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Natural Healthcare Consultations
Natural healthcare consultations are available for individuals in all stages of life and in all states of health. Whether you are young or old, and regardless of the current state of your health, I am prepared to offer my knowledge and experience to help you improve and maintain your health. All information shared during our sessions is completely confidential.
During the course of an initial office visit, a thorough history will be taken to establish the overall state of health. Traditional assessment techniques such as observation of the pulses are also used. Special attention will be paid to any currently presenting symptoms, but these do not form the entire basis for treatment. Rather than treating a specific symptom or disease in isolation, my goal is to treat the person as a whole, with the intention of improving the health of the whole person. At the conclusion of the visit, I recommend and dispense herbal remedies to support the organs or systems that need help. Allow about an hour for the initial visit.
Follow up visits may be necessary, depending on the nature of why I am seeing you. These generally take about half an hour, but can take longer when necessary.
Herbal Apothecary
The herbal apothecary contains a wide range of herbal extracts, including many that are not available for purchase anywhere else in the area.
All of these are carefully prepared in such a way as to deliver the maximum therapeutic benefit. The raw materials are organically grown or sustainably harvested from the wild, and prepared when they are at the height of their medicinal powers (rather than sitting on a warehouse shelf for years, as can be the case with other herbs).
Moxabustion
Moxabustion is the burning of moxa (an herb also known as mugwort or artemisia vulgaris) for therapeutic purposes. As used in this practice, a roll of compressed moxa is held near the skin to warm and stimulate it. This process does not burn or blister the skin.
Traditional Chinese medicine uses moxa to speed the healing of injuries, and has developed a system of points and "meridians" on the surface of the body for acting on any organ in the body, with the use of moxa. These points and meridians are similar to (and in most cases identical to) the points used in acupuncture.
Moxa works partly because of the heat that is produced, partly because of the substances that are released as the plant burns, and partly because the process causes the body to produce substances that let the system known that a given area needs healing. This method of healing goes back to a very early date in human history, has been rigorously scientifically studied in the last five decades, and has been shown to be quite effective.
Cupping
Cupping is a treatment, like moxabustion, that has existed all over the world for a long time. In essence, it consists of applying suction to the surface of the body, using a cup. Cupping involves heating up the air inside a cup made of glass and applying this to the skin. As the air inside cools down, it draws up the skin into the cup. If enough suction is generated, this will draw blood out of the circulatory system and into the skin. Hippocrates was familiar with cupping, as was the Persian writer Avicenna. Traditional Chinese Medicine makes extensive use of cupping, and in western europe it has been used at least since the times of the ancient druids. So it's fairly well tested at this point.
The uses of cupping are numerous. Many of them are for acute conditions-- fevers, poisoning, difficulty breathing, and so forth. Cupping can also be used to produce differences in someone's constitution, and has been traditionally used for disturbances of the mind and psyche as well.
Gua Sha
Gua Sha, also known as strigilation or scraping, is the process of rubbing a thin, rigid object across the skin to produce friction. This creates a red area on the skin and warms the surrounding tissue. It can be especialy useful for aching muscles, pain from old injuries, and shooting nerve pains. Gua Sha is often used in conjunction with topical preparations such as oils and salves. In addition to being an office procedure, it can also be taught to patients for use at home.
Blood Cell Analysis
This technique consists of taking a drop of blood and looking at it under a microscope. The intention is to observe the size, shape, and relative abundance or scarcity of various blood cells, as well as to identify any abnormal types of cells that may be present.
This technique is very specific in terms of being able to find abnormalities. Various conditions in the body have different effects on the appearance of the blood at a microscopic level. So it can tell us that blood cells are or not being formed correctly, it can be used to identify the presence of certain pathogens and parasites, and it can let us know, to a certain extent, how blood cells are behaving. It is useful for identifying patterns of function and dysfunction, in the same way that looking at someone's physical appearance or feeling their pulse can be.
Blood cell analysis gives us an idea of what is there. It can't reliably be used to rule out most things, because the fact that you don't see something doesn't mean it isn't there.
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