Leg Cramps at Night? Try Sleeping with a Bar of Soap in Bed
One of my yoga students recently shared that putting a bar of soap in bed while you sleep can help prevent night time charley horses. A bar of soup in bed can help leg cramps? Sounds a little crazy even to me! Apparently this is an old remedy that many people swear by. I had to dig around and see what the fuss was all about. Here is what I found:
If you are having leg cramps or restless legs grab a bar of ivory soap and unwrap it and put in underneath your bottom sheet. Let me know how it works!
Sarah Zender LAc
Neighborhood Acupuncture Place (NAP)
230 Florence St
Crystal Lake IL 60014
815.893.9825
www.CLnap.com
This year marks the 9th annual May Day Celebration. This event began in Portland, Oregon withWorking Class Acupuncture and theCommunity Acupuncture Network. Across the Country and globally as well people will rest in reclining chairs alongside their friends, family and community and receive acupuncture treatments for free. May Day is a celebration ofInternational Worker's Day as well as a great excuse to give acupuncture a try if you've always wondered what it was all about. Neighborhood Acupuncture Place will be offering free treatments May 1st from 9:00a-4:00p and an appointment is necessary to ensure we will have space to treat as many people as we can. Newbies and existing patients are of course welcome to participate. The morning appointment are already filling fast so make sure to schedule your appointment today! Give us a call 815.893.9825
Below is a brief explanation of community acupuncture as well as the acu-points that will be used on May 1st and what some of their functions are. If you have any questions please feel free to call or email info@clnap.com
Community Acupuncture for the May Day Celebration
Community Acupuncture is how people receive treatment traditionally in Asia, with several people resting at the same time. Much the same way one’s endurance, focus, and peace can intensify when doing yoga in a class setting, acupuncture done in a group can enhance the effects of treatment. In a group, your body can relax deeper and take advantage of the collective intention to harmonize the body. Acupuncture honors the body’s innate wisdom to heal and balance itself (homeostasis). Acupuncture assists in regulating the circulation of qi (chee) and blood so that all body systems are nourished and able to function most optimally. When one part of the body becomes unbalanced all other parts are affected. Acupuncture helps start a chain reaction of balance in the body and can cause positive side effects like improved quality of sleep, energy, mood, and immune function in addition to resolving your main issue. Scientifically, no one knows exactly why or how acupuncture works, we only know that for thousands of years it has. Acupuncture is more effective when done as a course of treatment.
Today you are receiving an acupuncture treatment using Miriam Lee’s “5 Essential Point Prescription.” Lee developed this point prescription for its simplicity and effectiveness in order to be able to efficiently treat 18 patients per hour with great success. The great physicians of the Jin dynasty included these points in your pharmacopoeia and called them heavenly star points. Below is a brief description of these acu point functions and uses. Acupuncture points run along channels or meridians that correspond to 14 organ systems of the body. In Chinese each acu point has a symbolic name either for where it is located or what its function is. In English acu points are simplified as numbers on the organ channel it is located on. There are 365 main acupuncture points on the body, one for each day of the year and over 3000 extra points.
Miriam Lee’s 5 Essential Point Prescription
** Hegu (joining valley) large intestine 4 (li4): is part of a pair of points called the “4 gates” thought to open up circulation of the whole body. LI4 regulates immune function, adjusts sweating (excessive or deficient), regulates the face, eyes, nose, mouth, and ears as well as alleviates pain especially headaches and toothaches. LI4 can also be used to induce labor.
** Quchi (pool at the crook) Large Intestine 11 (LI11): regulates body temperature especially in cases of excessive heat, regulates qi and blood and alleviates pain. Assists the function of LI4.
** Lieque (broken sequence) Lung 7 (LU7): releases exterior to clear a cold, promotes lung function, pacifies phlegm, benefits the head and nape of the neck, opens and regulates the conception vessel, regulates water passages (swelling) and alleviates pain.
** Sanyinjiao (three 3 intersection) Spleen 6 (SP6): this is an intersection point of three yin organs: spleen, kidneys and liver. Sp6 tonifies the spleen and stomach system which in turn improves the digestion/metabolism/elimination of food and energy, resolves dampness (heaviness in the body, pain), regulates menstruation, induces labor, regulates urination and the genitals, calms the spirit, invigorates the blood and alleviates pain.
** Zusanli (leg 3 mile) Stomach 36 (ST36): called three mile because soldiers would stimulate this point by burning an herb called moxa over it when marching to give them endurance to walk 3 more miles. St36 harmonizes the stomach and fortifies the spleen, resolves dampness, tonifies qi and nourishes blood, clears heat, calms the spirit, alleviates pain and can also be used to restore consciousness from fainting.
Sarah Zender LAc
Neighborhood Acupuncture Place (NAP)
230 Florence St
Crystal Lake IL 60014
815.893.9825
www.clnap.com
You might know someone who appeared perfectly healthy and made one wrong move and threw their back out, maybe it was even you. Stress is a big factor in the strength of your back. Many times when we get busy or overwhelmed with work or life in general the first things to go are exercise, healthier food options, and proper rest.
In Chinese Medicine your kidneys are the called the "life gate" and its where your energy comes from that helps the rest of your body operate. When we are in a constant state of stress (and most people are) it taxes the kidneys or your available energy. Constant, unattended stress keeps the fight or flight part of your nervous system running all the time. The kidneys control the lower back so as we deplete our energy with this constant state of stress and the body on constant alert to run or fight the low back becomes weak. Mix in a desk job or the desire to be a couch potato rather than keep up your regular exercise routine and its a recipe for disaster.
Many times the spleen is also involved with low back pain due to feeling over stressed. The spleen can be damaged from over thinking and worry and this can manifest in many ways from tummy troubles to weak muscles. The abdomen muscles can become weak which in turn can cause the low back muscles to weaken.
What can you do?
* If you've just thrown your back out get an acupuncture treatment right away. Acupuncture works quickly on acute symptoms, the longer you wait the longer treatment can take. Acupuncture is also a wonderful tool for prevention. If you have are having trouble managing your stress or just regularly have a lot on your plate, consider a regular acupuncture routine to keep your back strong.
* If you are overworked and overtired and just don't have the time, it seems, for anything try practicing deep, slow belly breathing. Your breath is linked with your nervous system and just by taking a few deep breaths you can reset your nervous system from "fight or flight" to the "rest, digest, and nest" response. Deep belly breathing also tones your abdominal muscles helping to keep your core strong while protecting your back. It also gives your helper breathing muscles in the upper back and shoulders a rest.
* Take a breath break every hour! Sit up tall in your chair, at a red light, waiting in line at the grocery store or right before you walk in your home after work and take 5 deep slow breaths in through your nose and out through your nose. Notice how your shoulders relax and your mind becomes a little clearer. Taking these mini breaks will help increase your work productivity and your quality of life. It can help keep your mind clear, calm, and focused.
* Try eating a walnut every day. Walnuts are considered to be a Chinese herb and help to strengthen the lower back. A low dose walnut routine over time builds strength and helps keep your joints lubricated.
Qi Gong is a limb of Chinese Medicine. It is a way for individuals to cultivate their own energy and keep their bodies strong. It is often considered a meditation of movement.
I am in the midst of preparing for the shamrock shuffle. I haven't been an advid runner since high school cross country and my enthustiasum for running has definately wanned over the years. I've been running a few times a week for the past couple of months to start to prepare for the 8k event. Perhaps one of the biggest challenges I've noted during my lackadasical training is my mind and feeling like I might not be able to run fast enough or have the endurance to finish the race.
Yesterday I set off to run 4 miles, my longest running session thus far. What I did first before starting my trek was a 45 minute qi gong sequence I learned last spring at the Qi Revolution with Jeff Primack. Here is what I noted during my run.
>>My breathing was smoother and less labored even during inclines.
>>My mind was more at peace and I had less thoughts of "when will this be over?" and more of a feeling of strength in my body and an "I can do this" attitude.
>>I wasn't sore the next day and actually felt more energized.
Because training for any event is a mental game and your breath is so important in delivering fressh oxygen and nutrients to your muscles qi gong feels a perfect compliment to training. While qi gong is more stationary than your areobics class might be, it is actually a powerful cardiovascular exercise that also helps to calm the nervous system rather than rev it up. It is a wonderful addition to receiving acupuncture and can be done at any age. While I was in China I noted old women practicing tai chi together in the park as well as young people practicing martial arts of many varieties.
Qi Gong is ideally practiced in a group because it helps magnify the benefits. Dr Pam Fernandes offers a free hour long qi gong class in Huntley at American Community Bank on Tuesdays at 1:30. I went last week and it was a nice class especially if this is all brand new to you. She makes modifications so that if you need to you can do all exercises seated as well. Patch.com did an article on her class you can read here.
Here is a quick you tube video to show you what qi gong is.
Sarah Zender LAc
Neighborhood Acupuncture Place (NAP)
230 Florence St
Crystal Lake IL 60014
815.893.9825
www.CLnap.com
