SOS — Self Care Is Necessary for Good Health and Vitality

Do You Feel Hungover From The Ups And Downs Of The Last Two Years?

Over the last two years there has been so much transition. This is hard on our physical and emotional body – and our immune system to boot! I invite you to slow down and immerse yourself in self care — rushing head on can be dangerous after navigating difficult times. FILL YOUR CUP SEVERAL TIMES A DAY with deep self care for your physical and emotional body. Then, from that place of going inward – expand out to your community and all your to do’s.

In the beginning of the spring of 2020, I found myself with a lot of time on my hands to contemplate. After losing my contract job as an acupuncturist due to the pandemic, the stillness and time I spent outdoors reflecting upon what was next for me is something I’m now deeply grateful for. I spent time on my back screened porch watching fireflies in the early evening; I ate my breakfast and dinner on the porch, watching wildlife coming to take in the spring air with me.

A thoughtful patient gifted me an Audubon membership and I went on an early misty morning bird walk at Commons Ford Ranch this spring. I was impressed by the many species of birds I saw in just two hours — including a Yellow Billed Cuckoo! Yep, there really is such a creature and it predicts the rain with it’s loud call more accurately than our weatherman! This slowing and stillness amongst the sights and sounds of nature helped me sort things out, and let necessary things go. I found gratitude for things taken for granted in my busy day to day life – time with my precious son, our sweet cottage home, and my health and vitality in the second half of my life. I was inspired to create a pollinators garden — I built it, and they came! The bees, the butterflies, moths, hummingbirds and other birds are all participating in the natural habitat I’m nurturing for them. And, I built the wonderful Acupuncture Cabin for you! This has all connected me to something very important . . . .

We Are All Part of Nature And The Natural Process Of Things

In my garden I give to the planet that supports me . . . I never use pesticides inside or out, I plant native trees and plants for the abundant wildlife. Here, I watch the cycles of life that have always taken place on our planet unfold before my eyes and listen to what it has to teach. Hippocrates said, “When there is an imbalance on earth, look to nature for answers . . . ” We have experienced a profound look at a great imbalance over the past years. And still the cycle of life continues. Through my TCM practice, I have been the grateful witness of new babies coming into our world, and many on their way currently growing in the ever amazing mother’s womb.

My Masters of Science at AOMA Integrative School of Medicine was the beginning of my learning to think outside mainstream medicine whenever I can to support health, and to remember how truly powerful and amazing our innate immune system is when we nurture it.

Traditional Chinese Medicine and holistic healthcare offer tried and true methods for building a strong immune system, and for supporting immunity through a health crisis.

Connect To Nature — What Do You Like To Do Outdoors?

The Negative Ions In Nature Are Healing!

Put your body in moving water, a river, a waterfall, a natural spring. Lie on the earth and get your daily grounding in . . . If not in your own backyard, we have an abundance of beautiful parks right here in the Austin area. I recommend Austin’s very own Barton Springs, Pedernales Falls State Park, South Llano River State Park, and Blanco State Park. Further out there is Garner State Park, and Lost Maples. Oh my gosh so many to choose from — I recommend the book “The Swimming Holes of Texas” by Julie Wernersbach and Carolyn Tracy at University of Texas Press, Austin.

The gift of living a healthy lifestyle is priceless, as it helps our immune system do it’s job. Eat healthy, local and seasonal. Plant a Garden — get inspiration from Barbara Kingsolver’s Book “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle,” and any read by Michael Pollan who says, “Eat Food, Not too Much, Mostly Plants.”

Get plenty of sleep, move your body daily, drink spring water, (I like Mountain Valley) and they deliver it right to my door!

In that spirit, I would like to invite you to the Acupuncture Cabin, it is such a sweet place to come for a relaxing, deeply restorative self care session.

The Acupuncture Cabin in the Spring

Now the wildflowers are gone but the pollinators garden is buzzing right along. My patients love the open air cabin on cool days, gentle rain sounds on the metal roof, sun filtering through the green vines at the window, birds singing in the garden, the music . . . come embrace the experience!

REMEMBER ACUPUNCTURE IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL!

  • Great for boosting immunity
  • Calms the Central Nervous System
  • Good before and after traveling — I can help you with a supplemental immune support travel kit!
  • Helps restore your parasympathetic nervous system’s resting state, and get you out of fight or flight patterns — treating anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
  • And I offer telemedicine Traditional Chinese Medicine and Holistic Healthcare consults, to promote wellness, or to support recovery from an illness.

I am here for you my Seasons Health friends. Just shoot me an email to make an appointment at the Acupuncture Cabin, or for me to come to you for a home visit. Please, share my blog with any friends or family you think may be interested. Thank you for supporting my practice.

Namaste, Charlotte

“Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it“ Buddha

Pregnancy and Postpartum Care Acupuncture And Holistic Wellness Treatments

Excellent self care during pregnancy and afterwards in the postpartum year sets the stage for well-being throughout motherhood and the nourishment extends to your child, family and beyond.  Taking care of yourself first really matters!

Many things contribute to well-being during pregnancy and postpartum, including plenty of rest, eating a well rounded nutritious diet, gentle exercise, stress management and nurturing your passions to mention a few.

Acupuncture treatments are excellent self care!   Acupuncture helps keep your body’s energy flowing freely to your reproductive and other vital organs, keep hormones balanced and helps your body relax, so it can focus on what it is innately able to do — grow and give birth to a strong healthy baby and stay healthy afterwards!

In addition to relaxing your body and helping manage general aches, pains, stressors and fatigue; regular acupuncture relieves the following common ailments experienced during the pregnancy and postpartum years:

  • Back and hip pain
  • Fatigue
  • Neck and shoulder tension
  • Achy hip and other joints
  • Carpal tunnel, De Quervain syndrome
  • Numbness and tingling in fingers
  • Sciatica
  • Pregnancy rhinitis
  • Swelling of hands and feet
  • Milk production issues
  • Postpartum depression
  • High Blood Pressure
  • and other issues that can arise during the pregnancy and postpartum years . . . just send me an email if you have any questions!

A solid self care practice during pregnancy will keep your reserves flowing for when they are needed even more — in motherhood!  Taking care of yourself teaches your children the importance of self care in their own lives. My heartfelt advice is to become solidly settled into rituals of mama care during your pregnancy and postpartum years, which will enable you to care for others from a full cup and avoid going through motherhood depleted.

Schedule an appointme nt to discuss your specific needs and get started in your self-care rituals for the pregnancy and postpartum years.  I would be honored to help build a self-care plan tailor-made for you!

mama love,

Charlotte