Japan

I cannot tear myself away from watching the news about Japan. More than anything it is because of the tremendous sense of community, calmness and dignity that the people of Japan show in the midst of this tragedy - it is unbelievable and it inspires me.

My sentiment is shared by so many members of the western media who have first hand accounts of other disaster areas across the world. This sense of community, dignity and calm comes from watching reports about Japanese cities and villages - one reporter describing evacuees greeting one another with a Japanese term that roughly translates to "we're in this together". It also comes from the tiniest details. The smallest things amaze me and just remind me how much I love Japan.

In another news story, the reporter spoke about the high number of earthquakes in Japan and how everyone in that country is prepared. They mentioned that majority of people have an "emergency bag" or "grab bag" that is filled with some basic supplies.  What really moved me when I saw this story is how beautiful these bags were. Most of them in gorgeous patterns and bright colors. I was thinking to myself that there are few places in the world where the person who is preparing for an emergency situation - if they plan at all, would spend any thought on the bag itself. It may seem so irrelevant, so unimportant, yet, after this great disaster it somehow sums up the attitude of the person caring it and for me it reflects the order, piece and dignity that is now so apparent among the Japanese survivors.

The attention to every detail is one of many reasons why I've been so inspired for years by Japan and it's people. It is also the reason why I'm certain that even in the midst of this tragedy, Japan will rebuild and recover better than any other place on earth ever could.

Please take the time to generously donate to help the people of Japan so they may recover, rebuild and continue to inspire the rest of the world - no detail overlooked.

27 minutes per day to a healthier brain

Researchers at Mass General Hospital found that participants of an 8-week mindfulness meditation program to reduce stress showed positive changes in the parts of the brain associated with memory, stress, sense of self and more. The participants were asked to engage in yoga and sitting meditation for just 27 minutes per day on average. They were all novices to these practices.

27 minutes per day seems like a small investment of time when the results benefit the brain.

Read full research article here.

Looking for a meditation class? I recommend Akasha Center's Swati Desai, Ph.D., LCSW. She offers group meditation classes every Wednesday and Saturday morning.

For information please call 310-308-9531

Getting Started

Thank you to Kim for inviting me to post on the "Kiiko Student Formu" and write about my experience with Kiiko Matsumoto style of acupuncture.
Since this is a new forum and many of you are just beginning to learn Kiiko Matsumoto style of acupuncture, it seems appropriate to start with the idea or question of “where do I start?”

Here are my two suggestions – these are the two things that helped me the most when I first started to study with Kiiko Matsumoto.

Number one:

Make a lot of copies of page 16 of Kiiko Matsumoto's Clinical Strategies, Volume 1.

What’s on page 16...the entire “map” of the abdominal diagnosis.

Why a lot of copies...because I recommend that you have a copy of this page with you every time you see a patient. Put a fresh copy in your patient’s file and each time you see them, try to palpate as many of the areas listed as your appointment time allows and mark the areas you palpated on the copy. Even if you don’t have time, or at this point are not sure how to clear these areas, palpate and mark as many as you can.

I recommend this to every person I’ve talked to who inquires about this style of acupuncture because, I believe, the key to a good diagnosis comes from remembering the “map” and practicing palpating the patient each and every time. Using the abdominal diagram from the book allows for a quick way to record your findings – just circle or highlight the areas that have pressure pain or tightness. Then when you review the case at home, you can look up the different treatment strategies that you can apply next time you see the patient, or, thanks to this forum, discuss the case with your fellow students.

That brings me to suggestion number two.

When you start to practice this style of acupuncture, you have to shift your thinking from focusing on the symptom to focusing on identifying “types”. If you studied TCM before, you may be used to coming up with your diagnosis based on a list of symptoms and detailed questions about them. You may ask your patient a series of questions like: “Is your pain better or worse with heat or cold?”, “Is it better or worse at night?", etc. These questions help you determine the diagnosis and which points to use. The symptoms are the key to putting together a treatment plan.

But in Kiiko Matsumoto style, the symptoms themselves are not as relevant as the patient’s constitution. What “type” of patient are they, NOT what symptoms do they present with? For example: are they a “liver type” or a “cardiac type” or “adrenal type” etc. Determining the “type” allows you to identify the weakest-link in the body and allows you to treat the problem at the very root. The abdominal palpation, not the conversation with the patient, will be the key to determining the “type” of patient they are.

The points you choose will also be for the “type” not the symptoms. For example, if you determine that your patient is a “liver type” presentation, you will use the same points and get great results in resolving anything from a headache to low back pain, to IBS to allergies. Why? Because if the patient presents as a “liver type” they will most likely have the same areas of pressure pain on the abdomen and other reflex points regardless of their symptomatic presentation.

By learning to think in this new way about each case and identifying the different “types”, you will quickly gain the confidence to approach the most complex patient cases – even if their list of symptoms is so long it would take you a whole hour to discuss them if you were approaching it from a TCM perspective.

So next time you have a question about a patient you’re seeing, jot down the abdominal findings and post them on this forum – if you describe the abdomen and what you’re trying to release along with the symptoms you’re trying to treat, someone here will enthusiastically help you out.

Happy studying.

Art and acupuncture for a better city

I always learn so much from you, my patients. Today is no exception. I just received an email with information about a fantastic art work called the Portland Acupuncture Project.

In an effort to identify important spots around the city and bring a sense of interconnectedness, an artist named Adam Kuby is placing large scale needles in different points around the city.

With this "acupuncture", Portland is sure to become one of the healthiest cities!

Thanks Laura for sharing the info!

Wonderful book

While waiting for a flight at LAX I found a book (or as my friend Deborah puts it... the book found me). The book is called Keeping the Feast, by Paula Butturini. It is a beautifully written and very moving memoir of an American couple who, after experiencing personal tragedy, finds comfort and healing in love, food and Italy.

I felt a special connection to this book as it brought back memories of my own family's move from Poland to Italy and finally to the US in the late 80s, while the book describes the author's life as it unfolds in the opposite direction - from US to Italy to Poland.

Keeping the Feast captures with equal grace moments of pure joy in life and the hardship as that life is taken away in a single moment. More importantly, it demonstrates the powerful role that simple daily rituals, like preparing food and gathering with loved ones, can have in the healing process.

Find out more about Keeping the Feast here.

Let's talk numbers

You may find the little stickers on fruits and vegetables a bit annoying to remove, but they do have their purpose. Their primary function is to speed you through the checkout line but they also contain some information that you may find useful as you pick your produce.

If the first number of the five digit PLU (price look-up) code is 9, it means that the fruit or vegetable was grown organically.

If the first number of the five digit code is an 8, then this produce has been genetically modified.

All others, or conventionally grown fruits and vegetables, will have a four digit PLU code.

In most supermarkets, the difference between organic and conventionally grown produce is clearly marked. But genetically modified produce is not usually marked with large, clear signs. Next time you're at the supermarket, you may want to take a closer look at those little stickers.

Back to school

It’s been a while since I had an official “first day of school”, but the transition from summer to fall always brings out the sense of anticipation, the ideas of new beginning, excitement over fresh new notebooks and a little bit of sadness that my favorite season has passed. Even if you’re not going back to the classroom this year, September may be the perfect time to take advantage of this “back to school” ritual and incorporate some new things into your daily life.

Start a new journal – if you’re like me you’ve been eagerly anticipating any excuse to buy some new writing supplies. Journals can help you organize ideas, create and keep track of plans or just take a break from the day to doodle.

Create a little space that will remind you of the calm, lazy days of summer. Imagine what it would be like to wake up each morning and the first thing you see is a reminder of the warm, sunny days at the beach, or something else that instantly brings a smile to your face. Spend a few moments and put together those things and set them on your night stand or next to your toothbrush so that they can set the mood for your entire day.

Find time to meditate. By now you’ve heard all about the health benefits of meditation, so this “school year” it’s time to take that “class” and make it a part of your daily schedule. Don’t be intimidated by the idea of meditation or the notion that you have to turn your mind off. All you have to do is find a quiet spot, close your eyes and focus on your breath. For example, try to visualize the path your breath takes as it enters your nose and then follow it all the way to your heels and back out. If you find yourself thinking about the events of the day while your eyes are closed, simply to shift your focus back to visualizing your breath. With practice you can stay focused on that one thing longer.

Get a couple of new dishes, cooking pots or cookbooks and get excited about cooking again. Preparing healthy meals will feel fun again when you have new tools you can’t wait to try out. If you’re watching your budget, you can always trade dishes or cookbooks with a friend.

Hope all of you had a great summer and will have an even better “school year.”