In our book Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month Program for Maximum Fertility Dr. David and I recommend abdominal self massage as a way of helping to enhance fertility by increasing blood flow to the uterus. In the book there are detailed diagrams of different self-massage techniques for every phase of your cycle. This massage is [...]
“Is there anything I can do to make it more likely that my baby is a girl?”. This was a question that one of my patients asked me a couple of weeks ago. She already has a little boy and, although she’d be happy with another boy, she would dearly love a baby girl. She [...]
This weather makes it pretty hard for even the perkiest among us to maintain our energy. Many or our patients are telling us that they are hankering for second and third cups of tea or coffee in this weather and we understand. At times that’s a manageable quick fix but here’s something that may be [...]
Recently I blogged about a study that showed that chemical exposure could lead to male infertility. The article provoked a lot of discussion in the YinOva waiting room and many of our patients commented about it and asked for advice about avoiding household chemicals. One of our patients, a 5 year cancer survivor, offered to [...]
I have learned not to underestimate the healing power of visualization. I remember once treating a woman who was trying to have a baby but was suffering from amenorrhea (no periods). All the usual herbs and acupuncture were not working so I referred her to a GYN who tried a number of pharmaceutical interventions to [...]
Today’s blog was written by YinOva acupuncturist and herbalist Margaret Sikowitz What a week! Crazy weather, way too much to do and not a minute to myself. Sounds familiar, I know since pretty much everyone walking through our doors at the Yinova Center recently echoed a similar sentiment. For me, this calls for a good [...]
This week’s blog is by YinOva acupuncturist and herbalist Marie Amato Over the weekend I had my first Maya Abdominal Massage™ and I wanted to share this experience with the YinOva community. I was lucky enough to study this technique from our favorite Mayan masseuse, Nicole Kruck. For those of you who have not yet [...]
“Can you help me get my mojo back?” Karen¹ was a tired Mom with two small children who was worried about her lack of libido. Here at the YinOva Center we regularly hear from women who are concerned that they have little or no interest in sex. To a certain extent it’s normal for sexual [...]
Today’s blog was written by YinOva acupuncturist and herbalist, Liz Carlson. Often, when I discover why something is so bad for me, I find it easier to cut it out of my life. In my early twenties, after I learned that aspartame was causing brain tumors in lab rats I didn’t find it too hard [...]
At the YinOva Center we take issue with the old adage that “beauty is only skin deep”. Chinese medicine sees beauty as a reflection of the state of someone’s whole body. Radiance comes from a strong, vibrant spirit, good nourishment and enough rest. The holistic nature of Chinese medicine lends itself to the notion that [...]
For thousands of years, all over the world, honey has been prescribed for it’s antibacterial properties. The ancient Egyptians used it to treat sores and soldier’s in the trenches, during World War One, applied it to their wounds. However, with the popularity of antibiotics, honey took a back seat and was dismissed as a home [...]
One of my patients asked me this question recently after reading my blog entry about whether pregnant women should eat fish. I love fish – low in saturated fats and high in omega 3 fatty acids, it’s a great source of heart-healthy protein. I grew up on the coast and as a child was lucky [...]
Levitating Monkey is a blog that explores topics related to wellness, holistic living and environmentalism. One of its publishers Anjula Duggal was kind enough to contact me a couple of weeks ago to ask a few questions. You can read the resulting interview here.
Although people often refer to a UTI as a bladder infection, any part of the urinary system, including the kidneys, can become infected. The most common infection, however, is in the bladder and urethra and accounts for 8.3 million doctor visits each year. A UTI is more likely to affect women than men, for anatomical [...]
As acupuncturists who specialize in women’s health, we meet plenty of women who suffer from menstrual cramps. Dysmenorrhea is the technical term for the dull throbbing abdominal pain that some women experience during their periods. It can range from a mild annoyance to the kind of severe pain that can ruin several days each month. [...]
This list by Paula Redmond Satran was originally published in Glamour Magazine in 1997. It is often mistakenly described as a poem by Maya Angelou. Thank you Pamela for giving me permission to post it here for our YinOva Center community.
I found this quiz online. How many organs can you name in 4 minutes? I named 24 organs in 4 minutes!
As many of you have pointed out to me morning sickness is a bit of a misnomer because in real life a wave of nausea or vomiting can strike pregnant women at any time of the day or night. Between 60% and 80% of pregnant women experience some nausea and vomiting although for most women [...]
Last month I wrote about how acupuncture and moxibustion can help turn a breech baby and this week one of our lovely patients, Monika, used this method with great success. I like it when our YinOva patients write on this blog, so I asked if she would mind sharing her experience. Below you’ll find what [...]
When we were writing our book Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month Program for Maximum Fertility, we devoted a lot of time to helping couples pinpoint the exact time of the month they should be trying to conceive. I get tons of questions, in my practice, about timing intercourse and also about how often to have [...]
Earlier this week the BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (1.) released a report that found that acupuncture can help women suffering from pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy. This is not the first research study to look at this. In fact in 2005 I was interviewed by ABC news about the same topic. [...]
Today’s blog entry is written by YinOva Acupuncturist and Clinical Herbalist, Liz Carlson. Preparing for baby often means making changes in your everyday life- some easier than others. Let’s face it: adding a prenatal vitamin or staying mindful of eating healthy, unsaturated fats are relatively simple tasks compared to letting go of your beloved daily [...]
Whenever I talk about breast cancer prevention I am very conscious of my patients who are currently dealing with this illness. I want to avoid making them feel as if they did something wrong. Too often cancer patients beat themselves up for things they did and things they wished they’d done. I don’t want to [...]
I know that many of you saw the recent news reports about a new study that showed that acupuncture is remarkably helpful when it comes to relieving the side effects of breast cancer treatment. You can see an ABC news report on this by clicking here. Doctors treating breast cancer give patients drugs that lower [...]
