Beginner’s Guide to Traditional Chinese Medicine

When it comes to Chinese Medicine, many people can become confused. While Chinese Medicine is widely known for its pain relieving abilities, many people are unaware of how it can affect digestive disorders, stress levels, allergies and even fertility. At Dawn Potter Acupuncture, we offer a variety of Traditional Chinese Medicine treatment options, including acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, cupping and even moxabustion. Depending upon the cause of your ailment, symptoms or conditions, different techniques may be recommended. If you have additional questions about our Clearwater Traditional Chinese Medicine, feel free to give us a call. We’re always happy to answer questions.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a Chinese medicine technique that involves inserting very fine needles into points on the body. Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years across the world and can be used for the treatment of a variety of conditions, pains and even addictions.

Herbal Medicine

Chinese herbal medicine involves the use of plants, minerals and even flowers to heal the body. Chinese herbal medicine can come in various forms, however the most popular are pills and teas. Chinese herbal medicine generally has very few side effects and should be monitored closely.

Cupping

Cupping involves the use of jars being placed on the skin to create a vacuum using suction. This results in the tissue underneath being sucked and raised into the jar, increasing circulation, relieving pain and pulling toxins from the body. Cupping does leave temporary red, blue and/or purple marks, however they typically resolve after a few days.

Moxabustion

Maxobustion involves burning an herb known as “mugwort” which is placed near the skin to warn a specific point. Maxobustion has been used around the world for thousands of years to treat a variety of conditions, including asthma, gynecological disorders, diarrhea and more.

Customized Treatment Plans

At Dawn Potter Acupuncture we proudly offer customized treatment plans that are tailored to your specific needs, health history, wellness goals, etc. We offer free discovery calls and would be happy to chat and see how we can help you.

Start Clearwater, Florida Chinese Medicine Today

Interested in improving your health with Chinese medicine in Clearwater, Florida? Dawn Potter Acupuncture is always accepting new patients and would be more than happy to help. Schedule your appointment with us today for Chinese medicine near you.

Improving Your Sleep With Our Clearwater Acupuncture Treatments

Do you often have problems falling asleep? Find yourself waking up during the night? Suffer from insomnia? Interested in a more natural treatment option to improve your sleep? Recent research has shown that acupuncture treatment can actually improve a patient’s sleep. Today, we’re discussing acupuncture for insomnia/sleeping problems and the recent research that has been conducted on the topic. Have questions about acupuncture treatment in Clearwater, Florida? Interested in scheduling a free discovery call with Dawn Potter Acupuncture? Reach out today, and we would be happy to help create a customized treatment plan for your exact needs.

How Does Acupuncture Impact Sleep?

During a recent meta-analysis of 1,108 acupuncture patients, it was found that placebo controls were less effective than acupuncture when it comes to improving sleep. Total sleep time, sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, and waking from sleep were all looked at. Auricular, electroacupuncture, and standard body style acupuncture were all examined, and each was found to be therapeutically effective for improving sleep.

In another investigation by researchers at the University of Toronto, which was published in the Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, they found that acupuncture treatment was effective for insomnia and anxiety treatment. Using only acupuncture, patients were administered 10 acupuncture treatments over a five-week period. These patients in the investigation had increases in melatonin secretions, reduced anxiety, and overall improved sleep.

How Can Dawn Potter Acupuncture in Clearwater Help?

At Dawn Potter Acupuncture, we are proud to offer acupuncture for a wide range of conditions and ailments, including insomnia and other sleep disorders. We would be happy to provide a consultation to discuss your sleep problems, medical history, and the various treatments available that could be of help. Along with acupuncture, we also offer a variety of other treatment options that may be included in your customized treatment plan, including cupping, massage, red light therapy, sound therapy, herbs, supplements, and more.

Simply reach out, let us know what is going on, and we’ll get you added to our schedule for your free discovery call.

Start Acupuncture Treatment in Clearwater Today

Suffer from insomnia or other sleeping problems? Interested in acupuncture treatment in Clearwater to improve your sleep? Contact Dawn Potter Acupuncture today to get started. We look forward to helping you.

Tips for Sleep Problems

Do you have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep at night? This problem can be an occasional nuisance, or a chronic, debilitating condition that interferes with daily life. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to breakdowns in immune system function, fatigue, poor concentration, poor memory, depression, and other problems. Today, Dawn Potter Acupuncture in Clearwater, Florida is discussing a few tips that can help improve your sleep. Have additional questions? Think you may benefit from our various treatment options? Simply reach out today for your free telehealth consultation.

Here are several ideas you can use at home to help you get a great night’s sleep:

Turn off the TV or Computer

If you have difficulty falling asleep, it could be due to overstimulation.  Surfing the net, chatting on facebook, or watching a high-energy TV show doesn’t allow our minds and bodies to unwind and relax in preparation for sleep. Also, In Oriental Medicine, it is said that too much “looking”, (as in staring at digital screens), negatively affects the energy of the Liver, and the Liver’s function of “Storing the Blood” helps us to fall asleep at night. (This is also why it can be helpful to lie on your right side when going to bed; the Liver is on the right side of the body.)

Instead, turn off the computer and TV an hour before bedtime.  You can spend the time taking a relaxing bath, reading a book, listening to soft music or an audiobook, or drinking some chamomile, catnip or other herbal tea.  (Note: avoid chamomile if you are allergic to ragweed.)

Use Aromatherapy

Adding the essential oils of lavender or vanilla to your bath before bedtime can help calm the mind, as can spraying some on your pillow or bed sheets.

Stick to a Consistent Bedtime

Parents know that babies and children are happier, sleep better and behave better when given a consistent and structured schedule. The same is true for our adult bodies which have built-in rhythms that work better when we create a consistent schedule for ourselves.

Try a Sleep CD

Some people find they can’t sleep because of too many thoughts circulating, as if the mind is in a hamster wheel. In this case, it can be useful to try a sleep music CD or app. There are CD’s of music specific for helping you to fall asleep. Or you can just play any soft, soothing music (without words) that pleases you, at a low volume. Music gives your mind something to focus on, to get it out of the hamster wheel. Some artists that I like for this purpose are Steve Gordon, Deuter, Anugama, Dean Evenson and Tim Wheaton.

Journaling

If the Sleep music isn’t enough to calm your mind, perhaps you would do better to journal before bed. Write down all those thoughts that are circulating, so that you can, essentially, “get them out” of your head. Once they are on the paper, your mind can relax.  At this point, the Sleep music may be more effective. This can also be a good tool to use if you wake up, and are unable to go back to sleep due to over-thinking.

Avoid Caffeine, Nicotine and Alcohol After 4 pm

Avoiding coffee and energy drinks in the afternoon and evening should be obvious, but caffeine is also found in chocolate, black tea and green tea. Also, many over-the-counter pain, cold and allergy medications contain caffeine. Alcohol and nicotine, though they may initially help you fall asleep, can disrupt the deeper sleep cycles.

Don’t go to Bed Too Full or Too Hungry

Try to allow 2 to 3 hours between your last meal of the day and bedtime. Going to bed with a very full stomach can cause restless sleep and poor digestion.

If you are very hungry before bed, try a small snack of  banana, dates, figs, whole grain crackers or 1/2 grapefruit. These contain tryptophan, which helps induce sleep. (By the same token avoid bacon, ham, sausage, cheese, chocolate, eggplant, potatoes, sauerkraut, sugar, spinach, tomatoes, and wine before bed, because they contain tyramine, which is a stimulant. Incidentally, many of these will also cause nighttime heartburn.)

Try this Breathing Technique

When you are lying in bed, wishing you were asleep, practice this useful technique: Get into a comfortable position and turn your attention to your breath. Breathe in normally, and when you breathe out, instead of controlling it out slowly or forcing it out, just let it go: Let all the muscles go in your chest and throat and body. The breathe will come out in a short, audible puff.  Then, at the bottom of the out-breath, you can hold for a few seconds (however it feels natural) before taking another normal breath in. Continue to focus on inhaling normally, and just letting go on the exhale. Many people find that they can fall asleep within minutes of starting this technique.

Start Your Natural Sleep Treatment in Clearwater Today

If you try these ideas and are still struggling with your sleep, please call for an appointment with Dawn Potter Acupuncture. You likely need to get the underlying cause of the insomnia diagnosed with Oriental Medicine and treated with a series of acupuncture sessions, an appropriate herbal formula or one of our other treatment options that can help with sleep issues/insomnia.