- Cloud 9 Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine22 West Padonia Rd. Suite A-203
Timonium, MD 21093
Fatigue
How Acupuncture Can Help You with Your Chronic Pain
By Bradley Stiles, L.Ac.
Can acupuncture help you with your chronic pain?
YES!
The National Institute of Health (NIH) believes so saying “Results from a number of studies suggest that acupuncture may help ease types of pain that are often chronic such as low-back pain, neck pain, and osteoarthritis/knee pain. It also may help reduce the frequency of tension headaches and prevent migraine headaches. Therefore, acupuncture appears to be a reasonable option for people with chronic pain to consider. “
When I started writing this blog post there were over 700 studies on the relationship between acupuncture and chronic pain on PubMed (short for Public Medical Database, an online resource that complies verified scientific data on all different kinds of research experiments). This positive relationship is well documented and well known. The science behind acupuncture and its reductive effect on pain is one of the reasons most insurances cover acupuncture today. (Thank Goodness!) New scientific research is coming out all of the time!
It is even being used in many hospitals and even in some Emergency Rooms/departments. Below I’ve linked two studies that have shown positive changes that were statistically significant in Pain management outcomes through the use of acupuncture. This means that acupuncture performed better than a placebo effect. Please read the studies below if your interested in knowing more.
With the current opioid epidemic if you know someone that is interested in coming off of their pain meds we at Cloud 9 would love to work together with their doctor to manage the patient’s pain levels with the goal of their doctor either suggesting a reduction in their amount of medication or (with physician supervision and approval) the patient is able to come off medications altogether because symptoms have disappeared by completing a series of acupuncture treatment protocol .
Links Related to This Article:
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/acupuncture/introduction
Acupuncture as a Nonpharmacologic Treatment for Pain in a Pediatric Emergency Department- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Acupuncture+as+a+Nonpharmacologic+Treatment+for+Pain+in+a+Pediatric+Emergency+Department&fbclid=IwAR1EeOIxp4nj2AhbHd938KRgYIqokY-9lnLeWaUrX9kS8ktIWszlbZajxlc
Effect of Integrative Medicine Services on Pain for Hospitalized Patients at an Academic Health Center –
Bradley’s Timonium Hours:
Monday … 7am – 11am
Tuesday … 7am – 12pm
Wednesday… 7am – 11am
Brad is ready to see patients with Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Cigna and Aetna plans in Timonium.
Bradley’s Kent Island Hours:
Thursday …10am – 5pm
We do not accept insurance at our Kent Island location.
Read more about Brad & Watch Brad’s Video! at https://cloud9acuclinic.com/bradley-stiles-acupuncturist/
Earth Constitutional Factor
By Kelly Ferguson, L.Ac.
You may hear your practitioner speaking about your CF or Constitutional Factor, and you are probably asking yourself what that means? In Five Element Acupuncture Theory there are five elements or seasons that we use to help diagnosis and understand our patients. We have each of these elements within us, but we prefer one to two of them over the others. Those elements that we unknowingly prefer or align with are what we would call a person’s Constitutional Factor or CF. Within each CF there are the meridians, colors, odors, sounds, emotions, personality traits, seasons, etc. that go along with it.
One of these Constitutional Factors is called Earth. The season for this element is Late Summer which we are getting ready to head into. This element is very grounding or centering. It allows us to nurture ourselves and those around us. Earth CF’s can sometimes sound like they are singing as they are speaking. They tend to have a yellow complexion to their skin around their eyes, and their odor can be a bit sweet smelling. The meridians that go along with Earth are spleen and stomach meridians.
Kelly sees patients on Tuesdays & Thursdays 12p -8pm, Saturdays 10am-3pm in Timonium, and Wednesdays 12:30pm-7:30pm in White Marsh. Read more about Kelly at https://cloud9acuclinic.com/kelly-ferguson-acupuncturist/
Traditional Chinese Medicine Pulse and Tongue Diagnosis
By Kelly Ferguson, L.Ac.
Looking at someone’s tongue is a helpful tool for Acupuncturists. The tongue allows us to see what is going on in a person’s body. When we are looking at your tongue we are checking the color, texture, coating, shape and markings on the tongue. By seeing what the tongue looks like we can see if we need to build qi or energy, help the flow of qi throughout the body, clear phlegm or heat, or build fluid in the body.
In addition, there are different locations on the tongue that correlate to the meridians. While we are looking at the color, texture, shape, marks and coating of the tongue; we are also looking at how they look on the different areas of the tongue to determine which meridians to use during treatment. The tongue does take time to change, so after you’ve been getting treatments for about a month take a look at your tongue and see the difference.
Pulse Diagnosis
During your acupuncture treatments, your practitioner will take your pulses on both wrists. We are looking for six pulse positions on each wrist. These pulses connect to the meridians or pathways that move qi or energy throughout your body. These pulses help us to diagnosis which meridians might need to be flushed out or strengthened.
The analogy that comes to mind is with Goldilocks and the Three Bears. In the story the porridge can’t be too hot or too cold, it had to be just right. This is what we are looking for with pulses. The pulse can’t be too high or too low in strength. We want the pulse to find a happy median.
Kelly sees patients on Tuesdays & Thursdays 12p -8pm, Saturdays 10am-3pm in Timonium, and Wednesdays 12:30pm-7:30pm in White Marsh. Read more about Kelly at https://cloud9acuclinic.com/kelly-ferguson-acupuncturist/
Acupuncture Happy Hour at Cloud 9! Time to Party!
Acupuncture Happy Hour!
Join us at Cloud 9 as we show our appreciation
Free Acupuncture & Free TCM Tongue Diagnosis
Lite refreshments will be served.
OPEN TO ALL PATIENTS & FRIENDS OF CLOUD 9!
Wednesday May 9, 2018 from 5-7pm
at Cloud 9 Acupuncture
With Special Guest Speaker Dr. Pamela Woodward
from First Step Chiropractic!
RSVP Today Call: 443-521-3583
Cloud 9 Acupuncture
22 W. Padonia Rd. Suite B-324
Timonium, MD 21093
Why I Became an Acupuncturist
Hi, My name is Laura Stauffer Parks and I’m a Licensed Acupuncturist and Certified Health Coach at Cloud 9 Acupuncture and here’s my story of how I became an acupuncturist.
Long ago, I was a Massage Therapist who was afraid of needles. One week, at least half of my clients came in asking me about acupuncture, and asking me if I knew of a good local acupuncturist for them to try. I answered No, actually I’ve never tried acupuncture because I’m afraid of needles. After maybe the 10th or 12th client asked me this same question about acupuncture, I decided to go try acupuncture just once, to find a nice local acupuncturist that I could send all my massage clients to. And so, I did just that.
When I began receiving acupuncture treatments, I had no idea what to expect. I had allergies that were bad enough I’d have to take prescription allergy meds daily or face a nasty sinus infection as soon as I’d try to stop taking it. After my second acupuncture treatment, my allergies were gone for good, which was awesome! Even better was the deep and profound relaxation I felt not just during my session but for days, even a week after my treatment. That really got my attention, as a massage therapist I knew the relaxation from a good massage can last a solid day if you’re lucky.
I was about 22 years old when I received my first acupuncture treatment. Over the next few years, I was continuously amazed by what acupuncture could do for me. I’d twisted my ankle coming off the curb the wrong way, and after acupuncture walked out like it never happened. Colds went away faster, things I would normally take antibiotics for I was now using acupuncture with great success.
What really took the cake for me was when my cat suddenly fell ill. All of a sudden one day, my cat had gone into kidney failure. According to the vet, after being hospitalized for 3 days and about a thousand dollars later, my cat had about a 10% chance of survival, as they still did not actually know why my cat’s kidneys were shutting down. I told my acupuncturist and she recommended her colleague who treats cats. So when my cat came home from the vet, looking very much like he was dying, he got his very first acupuncture treatment.
Here’s what happened… She placed the needles for 15 minutes on my cat’s back, then took them out. In that 15 mins my cat went from not able to lift his head or meow, dingy damp fur and yellowing eyes to leaping off the couch, jumping into the bathtub and begging for water out of the tub faucet, drinking water and meowing loudly, running to the kitchen and eating a large bowl of cat food (he hadn’t eaten for about a week), and then swiftly running back to us and rubbing against our legs while excitedly meowing loud and fast, as if to say, “thank you, thank you, thank you! I feel so much better!” My cat would go on to live another 10 years.
After my miraculous cat acupuncture experience I knew what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I knew I had to go to acupuncture school and learn how to help people with this medicine of vast possibilities. So I did. I’ve enjoyed every day of being an acupuncturist, helping patients with so many different kinds of conditions. Every day is so different, because you never know what the patient is going to come in with, physical or emotional, that they may need tending. Every day is a true adventure and I feel so honored to offer this medicine.
If you have questions about how acupuncture can help you with your health concerns, please call to schedule a Free Consultation – I’d love to help!
