While afflicted with her third set of four autoimmune conditions, she penned in a journal many years ago:
In March, 8 years ago, after battling Lupus for more than 20 years, I found myself
alone. I had tried Native American healing methods and herbs. Western Medicine
had given up on me and I had become allergic to everything including aspirin.
While staving off impending kidney failure, jaundiced, and getting tired breathing,
I began calling and emailing Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners
rather blindly until I got a response. Although I could hardly walk a half block at
the time, I took the train downtown, then a cab to the corner of Michigan and
Madison and walked about 50 yards to the Chicago office. I entered exhausted and
began my journey through TCM, not knowing what to expect! (I had only read
some books and tried some of the self-help techniques including Qi-Gong). I left
the office after one acupuncture treatment able to walk a mile back to the train
station in 15 minutes, coat open. Since then, TCM has sustained me, opened several
doors for cultural exploration and study, and allowed me to rededicate my life.
Traditions, Research, Study & Practice in China
Four degrees later, none of which I planned on, and many more years than I ever expected to live, I am still studying, researching and practicing.
For more than 50 years of my life, I have studied medicine in its various forms and traditions.....
More about my international journey, my Chinese medicine family, and years of study soon............
Dr. Debra
To better serve you, we are moving!
We are Super excited to be moving April 1!
Our new location 648 N River Road Suite 104, Office 2, Naperville, IL 60563, is ADA compliant. Parking is much better than on N. Washington St., too!
We are now in the Riverwoods Office Campus. Our office is in Looking Glass Therapeutics.
Looking forward to see seeing you there!
New Website, too! AcuHealingWorks.com
COVID-19: IMMUNITY AND OUR COMMUNITY
Dear patients and our community,
As you already know, the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is very real and it is everyone’s responsibility to help keep our community safe from the rapid spread of Coronavirus. To help slow the spread of this virus, it is now more important than ever to take an abundance of caution to help protect you, your family, our community and our healthcare system.
Because there are many unknowns about Coronavirus and things can change rapidly, we believe using common sense is the best measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
If you are feeling ill or experiencing any of the following symptoms, please stay home and limit your exposure to other people in your community. By taking action, you will significantly delay the spread of COVID-19:
● Fever (oral temperature 100.4° or higher) or symptoms of fever (such as chills or body aches) within the past 24 hours. Please do not consider yourself fever-free until your temperature has been normal for at least 24 hours without the use of Tylenol (acetaminophen).
● Shortness of breath and/or a cough that is not known to be caused by another condition (for example allergies).
● Travel within the past 14 days to areas that have people known to be infected with Covid-19
● Close contact with a person known/suspected to be infected with COVID-19 within the past 14 days.
● Healthcare workers who have been in contact with patients known/suspected to be infected with COVID-19 within the past 14 days.
Prevention is the best medicine.
Here are some additional resources for our patients and community members during this critical time.
What You Can Do To Take Care Of Yourself
The most important things you can do to support your immune system are really basic:
1. Don’t panic. Stress is bad for your immune system. It’s normal to have worried thoughts. Just don’t entertain them for too long. Make some time to do something enjoyable each day and connect with loved ones.
2. Wash your hands frequently and don’t touch your face unless you just washed your hands.
3. Get enough sleep. Turn off the screens and start winding down a little earlier.
4. Drink lots of water to support healthy mucous membranes as a first line of defense. Hot water and tea have been shown to inhibit viruses in our throat.
5. Eat more nutrient-dense whole foods, soups, and bone broth.
6. Eat less inflammatory foods: sugar, industrial seed oils, processed foods, alcohol, and foods you are sensitive to (wheat, dairy, eggs, nightshades etc.)
7. Support lung health by doing some even breathing, preferably outdoors in fresh air, to move circulation and clear out toxins. Breath in through your nose for a count of 5, hold for 1 count, then out through your mouth for a count of 5, hold for 1 count. Repeat. Make the counts even and not too long that you struggle.
What You Can Do To Help Boost Your Immune System
● Immune boosting and antiviral herbs! Herbs boost and support your immune system. Let us know you are interested in herbs and we’ll figure out the best way they can help you.
● Probiotics are an important part of your immune system. They are available in fermented foods such as yogurt, kefir, raw sauerkraut, specifically labeled pickles, miso, kombucha (careful because it can contain lots of sugar and some caffeine). Consider supplementing with a concentrated pill or powder.
● Elderberry syrup is a go-to recommendation for antiviral support that you can order online or at your local natural grocer.
● Vitamin C, Vitamin D, and Zinc are also good supplements to boost your immune system.
Up-to-date COVID-19 Data from the World Health Organization
For the current number of cases worldwide, the World Health Organization maintains a COVID-19 Situation Report worldwide:
https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/685d0ace521648f8a5beeeee1b9125cd
As acupuncturists and practitioners of Traditional Chinese Medicine, we are committed to the health and safety of our community. With your help and support, we can all take part in mitigating the spread of COVID-19.
While these times may feel unusually challenging, please know we will continue to monitor the current situation and evaluate additional measures to help support our patients, employees, and community.
Thank you and stay safe.
May 15, 2018
Schedule Your Acupuncture Treatments Regularly:
Why You Should Get Regular Acupuncture Treatments
Everybody knows you should see your family physician at least once a year and your dentist at least twice a year. But not everybody knows about acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine and the many benefits it can provide for you.
If you start incorporating acupuncture into your health and wellness regime, you may not have to rely on the family physician so much for those minor little issues. Let’s look at how getting regular acupuncture treatments can help you stay happy and healthy.
There are many ways acupuncture treatments can change a person’s life.
One of the most noticeable is acupuncture can get you to look at your health from a completely different perspective.
This could mean you might start taking a more in depth look at your health, which may allow you to veer away from some of the mainstream medical practices such as multiple pharmaceuticals.
Many long-term acupuncture patients find they no longer need all the medications prescribed by their family physician, because the symptoms have been controlled using acupuncture.
Acupuncture is great for prevention. Because regular acupuncture treatments can :
- Balance hormones and boost immunity,
There is a good chance you won’t need that annual flu shot or all those over-the-counter cold medications.
A trained acupuncturist can spot a problem like decreased immunity from a mile away.
It can appear as symptoms such as chronic fatigue, insomnia and even body temperature fluctuations.
A couple of treatments can make a big difference.
What about relieving some of that extra stress we all deal with?
- Yes, regular acupuncture treatments can keep that at bay too.
- Many people don’t equate being poked with tiny needles as a relaxation technique, but it truly is relaxing.
- Many patients actually fall asleep after or while the needles are being placed. And the effects can last for days or even weeks!
- So the next time you feel irritable and overwhelmed, check out your local licensed acupuncturist.
Regular acupuncture treatments can help you save money.
What? It’s true. This goes back to the previous benefits.
If you don’t need as many pharmaceuticals, you will ultimately save money.
Also, conditions like stress, anxiety, fatigue and depression can keep you from going to work, possibly costing you several days of pay.
But with regular acupuncture treatments, your moods can be more effectively managed and you won’t need to miss work as frequently.
And the most popular reason to get regular acupuncture treatments is that it will help you remain pain free.
- We all have aches and pains. But research has shown acupuncture is more effective than opioids for controlling things like arthritic pain in the joints.
- It is also be incorporated into hospital emergency rooms throughout the United States, so people don’t need as many pain medications.
- As a matter of fact, in Asia, acupuncture is sometimes used by itself during and after surgical procedures to treat pain.
While many of you may have a needle phobia, don’t let that deter you.
Acupuncture is part of an amazing medical system that has been around for nearly 3,000 years.
In comparison, Western medicine has only been around for about 200 to 250 years.
That puts things in perspective a little, especially when you consider most people in Asian countries live longer, happier, healthier lives than almost everybody in the United States.
There’s no better time than the present to start a good habit. Just be sure to seek out a fully trained and licensed acupuncturist.
Your whole life just might change for the better.
