Moving Past Fear and Into Your Own Powerby Cailin O'Hara, MAcOM, LAc, Dipl OM "Feel the fear and do it anyway."If you have followed along this far, you have read Part 1 and Part 2 of this series that shed light on how I work with anxiety, grief and healing past trauma. This final article will give you some guidance on how you can overcome these feelings and experiences. How do you heal what an experience has done to you? You certainly aren't who you were before it happened. Who are you now? What do you do with the fear, the pain and the grief? The only way through it is through it. It would be a relief if something could just take away how terrible you feel after a traumatic experience, but life doesn't work that way. And I would argue that going through the healing process can be one of the best and most empowering things you'll ever do for yourself. ...Going Through It... |
Find someone that you enjoy talking to because if you don't have a good connection, it's a waste of your time. You won't feel safe and comfortable opening up to someone you don't particularly like. A counselor who is a good fit for you can make your journey "through it" a much easier and enlightening one. |
If you're experiencing difficult emotions or haunting memories, it can be very overwhelming. Generally people disconnect (often unintentionally) from themselves, their bodies, their environments and/or their relationships as a way to cope with these overwhelming feelings. You may get stuck in a flight-or-fight response, feeling perpetually on edge that something horrible is about to happen. You may also experience flashbacks that cause you to lose touch with where you are and what's happening around you. |
...
Yoga/Tai Chi
Exercise/Movement
Meditation
Acupuncture
Wash the dishes :)
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk
The Body Remembers: The Psychophysiology of Trauma and Trauma Treatment by Babette Rothschild
Reinventing the Body, Resurrecting the Soul by Deepak Chopra
Minding the Body, Mending the Mind by Joan Borysenko
The Places that Scare You by Pema Chodron
Developing a deep sense of compassion for yourself will take practice, but I promise you it is mandatory if you truly want to heal. Compassion means you learn how to soothe yourself. It means you're kind to yourself above all else. It means you don't make life worse for yourself by telling yourself negative things, stressing yourself out or putting yourself in unhealthy situations. |
Resting when you're tired
Soothing yourself with a bath when you're overwhelmed
Cancelling plans you aren't interested in
Listening to your needs
...
Most of us have this awful tendency to downplay our needs and our worth. If you have past trauma, this may be your tendency most of the time. You need you, above all else, in order to heal. So step up, be your own hero, and take the best damn care of yourself that you can. You will be amazed at how comforting it will feel when you finally treat yourself with the respect and love that you always deserve.
...
Other articles you may like...
My Approach:
Pillars of My Practice
"The body keeps the score. If the memory of trauma is encoded in the viscera, in heartbreaking and gut-wrenching emotions, in autoimmune disorders and skeletal/muscular problems...this demands a radical shift in our therapeutic assumptions."
-Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD
There are many methods, which generally involve counseling. Finding the right counselor for you can be invaluable when you're navigating PTSD, trauma and anxiety.
However, sometimes it's not enough.
Sometimes we need a more integrative approach to healing.
A patient is attempting to process a traumatic experience from years before. They feel like after that traumatic experience, they haven’t been the same. They don’t sleep well. They feel on edge. They experience a sensation of anxiety in their body that feels like they're shaking from the inside out. Sometimes their heart races, and they can’t feel their legs. These experiences impact their life every single day. They’ve been working with their therapist, and it helps quite a bit, but they aren’t making the progress they want to make. And sometimes, talking about their experience worsens their anxieties.
The traumatic experience could have been emotional, physical, environmental, sexual… the effects are similar in all cases. Fear, hypervigilance, sleep disturbance and feeling disconnected from yourself, your body or your life are some examples of the effects of trauma.
Pillars of My Practice
Healing at the Root
I practice a fusion of medicine rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).
According to TCM, everything is connected: mind, body and spirit. In fact, working with the emotions and our “spirit” is considered an essential aspect of treatment for any symptom or disease in TCM. Your spirit is the essence of who you are and what makes you uniquely you. This aspect of Chinese medicine is the foundation of my practice of medicine.
I see everything as interconnected. |
Another core aspect of my approach is what I refer to as “body-centered medicine,” which means I treat the body in order to affect the whole being.
This method is based on the fact that our body holds our history. It is also rooted in the idea that we all possess the innate ability to heal. Working with the body creates a powerful healing effect across all levels: physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.
In order to access our own healing potential, we must restore harmony to imbalanced systems in the body and mind. |
Why is working with the body so powerful when it comes to balancing emotions and healing past trauma? It treats the roots of emotional experience.
A primary condition we treat through the lens of TCM is called stagnation. Stagnation implies there is some sort of holding pattern that is creating a lack of movement, which then creates an array of symptoms (from pain to anxiety to fatigue and so on). Without healthy movement and flow in our bodies or minds, disease and bothersome symptoms arise.
In the case of trauma, an experience or event sends a shockwave through our entire system that has lasting effects of stagnation. We can become "stuck" or stagnated in the experience- physically, mentally and emotionally. But here's the amazing part... we can treat the roots of trauma and anxiety by unlocking these stuck places in the body.
This means that the effects of traumatic experiences that have become stuck in a holding pattern in our body and minds finally have the opportunity to be set free. |
We let it move through us, and then we let it go.
Interested in working with Cailin?
Schedule a complimentary consultation.
The Body is Our Story-Teller
“…our bodies are the agents by which we exist in the world. They are also the receptacles of memories that, often vanished from our conscious awareness, are still deeply etched within our being. When those memories are triggered, we experience suffering at a highly existential level that transcends consciousness.”
"Trauma victims cannot recover until they become familiar with and befriend the sensations in their bodies."
-Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD
"Body-Centered Medicine"
On every level, our body tells our story. When you don’t honor the power and innate intelligence of the body, you’re missing the point in providing medicine. |
The Only Place You Can Heal
Connecting with the body in order to heal the whole person has proven in my practice to be a deeply transformative way of healing.... |
Interested in working with Cailin?
Your first consultation is free.
Embracing the Dark
We all have seasons of our lives. We all experience ups and downs.
...
What does it mean to be in your winter?
It’s normal to experience ups and downs, highs and lows. Our resistance to the changing tides of our lives or feelings can create more problems for us and keep us stuck in the dark.
...
How to Embrace Your Winter
...
When You Willingly Enter the Dark
As you allow yourself to enter your winters, you will come to find that they will eventually lead you into the light, beauty and rebirth of a new season of spring.
...
Interested in working with Cailin?
The Journey of Becoming
“Not a perfect soul, I am perfecting. Not a human being, I am a human becoming.”
-Normandi Ellis
When you’re feeling well, you can participate in life, follow your ambitions, you name it. When you’re not feeling well, it can become a struggle to live the life you want to live. And if you're not feeling well, you probably have some kind of diagnosis that is to blame... anxiety, depression, fatigue, hypothyroidism, IBS, heart disease, fibromyalgia, degenerative disk disease, arthritis... the list goes on and on and on.
...
I believe this is a very important concept to consider when you’re on any kind of healing journey. As the quote above describes, we are in a process of becoming. You weren’t who you were last year. You aren’t who you will become. And this, of course, also pertains to your health.
So why can a diagnosis become a problem?
Let's look at how the journey from well to unwell often unfolds:
...
Each of these diagnoses has a certain set of symptoms and diagnostic criteria; each has a specified treatment protocol; and each has a projected treatment outcome. Some diagnoses are relatively easy to treat, but many are not with conventional medicine. Why? Because everyone is different! The cause and effect process that creates disease and symptoms is an intricate web, and it can be challenging to sort out specifics and find answers.
What are your diagnoses? How do they make you feel about yourself?
...
1) Diagnoses can feel depressing. Your life has become limited in some way. Your relationships may be impacted. Your future may begin to look different. The treatments available may be limited or risky.
2) Diagnoses can feel overwhelming. You develop countless questions and some will never have answers. You undergo extensive tests and/or have to take a number of pharmaceuticals. It is hard to understand what is happening and how to “fix” it.
3) Diagnoses can feel disempowering. “How did this happen? How can I help myself?” We can wind up feeling like a victim of our physiology or life experiences that co-created our disease/illness/symptomatology.
And this is just to name a few.
But I approach any diagnosis in a different way...
...
Why You Are Not Your Diagnosis
Principle #2: There is no singular pathway to healing. The road is up and down and winding, full of unexpected turns. As you embark on a healing journey, you learn that there is much more to you than your diagnosis and that there are many avenues to explore to help you heal.
Principle #3: Healing is not one-size-fits-all. We all have differences in our physiology and psychology that influence how we respond physically, mentally and emotionally. (Standard treatments for diagnoses generally don't take these differences into account, and thus, you may not feel better.) If you learn what makes you unique, you will discover that you are much more complex than any diagnosis... and that within those complexities lies your innate ability to heal.
...
Your being is constantly adapting and evolving. Whatever your diagnosis may be, it is what is happening at this current moment in time. And if you are in a constant state of change, a state that is influenced by just about everything, then the argument is that you are not your diagnosis. Who you are now is not who you were a year ago, and thus, it is not who you will be in a year.
Be your own source of hope on your healing journey.
You are not a victim of your physiology.
You are not your diagnosis.
You are an ever-changing being on an ever-changing path of becoming.
Keep going. Keep searching for answers.
In time you will find that hidden within your symptoms and struggles are the very answers you seek.
...
Interested in working with Cailin?
Your first consultation is free.
7 Essential Steps to Ending the Food Craving Cycle
Believe me when I say that I not only understand the roller coaster of food cravings, but I've also learned the way through and off of that wild ride.
...
Here's the thing- cravings aren't to be feared or hated. You are not out of control. Cravings are actually an important signal from your body that it needs help. It's not getting the nutrients it needs. On a deeper level, you aren't getting what you need. You might be feeling out of balance, overworked and over-stressed. You may be neglecting your health or your emotional needs. Whatever the case, your body and your being are pleading for your attention. So, how do you answer your body's cravings without overeating and going down the spiral of feeling ashamed and getting upset with yourself for "failing?"
It's easier than you think. But it absolutely must start with you genuinely being interested in your well-being. You have to begin by approaching yourself and your cravings with kindness and patience. The more upset you get with yourself for eating a bag of chips or a handful of cookies, the more likely you are to perpetuate the cycle of cravings -> over-eating -> guilt -> cravings.
(Be sure to read this article if you think you may have a problem with food or your body image: Disordered Eating or Eating Disorder: What's the Difference?
And seek help from a licensed mental health provider if you or someone you know has signs of an eating disorder.)
Here's my top 7 list of simple, effective ways to help you end the cycle of food cravings and cultivate a healthier relationship with yourself...
7 Steps for Healing Food Cravings
...
1) Remind yourself that you are OK
To help balance food cravings, start by developing a healthier relationship with yourself and get to know your needs. Ask yourself these questions:
What am I craving in my life?
How am I feeling today?
What am I thinking about when I'm eating?
What needs do I have that I am not meeting for myself?
What are the negative things I tell myself when I give in to my cravings?
What makes me feel satisfied in life?
What is something that brings me joy that I can do every day?
...
2) Include vegetables or fruits with every meal
There are several easy, inexpensive ways to include fruits and veggies with every meal. For example, bring carrots or apples with you when you're on the go. Steam frozen veggies, and serve them with olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake hearty veggies like sweet potatoes, and eat them throughout the week for a snack.
1 scoop Amazing Grass Superfood
1 scoop protein powder (vanilla or chocolate)
1-2 cups nut milk, rice milk or water
1/2 avocado or 1 tbsp olive oil
1 banana
Dash of cinnamon (optional)
Blend all ingredients and enjoy!
...
3) Gradually reduce processed foods
Don't stress out over this and immediately eliminate all processed foods from your diet, though! I'm a believer in moderation and step-by-step progress. Consider the processed foods you eat, and replace one serving each day with a whole food (aka food that doesn't come prepared, in a package and/or contain extra ingredients). Examples of whole foods include nuts and seeds, fruits, vegetables, meat, rice, quinoa and oats.
2/3 cup uncooked white rice
8 cups filtered water
Add all ingredients into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and cook uncovered for 1 hour. Be sure to set a timer and stir the porridge every 8-10 minutes. After 1 hour, porridge will be thick and creamy. Ladle one cup of porridge into a bowl and add your favorite fruits, vegetables and proteins.
Examples:
Savory: steamed broccoli, 1 tsp of sesame oil, dash of soy sauce, pepper
Sweet: diced apple, 1 tsp of butter or coconut oil, 1 tsp honey, cinnamon
...
4) Satisfy your cravings with the highest quality option
When a strong craving sets in and won't quit, start with step #1. And then head over to your local natural grocery store. Scope out their baked goods or chip isle or whatever it is you're craving. Choose items with short ingredient lists of foods you know and can pronounce. Choose organic when possible. You can even buy whole food ingredients and make something yourself. Eating a piece of pie made from fresh whole foods or choosing a high quality dark chocolate bar can actually help satisfy your cravings and thus, reduce future cravings.
...
5) Cultivate self-awareness
Every single day, set aside at least 10 minutes to practice cultivating self-awareness. You can try journaling, guided meditations or stretching your body to help facilitate the mind-body connection. Choose what speaks to you and helps you feel connected to yourself.
Give yourself an extra 10 minutes in your morning or evening routine for this journaling exercise. Commit to doing this for 3 weeks every single day. Buy a notebook specifically for the purpose of journaling, even if it's just the plain, $1.00 kind. When you're ready to begin, be sure you will not be disturbed (this may mean you have to journal in the bathroom or your car, but that's ok!). Set a timer for 10 minutes, pick up your pen, and start writing. Do not stop writing for the entire duration, even if you don't know what to say. The goal is to write the very first thing that comes to mind, even if it makes no sense, and keep writing until the timer is up. Be sure to write without judgment. Have the intention of connecting with yourself and allowing your thoughts and feelings to flow.
...
6) Move your body
...
7) Be patient with yourself
...
Do you need guidance around nutrition and understanding your needs?
Your first consultation is free.
A Step-By-Step Guide for a Positive Acupuncture Experience
Step 1: Do your research
. . .
1) Can you tell me about your training and credentials?
A) go through rigorous study and training over the course of 3-4 years to acquire a master's degree in Chinese medicine and
B) pass board exams to become board certified
In addition to education and credentials, ask about your acupuncturist's additional trainings and areas of focus. This will give you a better understanding of their interests and what you might expect with treatments.
. . .
2) What is an appointment with you like?
. . .
3) What are your treatment types or specialties?
Step 2: Choose an acupuncturist
. . .
Do we resonate well together?
Do I feel heard and understood?
Do I feel like I can ask questions and get clear answers?
. . .
Step 3: Schedule an appointment
. . .
Does acupuncture hurt?
What if I'm afraid of needles?
. . .
Acupuncture is an experience. It generates sensations in the body. It can soothe the mind and neutralize pain. You may feel buzzing, tingling or heaviness where the needles have been inserted. You may be overcome with a sense of deep relaxation and enter a dreaming state. However, the needles are so thin that you may not even notice them at all.
. . .
Questions? Contact us!
Answers to your most commonly asked questions...
How often do I need to come in for treatments?
Do you make a treatment plan?
How soon can I expect to feel better?
Will my symptoms come back if I stop acupuncture?
The short answer: no, you don't have to keep receiving treatments if you feel better. Most people want to keep it up because they love the way it makes them feel, but all of your anxieties don't come flooding back in if you miss a treatment. The aim of acupuncture and Chinese medicine is to heal the imbalances that are causing your symptoms. As you learn what these are for you and receive treatments, you evolve and heal. And as this happens, your symptoms will change and fade.
Do I have to believe it will work?
Still have a questions about treating anxiety with acupuncture? Contact us!
So...How Does Acupuncture Treat Anxiety?
Rule #1: We do not diagnose you with “anxiety.”
Examples of Patterns Treated
in Chinese Medicine:
- Pattern A) difficult time falling asleep at night, dry eyes and hair, vivid dreams, PMS symptoms, tends toward constipation, experiences anxiety as panic attacks with racing heart
- Pattern B) wakes feeling groggy, craves sugar, abdominal bloating, mid-day fatigue, foggy-thinking, experiences anxiety as excessive worry (often while trying to fall asleep)
- Pattern C) frequent flushing in the face, headaches, neck tension, tendency toward irritability, rapid heartbeat, experiences anxiety as tightness in the stomach and shortness of breath
Do any of these sound familiar to you? Notice each pattern's array of symptoms and how they all experience anxiety differently. |
Rule #2: Your patterns represent areas of underlying imbalances in your physiology and your being.
Everything is connected. A single stressful experience can take a toll on all of our systems and create imbalances that can become more severe over time if left untreated. |
Rule #3: Acupuncture can access the body's innate ability to heal and restore harmony to imbalanced systems.
How often do I have to come in for treatments?
How long will it take until I feel better?
Will I have to rely on acupuncture for the rest of my life?
Next time we'll talk about what a treatment plan looks like and just how quickly you'll start to feel better.
Stay tuned and take good care of yourself.
It works through the interconnectedness of the body.
The reality is that every aspect of you is interrelated. So, through using a system of medicine that works specifically with the body (i.e. acupuncture), we can affect all levels of physiology- from cellular to muscular to hormonal to emotional and so on. Plus, treatments like acupuncture have one MAJOR benefit: it generally doesn’t have any unwanted side-effects.
Sounds too good to be true, I know.
Good Enough to be True
I was very unwell when I eventually tried acupuncture. I had no Western medical options left, but I didn’t stop searching for answers. That being said, I was HIGHLY skeptical of acupuncture.
I thought, “how can something so simple actually help me if everything else I’ve tried hasn’t?”
I had tried it all- medications, expensive imaging, thousands of dollars’ worth of supplements, and more. Even then, it took me nearly a year of being persuaded by a friend to finally try acupuncture.
After my first treatment, I got off of the table feeling different in a way I couldn't explain. I also started feeling better. Since then, acupuncture and Chinese medicine have improved my health in countless ways.
Interconnectedness 101
Let’s take a look at these two images below. In Chinese medicine, they are referred to as “sinew channels.” They are related to other terms you may have heard of: acupuncture channels, meridians, or pathways.
Here's one really cool feature about working with these channels: since everything is connected, you don't have to treat the area of pain directly! In fact, some of the best places to treat back pain or sciatica aren’t located anywhere near the back. Acupuncture points in the lower legs and feet successfully treat many types of pain.
It’s Not Just About Physical Pain
One big misconception about treatments like acupuncture, cupping and massage is that they only treat physical or musculoskeletal pain. While they are effective treatments for pain, they can treat infinitely more conditions than you probably realize- anxiety, insomnia, allergies, IBS, PMS and sexual dysfunction, to name a few. There are many more pathways in the body than the ones in the images above, and they are linked to all facets of our physiology like: heart and lung function, gastrointestinal health, and brain chemistry. Much of the research around acupuncture explores these connections. Explore the web and you'll find countless studies!
Stay tuned for explanations that explore healing the emotions with body-centered medicine.
-Cailin O’Hara, MAcOM, LAc, Dipl OM
We have all experienced pain. Nearly everyone is in some kind of pain at some time... and for some of us, it just won't stop. Today we will look at one very important principle in working with our pain. This key to working with and healing our pain comes from Chinese medicine (think acupuncture and herbal medicine), what I study and practice in my clinic. There is a reason why you keep hearing or reading about acupuncture in the news and how it helps people in pain. It does! But pain doesn't just mean physical pain... we are talking pain on every level.
But how? And why? Big questions! But first…
Let’s talk about pain.
Pain is a Signal
What kind of pain do you feel?
What is it? Where do you feel it? It is from an old injury? Is it new? It is in your stomach? Your chest? Is it a result of emotions? Past abuse? Does it keep you up at night? Does it distract you from your work? Interfere with your relationships? Is it sharp or dull? Does it come and go?
Pain is an alarm alerting us that something isn’t right in some way. That sounds simple, but think about it. Pain is a signal. It is what we do with that signal that makes all the difference in our experience of our pain. And let’s be real- what we really want to do is END it, make it stop once and for all! But for those of us who have experienced pain, which I imagine is everyone, we have learned that there aren’t many quick fixes to make pain stop immediately and for good. So what can we do for ourselves? What are our options?
Pay Attention to Your Pain
First of all, we have to dial into the pain signal, really pay attention to it, and figure out what it needs in order to make it stop. Not all pain is the same, so it shouldn’t be treated in the same way. If you bang your knee on your dresser in the middle of the night, that feels a lot different than if your back aches from working long days lifting boxes, which also feels a lot different than the hurt we feel when someone betrays us. Each of these scenarios is an experience of pain, but they are vastly different, and should be treated differently. Makes sense, right?
Once we figure out the type of pain we are experiencing, we are better able to address it. This is one reason why using Chinese medicine, acupuncture and herbal medicine can be so beneficial. The treatments for pain are not one size fits all. The treatments depend entirely on what kind of pain you’re experiencing.
Why Pain Happens
The key when working with pain is to remember this: you hurt because something is blocked. Blood, circulation, hormone production, feelings, thoughts- something isn’t moving freely. Where things once flowed freely, there is now a blockage. It could be physical, like an injury to your shoulder that causes pain. It could be emotional, like persistent anxiety after a stressful experience (PTSD is an example). The idea is that something happened, some kind of impact, and where that impact occurred is where things have stopped moving properly. In Chinese medicine, we refer to this as “stagnation.” And stagnation (of many varieties) is the most commonly diagnosed condition in Chinese medicine.
So how do you treat it?
Flowing Freely Again
We have to restore movement where movement is blocked in order for pain to fade. How do we get things moving? One of the powerful effects of acupuncture is its ability to help restore flow and balance in the body. For instance, your chronic neck ache can be alleviated with acupuncture because it helps to clear up the stiffness and congestion that are causing your neck to hurt. Your grief that sits in your chest and weighs you down can be alleviated with acupuncture because it helps to move what has become stuck.
Pain makes us feel stuck, like we can’t move freely, like we can’t live our lives in the ways that we want. It feels like our pain is holding us back. THAT is stagnation. We have all felt it in some way, probably many ways and many times. When it doesn’t go away on its own, when we can’t un-stick ourselves, that’s when the power of Chinese medicine can really come to our aid and help us flow freely again.
Feel free to email us with questions or comments. And stay tuned for part two!
-Cailin O’Hara, MAcOM, LAc, Dipl OM
The Best Road to Take
I have a great respect and an abundance of gratitude for Western medicine. I grew up in a family of nurses, and I worked in the veterinary field (including emergency medicine) for 6 years. I even considered a career as a nurse practitioner before I decided on Chinese medicine. The life-saving capabilities and the incredible advancements in Western medicine and its technologies are often nothing short of miraculous. More than likely, we all know someone who survived an illness or injury through the use of Western medicine. I surely have, and I surely do. I think it's not so much about Western vs. Eastern medicines... it's more knowing the best road to take and when to take it. In fact, these very different medical approaches can work best when they are used together. Teamwork... it makes things better. Go figure. :)
So...what is the Chinese medicine approach about?
Getting to the Roots
Chinese medicine works with “roots” and “branches,” like that of a tree. Symptoms are like the branches- they are what you can most easily see/experience (for example, headaches). What we work toward treating in Chinese medicine is the main cause of the symptoms- these are the roots. We, of course, address the branches/symptoms, but if we don't get to the roots, the problem will mostly likely not resolve.
So, let's take a look at the tree. Why are the leaves discolored? Why is the bark spotted? Why won't it grow? There is something wrong. We can remove the leaves, or perhaps spray the bark with chemicals in the spotted areas, but will that solve the problem? What about the environment that the tree is growing in? What about the soil that the tree is rooted in and pulling its nutrients from? What about the tree's early years… what was happening as it was growing in the environment around it? Were there droughts or floods?
More than Meets the Eye
While this is a simplistic model, it is an easy way of describing how holistic medicine views well-being: there is more than meets the eye, and everything is connected. It requires critical thinking by analyzing groups of symptoms, not isolating one symptom and treating it solely. For instance, if you have dry eyes, you can apply eye drops every day. Your eyes will always be dry without them. The drops don’t correct the problem that’s causing the dryness, they simply add moisture.
Let's use dryness as an example. In Chinese medicine, we are most concerned with what is causing the symptom of dryness (the branches, so to speak). Often, we find other similar symptoms in the body- perhaps your skin or hair is dry, too; perhaps you experience photophobia (sensitivity to light); perhaps you have trouble sleeping at night; perhaps you suffer from constipation or acid reflux; perhaps you have trouble concentrating. We take what may seem like unrelated aspects of your physiology, overall health and even mood, and we group them together through a complex, centuries-old system of diagnosis (Chinese medical theory). From there, we can work toward treating the root cause of the symptom(s).
The Big Picture of You
So, we would help to resolve the dryness in your eyes, for example, but do so through treating a much larger scope of your health and well-being. With treatment, you may then also notice improvements in sleep, digestion, concentration, energy, and the like. This is because we are integrated beings. All aspects of our being are connected. Our mental health affects our entire health. Our digestive health affects our entire health. Even our physical pain is connected to all of this. So, through investigating all body systems, Chinese medicine enables a practitioner to see the big picture of you, the patient, and put it all together to provide treatment that works.
This is why I practice (and love/revere/am constantly amazed by) Chinese medicine-
it works. It allows me to utilize both ancient and modern medicine to truly help other people heal… and heal deeply. I'm the kind of person that needs answers. I don't like when I can't tell a story about why something is happening in regard to health. If we can't put things in context, we can’t find meaning in them. So, why does something hurt? Why does something not work properly? I can often find the answers through the medicine that I practice. Even better, I can then utilize safe, effective, gentle and enduring treatments that work. As a career, a passion, and a life-long commitment, Chinese medicine has been one of my greatest blessings, and I am privileged and honored to share it with you.
-Cailin O'Hara, MAcOM, LAc, Dipl OM
Sun Tree Healing Arts, LLC
Author
Dr. Cailin O'Hara, DACM, Dipl OM, LAc, is a nationally board certified Doctor of Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture, intuitive and coach. She is based in Phoenix, AZ, and works with clients worldwide.
Archives
March 2022
August 2020
April 2020
March 2020
October 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019
November 2018
October 2018
September 2018
May 2018
April 2018
January 2018
December 2017
November 2017
October 2017
September 2017
April 2017
March 2017
January 2017
Categories
All
Acupuncture
Anxiety
Back Pain
Chinese Medicine
Chronic Pain
Cosmetic Acupuncture
Cupping
Depression
Does Acupuncture Hurt?
Eating Disorders
Emotional Trauma
Empowerment
Energy Healing
Facial Rejuvenation
FAQs
Fatigue
Fear
Fibromyalgia
Food
Grief
Healing
Intention
Intuition
Journaling
Law Of Attraction
Letting Go
Meditation
Neck Pain
Nutrition
Pain
Panic Attacks
PTSD
Recipes
Sciatica
Self Care
Self-Care
Self-Esteem
Self Love
Skin Care
Stress
Truth