and Zyrtec that you may want to use for immediate relief. And you can always get a prescription from your primary care provider.

We are always happy to discuss how these remedies might fit into a holistic approach. In particular, we always recommend supporting the body's innate defense system alongside the over the counter approach.

If you are interested in understanding more about the root causes of allergies and some holistic evidence based ways to improve symptoms, please check out our blog post "How Allergies Work and How to Stop Them Naturally." Anna also provides a link to a list of supplements on Fullscript that you could add to your regiment as well.

But you might be thinking “What about acupuncture and herbs, Mitesh? Are they effective?” And I’d of course say, “You’re not really thinking that are you. You’re just reading this newsletter.” But what about acupuncture and herbs?

Here’s the conclusion from a systematic review of acupuncture’s efficacy done in 2020.

Our findings revealed that all acupuncture methods are effective and safe for AR (Allergic rhinitis). Moreover, either moxibustion or manual acupuncture plus conventional medicine are potentially the most effective treatment strategies for AR. Based on these findings, it is evident that acupuncture therapy is not inferior to pharmacologic therapy. Therefore, for AR patients who are either unresponsive to conventional medicine or are intolerant to adverse events, acupuncture therapy should be administered. However, the quality of these included trials was mainly ranked as moderate quality, we recommend additional well-designed RCTs with larger sample sizes to validate these findings.

This is a pretty glowing conclusion. Of course, continued studies of higher quality are required, but if you’ve tried the conventional allergy management, you might want to consider acupuncture as one of your defensive lines. 

In addition to acupuncture, I recommend reviewing other, seemingly unrelated triggers like your diet and other lifestyle triggers. We recommend discussing allergies before allergy season so we can get a clear picture of what your triggers are. Here we may eliminate those triggers and prescribe herbs to assist in regulating the body's defenses, increasing them in some places and decreasing them elsewhere. Herbs may be part of a holistic approach.

A holistic, multilayered, and individualized approach is fundamentally different than just taking a medication to make symptoms go away. It looks at how the body, the person, and the environment might be affecting the condition. This method builds a treatment approach from the ground up and may include herbs, acupuncture, dietary changes, and other interventions.

This multilayered and individualized approach to addressing allergies is what I have seen be most effective for long term allergy relief. Start with hygiene, use medications as needed to keep your suffering to a minimum, but don't forget about important factors like sleep, hydration and diet and don't be shy about utilizing modalities like acupuncture, herbs and supplements to help address root causes of allergies so they improve over time rather than getting worse. 

It's is time to get back in shape after a lazy and cozy winter!

Our upcoming therapeutic yoga class, “Yoga for Functional Core Strength”, is a fantastic way to build strength, balance, flexibility, and body awareness to help get you up and moving this Spring and Summer. 

You can find more information and register by clicking on the button below. 

We are continuing to grow the educational platform and focusing on developing long term engagement with the our patients. We really believe there are easy changes that everyone can make to improve their health situations. We are honored to be on that journey with you. 

~ Mitesh Master, LAc