Whether you're deeply missing your weekly acupuncture appointment, or if you've always been curious about Chinese medicine, now is the time to stay home, stay safe, and learn more about this powerful medicine and how it can help you reach your health and wellness goals.  Here are 5 ways you can learn more about Chinese medicine while you're quarantined this spring:

1. Learn More About Chinese Medicine Theory through Books or YouTube

Are you spending more time than ever in front of screens?  Put Netflix on pause and discover some of our favorite Chinese Medicine resources.  Have you been wanting to try Qigong but aren't sure where to start?  This Youtube video by DAO Practitioner Nick Loffree is not only designed for beginners, it also helps reduce stress.  If books are more your thing, we love "The Path: What Chinese Philosophers Can Teach Us About the Good Life."

2. Dive into Chinese Nutritional Therapy

Have you been feeling sluggish during quarantine?  Damp foods like dairy, wheat, processed foods, and alcohol can wreak havoc on the body. The Middle Burner Diet by DAO Labs focuses on keeping the stomach and spleen at 100 degrees to optimize digestion while also promoting better sleep, mood, and energy (something we can all use a little bit more of right now!).  Here are a few tips:

• Skip the row and cold foods
• Pass on foods that are overly "damp" (sorry friends, that means skip the alcohol and the sugar!)
• Pay attention to the physical temperature of your food and try to lightly cook all fruits and veggies

Need some recipes to get you started?  Co-Founder and Chief Culinary Office Travis Metzger creates recipes using Chinese nutritional therapy using common western ingredients.  You can find them all here.

3. Incorporate Herbs in Your Wellness Routine

Like acupuncture, Chinese herbs can address underlying imbalances that manifest in a variety of symptoms and complaints. In Chinese medicine, we rarely recommend consuming just one herb - they are often combined with multiple herbs chosen for the synergistic effects to boost the healing properties.  Many of us are missing our acupuncture appointments as we "shelter in place", and are looking for ways to continue those incredible effects that we experience after acupuncture: better sleep, better mood, better digestion.  Herbal formulas can help fill that void and keep your treatments going virtually.  Looking for an herbal recommendation for your exact constitution?  Connect with our team here.

4. Incorporate Chinese Medicine Inspired "Self-Care"

Yang Shen, or the Chinese art of self healing, means to nurture life.  This important concept teaches that the secret to long-lasting health and happiness doesn't mean extreme diets and impossible workouts -- it means implementing small daily tasks that are simple, pleasurable, and effortlessly fit into your routine.  We're all under immense amounts of stress, so keep things simple and give yourself grace, with the end goal to live a happier, more simple life.  Instead of reaching for that second scoop of ice cream, spend five minutes in a guided meditation, write in your journal, or walk barefoot in nature.

5. Turn to Acupressure 

Feeling anxious or nauseous? Apply firm pressure to "PC6", located about three finger breadths above the wrist on the inner forearm in between the two tendons.  Acupuncturist Dr. Kara MoraMarco writes: "This is one of my favorite acupuncture/acupressure points to help with feelings of anxiety or any heart issues physically or emotionally.  Nei Guan or Pericardium/PC6:

• Calms the heart and spirit, is good for anxiety, irritability, insomnia, or any heart related problem.
• Relaxes the chest and regulates the Qi.
• Is commonly used to help relieve nausea, upset stomach, motion sickness, carpal tunnel syndrome, and anxiety."

Want to chat more about Chinese medicine and learn how it can help you not only survive but also thrive during this ongoing pandemic?  We'd love to hear from you. Reach out to us with any questions or thoughts you may have, and the appropriate team member will get back to you. Say home, and stay healthy.