Where It Started & How It's Going

By Changing Nothing, Nothing Changes

Spring is the quintessential season for transformation. With every passing day, we witness nature's rebirth and can’t help but feel a change stirring within ourselves. 

It's been a year since I last wrote a post. I’ve decided to share my experiences as a practitioner and offer my insights. My adventures in acupuncture have been powerful, eye-opening, challenging, but oh so rewarding. 

But First, Allow Me to Re-Introduce Myself…

For nearly 10 years, I’ve been fortunate enough to practice Acupuncture & Traditional Chinese Medicine, here in Toronto. I went to school, studied hard, made significant personal and financial sacrifices, but ultimately passed my boards with flying colours and started practicing. I chose to leave an unfulfilling career that I also excelled at, but saw no future; just a neverending carousel of stress, self-doubt and poor lifestyle habits. And when I made that fateful decision to leave,  an echo from a past-life began resonating deep from within; a long-buried  desire to study medicine. 

Having a curious and open-mind I decided to delve into the eastern medical traditions. My heritage and upbringing never once deterred me from experimenting with yoga, ayurveda, meditation and Chinese medicine; they were  alluring and mysterious forms of self-healing that actually worked. They seemed so mystical and out of reach, how could a mere mortal like myself ever figure any of this out.

One day I decided, I want to know what they know.

What is Holistic Health & Why You Need It 

The concept of holistic health is not a new one, but it does get grouped into the world of Woo Woo. I’d like to briefly demystify any misbeliefs and highlight the importance of holistic medicine and why we need it in our daily lives. 

Holistic health is often perceived to be in opposition to Western medicine. But in actuality, they can beautifully compliment one another. In Western medicine, the body and its various physiological systems are separated out and studied as different specialities. This is why a ‘specialist’ is often consulted when a specific issue in the  body arises; when you have a problem with your heart you’re referred to a cardiologist, etc. Having this expert knowledge is crucial and invaluable. 

But when you tease out each system, it can be difficult to see the  person behind the illness. Holistic health values treating the person as whole rather than just their symptoms. It takes an individual approach to health, focusing on prevention just as much as treatment. 

Oftentimes, when you present your doctor with a chronic health problem, there is no medical intervention that can cure it. There might be some procedures or medications that might alleviate the symptoms, but not heal them entirely. These kinds of diagnoses can be life altering and stress-inducing leaving some to feel hopeless. 

When problems arise in life, I’ve always been taught to look at it from all angles. By getting a new perspective on your health issue, you can find new solutions and approaches to life to  help you navigate your illness with integrity.

Why I Choose Traditional Chinese Medicine

Resolute to learn more about holistic health, I decided to try all of them out until I found the One. I got treatments in student clinics and audited  a few classes at various schools.  It became very clear who the true standout was; TCM  is a complete system of medicine. Having over 2,000 years of empirical science behind it and so many tools, such as acupuncture, herbal medicine, cupping, nutrition and meditation I was sold. And the treatments worked. I had had acupuncture before, and I was fascinated by how and why it was effective; how did these tiny needles create such an impact?

As I delved deeper into the philosophy behind this ancient healing modality, I realized that there was a spiritual component to it. TCM teaches that the body, mind, and spirit (or energetic body) are interconnected and that true health can only be achieved by addressing all three aspects of the self. Acupuncture works by balancing the life energy or Qi in the body, and TCM emphasizes the importance of living in harmony with nature. But how I describe it to my patients is this: acupuncture utilizes these thin needles and manipulates rivers of energy that run along the body's surface. By accessing these energy points, we’re able to get your mind and body to talk to one another through your often forgotten or ignored energetic body, aka your spirit.

Your emotional state is just as important to me as your physiological state. Knowing how your nervous system is regulating itself is a huge component to how I practice. By getting you in that Rest & Digest State is the secret to getting your body to heal. Chinese medicine is just that, it’s Chinese, not born from the west and it has its own ancient and spiritual approach to the body that is not lost on me. I don’t shy away from this and embracing this energetic aspect has  greatly enhanced the treatment experience. 

And if you don’t believe this and want to firmly place TCM in the world of Woo Woo, that’s fine, I’m not here to convince skeptics. You don’t have to believe that it works for it to work. I’ve treated many patients who were clear from the jump that they thought TCM was nonsense, but were so desperate for a miracle they were willing to try anything. 

All I ask from my patients is to keep an open-mind. 

Stay Curious

 This  motto has never failed me. I am curious by nature and I think this quality is what’s going to keep me excited about holistic medicine for years to come. With every new patient brings new inspiration, new challenges and engaging problem solving. 

Because I have so many tools to choose from and no two patients or treatments are alike; this medicine keeps me on my toes. 

As many of my patients can attest to, I also incorporate other lifestyle advice such as nutrition and 5 Element Theory with mindfulness practices such as meditation into my treatment plans. These practices help my patients connect with their inner selves and tap into their own innate healing power all on their own. By promoting a sense of calm and inner peace, these practices can help reduce stress, which is often the underlying factor in many health issues. And it lengthens the effectiveness of the treatments. 

Teaching the body to access the parasympathetic nervous system, or the Rest & Digest state, is just like strengthening a muscle; it takes consistent effort and repetition to build resilience and create neural pathways. Acupuncture taps into this state quickly and powerfully. But not everyone can get acupuncture weekly, let alone daily. We need to find other methods to keep this connection strong and build healing habits. So being curious about yourself and trying new things is a powerful ally to achieving balance and ultimately good health. 

My personal journey with acupuncture and TCM has not only transformed my physical health but my emotional and spiritual well-being.. And now, I have my own practice. I co-own a clinic and am still trying to achieve balance on a whole different level. Just like everyone else, I am a work in progress and my personal journey with this medicine continues to reveal new truths all the time. 

I hope to practice this medicine for the rest of my life.  And by incorporating my patients physical, mental and energetic state into my treatment plans, my aim is to offer a holistic and comprehensive approach to healing. We are so wonderfully complex and to deny or ignore any aspect of our being, is a disservice to ourselves. 

Stay tuned for more insights and my adventures in acupuncture. I’ll be providing wellness and health insights based on my expertise as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner. I’ll break down the philosophy behind and the approaches TCM has for a variety of health issues and common conditions. 

If you are interested in exploring the energetic, mind and body approach acupuncture and TCM has to offer, book a Discovery Call or Treatment Here