The question is, this year, what are you going to do about it?

Several patients come to me for help with their allergies. Several more come to me for other reasons, such as pain, fertility, liver health,etc. and then mention in an offhand way that yes, they suffer from allergies and have for many years. Why do we accept allergies as a necessary evil?

Over the counter or prescription medication can provide relief, however at best these just deal with the symptoms of allergies and at worse, they supress the immune system which can lead to sinus infections, respiratory infections and other problems.

Allergies are a signal telling you something is wrong. What is often very suprising to people is that treating their allergies is a key component of treating all sorts of health problems. Allergies indicate inflammation. Typically this inflammation is not just localized in the sinuses or lungs, it also shows up in other parts of the body, like joint pain, skin rashes or muscle tension and pain.

The gift of Chinese medicine is that it addresses the whole person, taking into consideration environmental and constitutional factors when treating allergies. Acupuncture, herbal formulas, nutritional supplements and dietary shifts can all reduce inflammation and get to the root cause of WHY your immune system is out of balance.

Wouldn’t it be nice to not have to take allergy medication that just suppresses obvious allergy symptoms? Make an appointment today and take control of your health!

* How a person’s constitution plants the seeds that can give rise to symptoms and ill health

* The importance of strengthening the constitution first to facilitate deeper healing and the true resolution of symptoms

* Factors that slow or interfere with the body’s ability to heal, thus turning an acute problem into a chronic one such as: hormonal factors, poor digestion, structural issues, toxicity from drugs or environmental influences, stress and nervous system/adrenal gland imbalances

* The specific relationship between structural issues and gynecological problems

Would it surprise you to know that high heels may contribute to painful periods and infertility? Or that the chronic shoulder pain you suffer from may be caused by constriction in your lower back and pelvis? Or that your headaches and sinus congestion can affect your pituitary (the master glad that controls all of your hormones)?

The best part is that there are specific treatment strategies to address all of these issues!

Given that my clinical doctorate is in Women’s Health and Pain Management and I’m pursuing a PhD in Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, this powerful seminar on holistic gynecology was based in line with my training and philosophy of healing AND expanded my knowledge base.

I feel so excited to share this information and experience with my patients!

I am so excited to be attending the seminar, ”Gynecology, Fertility and Promoting an Easy Labor” in Costa Rica. It will be taught by one of my esteemed Japanese Acupuncture teachers, David Euler. Topics will include:

• Menopause Support
• Infertility Causes and Solutions
• Endometriosis, Ovarian Cysts
• Irregular Cycles, PMS
• Healthy Pregnancy and Delivery

The timing couldn’t be better, given that this month is National Women’s Health Month. While I am away, Jessica Parker, LAC, MTCM will be seeing patients on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. I will be back in the office on Saturday, August 21st and look forward to sharing my experiences with you!

Judy, a long time patient of mine, is now dedicating her time and energy training for marathons to raise funds for  children battling Cancer.  We want to support her in her amazing efforts by  spreading the word  about her upcoming fundraiser.  Judy will be hosting an Orchid Sale to raise  money for Leukemia  and Lymphoma research.

Here are the details:

-Dates: July 23rd, 25th, 26th, plus August 7th and 8th from 8AM-3PM

-Place:  733 Rosedale, Capitola

-All plants have been re-potted and are ready for the next bloom!

-No orchids over $15!

-Donated by Maplethorp Orchids

We wish Judy the best of luck with her sale and hope to see a big turnout!  Here is a testimonial that Judy has recently left on www.Yelp.com :

“I came to Dr. Rozenn’s office after having a gastric by-pass that had lots of complications.  I could not eat or drink…I was just too nauseated.  So I either ended up going to urgi-care and getting bags of IV fluids or i ended up back in the hospital.  All’s i knew at this point is that I didn’t want to live the rest of my life in this manner.  I thought many times of just “offing” myself.  Then my friend got me into see Dr. Rozenn.  I don’t remember much of this first visit except that she really listened to all i had gone through and the symptoms i was having.  She then took me to a room where she  took my pulses ( yes,  you have more than one) she looked at my tongue and made her plan.  She really had her work cut out for herself…there was the nausea, and other digestive problems, depression, to my extreme back pain not to mention the other health problems of diabetes, hypertension etc.  Each visit (twice a week) she would come in talk and take my pulses and make her plan or the needles that day.  Her treatments got me out of my chair that I had been unable to get out of for over a year and back to being able to eat and drink a little at first. Also she worked on getting me back on track of wanting to live again.   I just finished doing my first marathon and have more planned.  THANK YOU   Dr. Rozenn for giving me my life back and the enjoyment of living it again.”

-Judy J.

The first time I saw this clearly was when I was a Masters student. I had a patient with wrist pain that I could not budge! I tried everything, every herbal and acupuncture treatment I could think of and still, the pain remained unchanged. At that point I referred him to one of my teachers. I was fortunate enough to be able to observe the office visit and acupuncture treatment. She asked him a very important question which had never occurred to me to ask, “What was happening in your life when the wrist pain started?” As it turns out, the wrist pain first began right after his sister passed away. The location of the pain was on the heart meridian. This energetic pathway runs from the heart, down to the shoulder, elbow, wrist and ends at the pinky finger. No wonder my treatments were not working! I had never treated the underlying cause for his pain…heartbreak.

I saw a similar situation recently in my practice. I fit in a patient in my break because his “back went out” last night. He was in acute pain with severe muscle spasms. Now I always ask patients what was happening in their lives when the pain first started. As it turned out, just before his back began to hurt he had a spat with his girlfriend. He described her as a very unstable person. She wanted him to support her through an emotionally taxing experience and he didn’t have the energy. The load was just too great to carry. So, I treated him with points that relieve low back pain AND points that “calm the spirit”. Calm spirit points are used in Chinese medicine for different manifestations of stress. Some point treat grief while others are used for depression, anxiety, melancholy etc.

Find the association between physical and emotional pain hard to fathom? Even if you have never had musculoskeletal pain as a result of an emotional upset, I bet you have had stomach pain, loss of appetite, constipation or diarrhea after a disagreement or during times of acute stress. Perhaps you have gotten a headache or even a migraine at the end of a stressful day.

I have found that in cases of physical pain, even if there was not a precipitating event, simply having pain for a prolonged period can cause depression, fatigue and listlessness which also needs to be addressed in addition to treating the physical problem. The strength of Chinese medicine is that the whole person is taken into account when treating any disease process. The wise practitioner does not try to separate the emotional component of pain from the physical reality (i.e. the muscle spasm, tendon strain or chronic joint inflammation) Thus, emotional, physical and spiritual pain can be treated simultaneously, setting the stage for a deeper level of healing and more complete recovery.

What Acupuncture is used for during Cancer Treatment

Acupuncture provides a total approach to health care for people with cancer. It can be used to address many of the concerns that come up during and after chemotherapy, radiation, biological therapy and surgery.

According to the National Cancer Institute, acupuncture may cause physical responses in nerve cells, the pituitary gland, and parts of the brain. These responses can cause the body to release proteins, hormones, and brain chemicals that control a number of body functions. It is proposed that, by these actions, acupuncture affects blood pressure and body temperature, boosts immune system activity, and causes the body’s natural painkillers, such as endorphins, to be released.

Areas that acupuncture has shown the most promise include:

Chemo-Induced Nausea Study

Effect of Acupuncture on Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting

According to the National Cancer Institute, of all the investigated effects of acupuncture on cancer-related or chemotherapy-related symptoms and disorders, the positive effect of acupuncture on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting is the most convincing.

Numerous studies have consistently shown acupuncture to be effective in the treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting as well as as postoperative and morning sickness nausea and vomiting.

A randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial investigated the effect of electro-acupuncture on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in 104 patients with breast cancer who were undergoing a highly emetogenic (causes vomiting) chemotherapy regimen. The patients were randomly assigned to receive low-frequency electro-acupuncture at classic acupuncture points for nausea and vomiting once daily for 5 days, minimal needling at control points with mock electro-acupuncture on the same schedule, or no adjunct needling. All patients received concurrent antiemetic drugs (prochlorperazine, lorazepam, and diphenhydramine) and high-dose chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, and carmustine).

The main outcome measures were the total number of emesis (vomiting) episodes and the proportion of emesis-free days occurring during the 5-day study period. The data revealed significantly fewer emesis episodes in the electro-acupuncture treatment group compared with those in the minimal needling and drug-only control groups.

Source:Shen J, Wenger N, Glaspy J, et al.: Electroacupuncture for control of myeloablative chemotherapy-induced emesis: A randomized controlled trial. JAMA 284 (21): 2755-61, 2000.

Source: National Cancer Institute. www.cancer.org

and no, its not just because you think it will…

The following is an abstract from a very interesting study conducted in Germany. It has been well established that acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicinals can dramatically improve semen parameters. But why? Is it the “placebo effect”? Not according to this groundbreaking research, the Correlation of psychological changes and spermiogram improvements following acupuncture.

The following is an abstract of this research study:

The purpose of the study was to find the correlation between the effect of acupuncture on fertility and psychological effects. To investigate its influence on male subfertility, 28 patients received acupuncture treatment after informed consent. We evaluated subjective parameters by written psychological tests, while objective parameters consisted of measuring concentration, volume and motility in the spermiogram before and after acupuncture. There was a significant increase in sperm quality in all parameters but volume. The psychological test showed no change caused by acupuncture. Hence, we believe, that the effect of acupuncture on sperm quality is not caused by placebo-mechanisms.

Dr. Rozenn has extensive training and experience working with male fertility and erectile dysfunction. She has taught doctoral students to improve virility with herbal formulas, acupuncture, nutritional supplements and lifestyle/nutritional counseling. Click on Schedule Appointment at the top of this site to get started!

]]> http://acupuncturesantacruz.net/acupuncture-improves-sperm-counts-and-motility/feed/ 0 http://acupuncturesantacruz.net/acupuncture-ivf-research-update/ http://acupuncturesantacruz.net/acupuncture-ivf-research-update/#comments Tue, 08 Jun 2010 18:07:26 +0000 Dr. Rozenn http://acupuncturesantacruz.net/?p=960 I just got back from teaching Chinese Medicine and IVF–East-West Synergy in Yo San University’s Doctoral of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (DAOM) program. The class focused on helping women (and men) have a successful IVF cycle with Chinese medicine. It also included a synopsis of current research, some of which is so powerful I feel compelled to share it with you.

In a blinded, controlled clinical trial which lasted 7 years and included over 800 patients, researchers in Colorado Springs found that

the specific “Cridennda-Magerelli Acupuncture Protocol” dramatically improved IVF success rates in the following ways:

• Significantly higer rates of healthy babies
• Less ectopic pregnancies
• Fewer miscarriages
• Fewer multiple pregnancies
• Normalization of FSH, prolactin and cortisol
• Improved blood flow to the uterus, which is essential for embryo implantation
• Couples where the women is 38 or older and the man has poor sperm quality showed dramatic improvement

These results are amazing! I had the opportunity to speak at length with Dr. Magarelli about his study and he and I are planning to conduct further research into how acupuncture corrects imbalances in key reproductive hormones in women going through IVF. 

I am happy to provide the Cridennda-Magarelli protocol for patients going through IVF. Simply click on “Schedule Appointment” at the top right corner of the website to get started!

The following is a letter from one of my patients describing her struggle with and the resolution of her chronic insomnia:

I am a 71-year old woman in generally good health, but for eight years I suffered from chronic insomnia and tried every possible Western medical treatment to alleviate this condition. I have, for example, been to an accredited sleep clinic, had the

sleep apnea test (which found no sleep apnea problem), been to two sleep psychologists (no help), as well as to another psychologist specializing in cognitive behavioral therapy, which was helpful for a short time. A variety of relaxing tapes did help somewhat, particularly tapes on authigenic training and subliminal messages, but they did not provide a consistent and permanent alleviation of my insomnia.

Following only one week of treatment from her, I began to sleep well and can now honestly say I sleep between six and eight & a half hours each night. Every aspect of my life has changed for the better, thanks to the knowledge, skill and personality of Dr. Rozenn.

I discovered Dr. Rozenn through a workshop she gave on the approaches of Eastern medicine to insomnia. She very skillfully guided me through the concepts of treating insomnia through the connection with digestion and through lowering general stress. She is extremely skillful not only in the practice of acupuncture but also in carefully listening to her patients and gently introducing them to new approaches to a variety of health problems.