There is really only ONE thing stopping you from achieving your health goals...

What is stopping you from achieving your health goals?

With any change you are looking to make, especially changes to your HEALTH the most important thing for success is to first look at your ATTITUDE. 

Your attitude will help you take a leap of faith to your next level of health!

Most people when they want to lose weight for example, look at how HARD it will be, and what they will have to “sacrifice”. There is also a tendency to put things into a good or bad category.

When we label “good” and “bad” foods, it creates resistance and we create an attitude that it is HARD.

They look at what they have to give up the “bad” stuff (sugar, starch, and dairy) and do more of the “good” stuff (broccoli, kale etc.) and exercise. This creates resistance to doing what you need to do to get healthy and the difficulty becomes the focus instead of what you need to do. So every time you want make a change it feels HARD.

What is important here is to identify patterns of resistance so you can have long lasting and consistent success with your health goals. This is about alignment of mind, body, energy and spirit and this creates your attitude or mindset.

Being in charge of your health destiny is a big responsibility and it can be overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. Investing in your health and well being is more important than ever, it is an attitude and mindset. You don’t have to do this on your own nor should you.

One of the beautiful things Chinese medicine and acupuncture, is that it addresses “alignment”, the attitude piece and that is why it will support you physically, energetically, emotionally and spiritually.

Chinese medicine and acupuncture can help bring you into alignment, physically, energetically, emotionally and spiritually.

Personal share…not long ago I had a serious knee injury that might have needed surgery; I had to do what ever it would take to heal and rehab my knee. I did everything I could especially acupuncture, massage, stretching and strengthening exercises. The progress was slow and had already built up in my mind there was a long road to recovery and to be honest was not feeling so hopeful. The doctor told me I did not need surgery… however if I wanted to continue dancing I had to do these exercises of 80 repetitions a day. It would strengthen my knee, prevent future injury and I wouldn't need surgery. My first thought was that 80 reps is way too much, and I couldn't see myself doing them. I kept thinking how HARD it was…was setting myself up for failure or giving up. This was because of HOW I was thinking about what I had to do and it seemed like a lot. But the doctor said to do 10 repetitions every hour and that would make 80, suddenly it was EASY!

What is your habitual attitude towards taking care of yourself?

I don’t think anyone choses knee surgery over exercise, though that is what often happens because of the attitude of resistance and it is an obstacle to getting the best results. What was important in my case was being able to shift my attitude so I was in alignment with what I wanted to achieve with my knee and this moved me from a mindset of HARD to EASY, and I had no resistance of doing the exercises!

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”-Lao Tzu

What is important is that you know what the first step is and take action now.

Do you make it HARD as to why you can’t take care of yourself? Do you have things you tell yourself as to why you can’t commit? Is it time, energy or money?

Give yourself every opportunity to live a long and healthy life.

Here is how you can start:

• If you want to make some changes first look at how EASY it will be to do it. 

• Take the big goal and chunk it down into smaller steps.

• Think win/win instead of good or bad.

• Get help, you don’t need to do this on your own.

• Acupuncture and Chinese medicine will support you.

• Take action

All you have to do is walk 20 minutes a day and you will stave off a heart attack, I'd say, THAT’S ALL I HAVE TO DO?!

It’s that EASY!

#weighloss #acupuncture #eattolive #naturalweightloss#transformyourhealth #IHANYC #getfit #attitudeadjustment#painmanagment #painreliefacupuncture #kneepain #fertilityhealth #mindset

Wishing you Health and Prosperity in the New Year! 恭喜发财

Red Lanterns light the way for a the start of the New Year!

This Chinese New Year is the Year of the Earth Pig!

The zodiac signs have a 12 year cycle and each cycle will correlate to one of 5 elements (Wood, Fire, Metal, Earth and Water).

When, where and how you were born in relation to the cosmos will have an influence on your health and to a large degree your destiny. Similar to western astrology there are characteristics for each zodiac.

The choices you make determine your destiny and this is especially true with your health destiny!

For the western culture, having attributes of a pig is not considered a nice compliment.

But according to the Chinese Zodiac, the attributes of the Earth Pig, are quite positive.

Pigs are the symbol of wealth and prosperity!

They are extremely kind and thoughtful in nature and are sensible and realistic. The Earth Pig will go to great lengths to please people and are great hosts. They are kind and generous, peacemakers and have integrity. Earth pigs are social, they care about others and have a positive attitude bringing cheer to those around them. They enjoy living life to the fullest.

Earth pigs are strong minded, once they have made their mind up to do something no one can stop them from achieving their goal. Because of their positivity even when they experience setbacks they can recover quickly. Pigs love spending their money and celebrating. They are very trusting and sometimes people will take advantage of this quality; pigs are also forgiving and move on.

Pigs tend to have robust health, but can be susceptible to indulging in rich foods and taking it easy which can lead to weight gain and other health conditions.

No matter what your zodiac sign is you can incorporate some of the positive aspects of the Earth pig.

Wishing everyone health, wealth and prosperity for the new year!

#chinesenewyear #chinesemedicine #herbalmedicine #prosperity #healthwealth

5 Strategies to Take Care of that Cold!

When the temperatures start to shift and change from one extreme to another as we go into cooler weather; the dreaded first cold of the season can show up.

Having a smart health strategy for when you start feeling a little off will make a difference as to whether you succumb to getting sick, recover quickly or deflect it all together.

The symptoms are mild; a little scratchy throat, a runny nose maybe a little fatigue. This is a crucial time to get healthy before the environment (weather) becomes more intense and your body will have to work harder to regulate itself and stay healthy.

Cultivating health based habits that include acupuncture, herbs, mediation , clean diet and exercise is a great foundation for longevity.

Whether you are able to fend off getting sick or recover quickly from a cold will reveal how strong your mind, body and spirit are, basically how much vim and vigor you have!

Here are 5 things you can do to promote you health and will help you recover faster from the first cold of the season!

1. Probiotics - keep your gut flora balanced, your immune system actually resides in the gut. Maintaining a healthy digestive system will help you stay strong when the weather changes or when we encounter new environments. I recommend probiotics to all my patients as health maintenance.

Taking a daily probiotic helps maintain healthy intestinal flora.

2. Sleep - this is when your body does it’s repairing; digestion, emotional processing and filtering toxins and metabolic waste. It is a reset. If you don’t have quality sleep, brain function is affected and we end up with less than optimal functioning. (sleep deprivation is linked to diabetes and long term sleep problems is linked to Alzheimer's disease and dementia). Have going to sleep a priority as much as you have waking up!

cultivate good sleep habits that will support your immune system and keep you healthy all year around.

3. Manuka honey - gives support for the immune system because of its antimicrobial, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties coming from flowers of the Manuka tree. Manuka is similar to Tea Tree (Malaleuca), both belong to the Myrtaceae family, along with Eucalyptus, Clove and Myrtle. Add the honey with ginger and lemon to teas or use it over your morning cereal!

Natural anti-microbial properties in Manuka honey will boost your immune system.

4. Tulsi Tea - also known as Holy Basil, helps prevent certain respiratory illnesses ranging from colds and coughs to bronchitis and asthma. This herbal tea is loaded with anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory properties that can help in fighting infections and allergies, it is especially good for inflammations of the respiratory tract and can keep the seasonal colds at bay.

Teas have natural anti-microbial properties and are anti-oxidant, meaning they support you immune system and help with recovering from a cold and preventing it from going deeper into your body.

5. Neti pot - Nasal irrigation with a saline solution helps to thin mucus and flush out the nasal passages. Allergen irritants and debris cause the mucous membranes to swell and create congestion, the saline reduces the swelling of the mucous membranes and draws out mucous from the congested sinuses. Salt or saline solutions can draw water out of bacteria through their cell membranes and this dehydration can kill the bacteria. The same effect happens when you jump into the sea and salt water goes up your nose, all mucous comes out!

Salt solution creates an environment that bacteria and fungus don’t thrive in.

Making sure that you get regular acupuncture treatments through out the year as a smart health strategy will help your body and it’s immune system to function optimally.

The strongest medicine is preventative medicine!

#smarthealth #alternativehealth #commoncold #naturalremedies #acupuncturenyc #immuneboost #sleepwell #IHANYC #acupuncturenyc #herbalremedy #sinus #holistichealth #DrOz #drmom #chinesemedicine #smartmedicine #healthtoday #prevention