Most folks think of acupuncture and picture needles, and that’s fair. But there’s an important aspect of Chinese medicine – in conjunction with acupuncture – that a lot of people don’t know about.
I’m talking about herbs.
No, not the kind you can get in Colorado! I’m talking about the ancient practice of using herbs – derived from various roots and plants – to help heal the body. It’s kind of like the yin to acupuncture’s yang.
Here’s why: Acupuncture influences energy flow in the body. Herbs, on the other hand, go directly to imbalanced organs and work to nourish them. Together, they’re basically tag-teaming your body. And, not surprisingly, combining herbs and acupuncture reduces treatment time.
I grew up drinking Chinese herbs because my mother is a Chinese doctor, and herbs were our go-to medicine whenever we got sick.
There are three different forms of Chinese herbs we offer at Inner Peace Acupuncture: (A fourth kind, the most potent form, is raw herbs you cook yourself, but Inner Peace doesn’t carry them because they’re pricey and preparing them is time-consuming.)
- A tincture is a concentrated liquid, and it’s made when a bunch of herbs are boiled. That creates a solution, which is then suspended in a very small amount of alcohol. You take it with a dropper, either with water or directly into your mouth. Tinctures are the second-most potent form of Chinese herbs after the raw form, and different solutions can be mixed together depending on what the patient needs.
Inner Peace is the only clinic in Charlotte that carries a line of tinctures from Conceivable which is made by fertility acupuncturists specifically for fertility acupuncturists.
- You might have seen the many bottles of granules in my office. With these powdered herbs, I can concoct formulas more specifically than I can with tinctures because I control the amount of granules. You put a dose of the powder formula in hot water to make a tea.
- They’re more like pea-sized pellets than pills, and this is a quick way to take herbs. These pills are patent formulas and can’t be modified— they’re based on classical formulas that have been around for thousands of years.
Depending on your lifestyle and taste preference, I will prescribe one of these forms of herbs that best suits your needs.
For more information, please feel free to contact me and I will be happy to answer any questions!
