How to Create a Self-Care Plan

By Laura | Published July 31, 2019

What is a Self-Care Plan and Why You Should Create One

With a growing focus on mental health in the public sphere, you’ve likely encountered references to individuals creating a “self-care plan.” A self-care plan is a coping mechanism that keeps you from being overwhelmed by life’s sometimes chaotic nature. It’s also a proactive measure that you design. It’s filled with activities that bring you joy, reminders of your self-worth, as well as ways to tap into your support network. Below are three reasons why investing in a self-care plan ahead of time is essential:

1) A customized self-care plan is empowering. Take some time to look within first; you’ll know what things in life bring on stress and what things make it melt away. Through this self-reflection, you’ll have the foundations for developing your self-care plan and having it written down offers a safety net for the moments when you need it most.

2) Self-care plans help you respond, not react in moments of crisis. In terms of mindfulness, a self-care plan allows you to respond to situations versus simply reacting. Creating a plan ahead of time, therefore, empowers you to feel more in control of your life and avoid becoming overwhelmed by it. Likewise, you’ll be in a better position to know what type of outside help you might need and where to go for it.

3) Developing a plan helps keep you on track. A tangible, clearly laid-out strategy keeps you accountable and motivated to build new, positive routines. Knowing what you need to do when things get tough should also prevent you from making excuses and defaulting to old habits.

How to Create a Self-Care Plan Cloud 9 Acupuncture

How to Create Your Self-Plan

Now that you better understand the importance of creating a self-care plan, it’s time to bring your own to life. Remember: this is a course of action that you take everywhere and seeks to balance your physical and emotional needs. The plan can also include resources that you can rely on and reminders about your personal goals.

Build your self-care plan by following these steps:

Step 1: Write down an activity list that shows the different components of your life. To get you started, here are a few example areas to focus on:

Your day job
Your relationships: romantic, platonic, family, community
Your physical activity
Your internal thoughts

When this list is complete, you’ll want to add activities that you enjoy, bring happiness, and wellbeing to each space in your life. Sample activities include downloading a meditation app for your phone, meal prepping, keeping a gratitude journal, working with a therapist, or scheduling recurring acupuncture sessions.

Step 2: Write down the things that might get in your way. Afterward, devote some time to figuring out potential ways to address these barriers positively. An example would be if you’re in the habit of negative self-talk, take 5 minutes each morning to write down 3 good things about yourself. Over time these “shifts” in thinking and action will build to even larger life changes and you being well-suited to handle future stressful situations.

Step 3: Share your plan with your support network. Once your self-care plan is complete, send a copy to the people you trust most and are willing to help keep you accountable. You may also want to encourage these individuals to develop their own and share them with you.

Sticking to Your Self-Care Plan

For your self-care plan to be successful, you’ll need to commit to regularly acting on it. We know this is easier said than done, but we encourage you to be empathetic towards yourself and give yourself time to build new habits. Yes, there’ll likely be times where you slip back into past responses; this is okay and natural. When these moments do arise, be kind to yourself and use it as a chance to refocus.

Here are a few ways you can set yourself up for success when implementing a self-care plan:

Set daily reminders on your phone to do something that brings you joy
Meet up regularly with your accountability partner
Bring your plan to life through drawings, photo collages, or another visual medium
Schedule recurring appointments that contribute to your well-being, such as acupuncture or gym workouts
When you do falter, take a moment to reset with 5 deep breaths and visualizing your best self
Reward yourself when you’ve stuck to a part of your plan for a certain number of days, weeks, months, etc.

Posted in Anxiety, Health, Stress, Wellness | Comments Off

3 AcuPoints for Anxiety

By admin | Published July 15, 2019

One of the most wonderful things about being an acupuncturist is the ability to stimulate points on my own body when I need to. If I get a headache, or feel a cold coming on, I can always hop up on my table for a quick tune-up with some needles. Even when I’m not at the office, the magic of acupuncture can still work for me – as long as I know where the points are and what they do, I can press on them and get results. continue reading »

Posted in Acupuncture, Anxiety, Stress | Tagged acupoints, anxiety, nausea, stress | Comments Off

The One Hour Vacation

By Laura | Published July 8, 2019

It’s time for a tune up!

In Chinese Medicine, we acknowledge that Summer brings the gifts of laughter, partnership, and joy. This is seen by our desire to vacation with loved ones, have fun and break loose, and have more get togethers with old and new friends. In Summer, our Heart, Pericardium, Small Intestine and San Jiao are at their peak of functioning and at their most vulnerable. If challenged, you may notice some issues with regulating your body temperature or fluids- hello edema! Swollen ankles, anyone? If this is an issue for you, you can add 2 handfuls of watermelon to your diet daily or try Job’s Tears… and don’t forget your regular acupuncture treatment.

Late Summer brings the gift of harvest time, all of our hard work is paying off and especially for farmers and gardeners we can see the ripe fruit and vegetables in abundance to eat. We get a feeling of “life is good and easy” because there is plenty of food and a general sense of putting our feet up to relax. The gifts of Late Summer are empathy, sympathy, mothering oneself/tending to oneself versus how we take care of others. There is a lot of digesting life, making life a part of us- the way we go on vacation to a new land, consume the culture, the food, the energy of a beautiful and interesting place as we try to take it back home with us as part of our new life experience. In Late Summer, our Stomach and Spleen are at their peak of functioning and at their most vulnerable. If this is a difficult time for your body, you may notice more loose stools or irregular digestion, stomach bloating or cramps, or gas. Try fresh mint in your diet, add to smoothies or salads, or as a cup of tea.

If you’re finding Summer or Late Summer a difficult time, emotional or physically, don’t suffer alone. It’s time for a tune up. Schedule your appointment with one of our wonderful acupuncturists, available in White Marsh or Timonium, Monday thru Saturday as early as 7am, as late as 7pm.

Acupuncture is the perfect one hour vacation, with benefit to your mind and body.

Posted in Acupressure, Acupuncture, Acupuncure, Allergies, Anxiety, Stress, Traditional Chinese Medicine | Comments Off

Seven Ways to Set and Achieve Your Goals

By admin | Published July 1, 2019

No matter what you’re trying to accomplish, setting goals is one way to help you get there. Often, when people have no goals, they lack motivation, focus and direction. Setting goals also provides a benchmark to determine whether or not you are succeeding. But how do you set goals if you’ve never done so before? Or what if you have set goals in the past, but you didn’t achieve them? Do you just give up and tell yourself that goal setting doesn’t work? That’s one option, but let’s put things into perspective. continue reading »

Posted in Anxiety, Stress | Tagged anxieity, goals, stress, time management | Comments Off

Will My Insurance Cover Acupuncture?

By Laura | Published June 26, 2019

Since acupuncture is considered alternative medicine and non-drug therapy, you may have questions about whether your insurance policy will cover such a method of treatment. It’s known as an effective form of treatment for various conditions, including chronic pain, migraines, fertility, and even weight loss. Therefore, many people seeking relief in these areas are willing to give acupuncture a go. Still, there could be more clarity when it comes to insurance coverage.

How Much is Acupuncture without Insurance?

There are a lot of variables in the cost of acupuncture, with and without insurance. The fees at each acupuncture clinic will range, depending on the service you’re receiving and other factors. Typically, the range is about $50 and up to $150. Cigna, Humana, Aetna, United Health Care, Landmark, and Blue Cross/Blue Shield are insurance companies that will sometimes cover acupuncture.

Insurance Coverage at Cloud 9

Although most people don’t, some will require a referral from your primary care physician depending on your individual insurance policy. The amount of the co-pay will vary, starting at $0 and including $15, $20, $30, or $40. Acupuncture is not always a covered benefit under every insurance policy. However, patients are often surprised to find out their plan does cover acupuncture as an additional wellness benefit.

Depending on your individual insurance policy, some patients will be required to pay an annual deductible. Occasionally, an individual insurance policy will waive the deductible for acupuncture services. Out of network patients pay full price and seek direct reimbursement payment from their insurance company. We are approved participating providers in network with all forms of Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Cigna, Johns Hopkins EHP, and Aetna insurances.

How to Review Your Insurance Policy

The Cloud 9 team is here to help answer any questions about insurance coverage. In addition, we encourage our patients to verify their acupuncture benefit coverage under their individual insurance policy and we’ll help you understand the fine print and what it all means for your treatment. Cloud 9’s biller will outline the following:

Whether or not acupuncture is a covered benefit under your current individual insurance policy, and if there are any exclusions to this acupuncture coverage in the fine print.
Co-pay or Co-insurance expected payment at the time of service.
Deductible, whether or not it’s been met and if not, how much of the yearly deductible remains, or if the deductible is waived for acupuncture services. Usually, once the deductible has been met, the patient is only responsible for the co-pay and/or the co-insurance payment each visit.
Whether pre-authorization is needed prior to initial treatment.
Approved number of visits per year, and the beginning of the year for this individual policy.

To verify acupuncture insurance benefits before your session, please give us a call at 443-521-3583 or email the following info to: acupunctureByLaura@gmail.com:

Which insurance company your policy is with (We are an approved provider with Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Johns Hopkins EHP, and Aetna).
Your full name and Date of Birth, and the Primary policy holder’s full name and Date of Birth (if not you).
The Insurance Member ID # on the front of the insurance card.
Provider Tel. # on the back of the card.

If you do not have insurance, we take Health Savings Accounts, Medical Flex Spending, Visa, MC, Discover, personal checks and cash.

Posted in Acupuncture, Q & A, What We Treat | Comments Off