Acupuncture and Breast Cancer

The New York Times ran an article yesterday promoting the benefits of acupuncture as a means of relief for breast cancer patients. I'm always a little amused when these methods of healing with centuries and millennia of history are billed as "unconventional," but at least it's getting press. The full text is below; I'd be interested to know your thoughts.
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Treatments for breast cancer can lead to unpleasant side effects for most women, including hot flashes, sweating and lack of energy. Now, new research suggests relief can come from an unconventional therapy — acupuncture.

Research from the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, presented this week at the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s annual meeting in Boston, studied acupuncture use among 47 women who were receiving anti-estrogen treatments, including tamoxifen or anastrozole (Arimidex). The drugs are known to lower the risk of breast cancer recurrence, but they can trigger menopause-like symptoms, including hot flashes and night sweats. Half the women were given the antidepressant Effexor, which has been shown to reduce hot flashes in breast cancer patients. The other half received acupuncture therapy once or twice a week during the 12-week study.

The acupuncture worked just as well as the antidepressant Effexor to curb hot flashes. Women who received acupuncture also reported fewer side effects and more energy, and some reported an increased sex drive, compared to women who used Effexor, the study showed.

Dr. Eleanor M. Walker, director of breast radiation oncology at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, said that while she expected to see some benefits from acupuncture, the results were surprising.

“I was surprised by the duration of the effect,” Dr. Walker said. “I didn’t realize it would last so long or result in an increase in sex drive and energy. That was a surprise.”

Last year, a report in The Journal of Clinical Oncology suggested a benefit of acupuncture compared to a “sham” acupuncture treatment, but the results didn’t reach statistical significance.

Because the most recent study lasted only three months, it’s not clear how long the benefit of acupuncture lasts. The study authors said that more research is needed to find out if regular “booster” sessions after the initial treatment period will continue to relieve a woman’s symptoms.

Wiped Out

It's true, I've been a lousy poster as of late. My post-a-day goal when I started has dwindled to a post-a-week during September. It's not that I haven't been thinking about holistic health, or come up with things I've wanted to share. It's just that I've been absurdly exhausted lately. In bed at 8:30 on a Friday night kind of exhausted. In fact, in the last two weeks, I think I've been asleep before 10pm a record-breaking (for me) four times. I've canceled plans, postponed visits, delayed obligations. I'm not quite sure why I've been so beat, but I do know I had to just give into it and let it win. Maybe my body's been fending off these colds that have been going around, or maybe I've just had trouble adjusting to the change of seasons. Maybe it's work stress, or maybe it's frustration over a lot of little things. In the end, I suppose it's ok that I don't know why I'm so tired, just that I honor the exhaustion and give myself a free pass every once in a while.

That said, I'm an optimist, and there's something about today that makes me think I'm starting to turn the corner. I made myself a delicious raw vegan smoothie packed with all sorts of healthy things, like my magic enzyme powder and flax seeds and mango. I have acupuncture after work, and then my favorite yoga class a little while after that. I've recommitted to a booze-free lifestyle (for the time being), and am letting myself say no to things that seem more draining than restorative.

And now, back to work while my head is still clear. My to-do list is a bit daunting at the moment...

Thanks, Lovies.

Over the past few days, I've gotten so many wonderful comments on this little thing. Some were from friends (thanks DD, thanks Maggie), and one or two came from strangers or anonymous folks. These comments -- coupled with live-time encouragement from my spectacular friends and family -- have given me a much-needed boost. I feel like I've lost my holistic health mojo a little bit as of late, and all this positivity has, I hope, given me the push I needed.

My icky-tasting, nowhere-near-cheap enzyme-loaded powder came in the mail today, and I can't believe how excited I got about it. I hadn't reordered in time, so I haven't had it these last two weeks. This time I ordered a month and a half's supply. That's one point for health. And, lucky for me (in this case, at least), I tend to be all or nothing, which means the health crusade is back on.

Part of the fire in the beginning was the challenge to figure out the unknown. At my cousin's wedding this weekend, my mom and my friend/brother's girlfriend were talking about the creative process, and how projects can seem so exciting in the beginning -- just up until the point when you can see how it's going to end up. I think, in a way, that's how I felt about my health. This summer tipped me over the edge to finally solve my health problems. Crazy part is, now that I know what I need to do (no caffeine, strict sleep regimen, exercise, acupuncture, tons and tons of raw fruits and veggies, minimal booze, meditation, skip the sugar, get lots of sunlight, take my thyroid medication, keep the probiotics coming, and, by all means, stay on the enzyme-fueling powder), I feel, well, lazy about it.

Which, of course, makes me want to shake myself by the shoulders and yell, "What are you doing?!" For years I've just wanted someone to tell me what the heck I should do to feel healthy. Now I know. So why have I only been doing it about 70%? How do I get myself up to that 95%-100% range so I can wake up feeling spectacular and energized, with glowing skin and radiant energy? After all, who wouldn't want that?

So here's the game plan. First, give myself credit for what I am doing. (Um, hello zero caffeine, to name the biggie.) Second, get excited about the powders and pills and other tools I have to jump start my system; all I have to do is take them. Third, and the part I'm most excited about, go to the gorgeous gym at my alma mater/current place of employment. I joined last week, and can't wait to go lift weights again in an environment I know and am comfortable in. Plus, I can see the gym every time I walk out of my office -- no pretending it's not convenient. I think (hope) that with this redevotion, the pieces might start to fall back into place.

Another thing I'm working hard on is to be kinder to myself. I forget where I heard it, but you should never speak to yourself in a way you wouldn't speak to your best friend or your daughter. I would never berate my best friend for only succeeding 70%. But I would encourage her to keep pushing herself so she can feel her best. We'll give it a shot, right?

Blessed

Throughout the weekend, one thought keeps looping through my mind:

I am so blessed.

Last week was a tough one for me. Panic attacks resurfaced, things at work got shuffled a bit, and a very dear family friend passed away. Not surprisingly, I felt wiped out and depleted. What made it even more frustrating was all the great stuff from last week that I could acknowledge intellectually as being wonderful, and there were even moments when my heart skipped a bit, but nothing positive was able to sift down and really take up residence.

My "emergency" acupuncture on Thursday helped reset things, and I haven't felt any panic since, which is a huge relief. Eva was also helpful in pointing out that I need to be easier on myself and let go of my perfectionist attitude, at least a little. On Friday night, I was supposed to go to New York to visit my dearest friend, "Snacks," but felt too overwhelmed to make the short trip. She, being the wonderful soul she is, understood and said I should come up whenever felt right. I was on the train at 7:30 on Saturday morning, feeling fortified after a relaxing night in. But everything kept irritating me more than it should have/would have on any other day.

Bit by bit, though, I was able to let go. And that's when the refrain started to bubble up. For the rest of the weekend, all I could think was how blessed I am. I was able to spend Saturday with a friend I consider a sister and my wonderful, wise, beautiful mother. We ate delicious food, sampled a few sangrias (whoops), and caught up and laughed for hours. We met another great friend, Maggie, for a glass of wine, and after it all, Snacks and I went to surprise another old friend in Brooklyn.

Connecting with these incredible people from all different stages of my life was restorative in a way I wasn't expecting. There was a particular ease that comes from being with people who know who you are at your core. And the agave-nectar-sweetened icing on the gluten free cake? Presents. That's right. I got presents.

Mom treated us to all the amazing food (details in a future post) and some new shoes (yay!). Snacks surprised me with this amazing book I'd been drooling over, by the founders of the restaurant where we had dinner, Pure Food and Wine. I'm not really one to rush out to the latest hot spot, but after reading about it on Kris Carr's blog in July, I've been dying to get over there. I was thrilled with the experience. Maggie handed over her umbrella so I wouldn't get caught in the rain en route to Brooklyn, and when I arrived there, Alison, a friend for over two decades, surprised me with belated birthday presents, including a gorgeous journal.

And that was just one day! On Sunday I got to have brunch with Snacks and my friend Cas, another post-worthy meal. I took it easy again last night, which I needed to do, but I'm finally starting to feel restored and ready for the new week.

Stress and Panic Attacks

Stress and I don't get along. Some people say they thrive on stress, that it gets them motored up to push through things they wouldn't otherwise people able to do. I am not one of those people. The good thing is that I know what havoc stress wreaks on my well-being, and I work to minimize the stressors in my life. When I get stressed, my immune system starts to stutter and I get sick, my stomach gets upset, I can't sleep. Years ago I also suffered from panic attacks, which, at one point, were so bad that I considered taking time off from school.

Fortunately, I am the daughter of a very wise man. When I talked to my dad about my panic attacks, he gave me a some specific actions to take. They were just the tools I needed to get through the worst of it so I could finish up the year.

1. Eat more protein. At the time I didn't understand the importance of protein when it comes to stress and panic attacks. As I started to read up on hypoglycemia this summer, though, every source talked about how critical regular protein is to maintaining stable blood sugar. And what is one of the symptoms some hypoglycemics experience? You guessed it -- panic attacks.

2. Stop with the caffeine. I had a ten-Diet-Cokes-a-day habit. The mere thought of that horrifies me. Of course anyone who drinks that much caffeine (not to mention chemicals and aspartame) is going to feel jittery, to say the least!

3. Practice deep breathing exercises. When I first started doing breathing exercises, I only had one basic technique: Inhale through my nose to the count of five, exhale through my mouth to the count of seven. It worked, but I've since learned other techniques that work even better for me. The first is ujjayi breath, which is explained quite well here. The other might be the simplest breathing technique I know of, but it's also my favorite: focus fully on each each breath, simply observing it, but with the exhale as the "start" of the breath, and the inhale as the "end." That simple reversal in observation takes just enough focus for me to allow my mind to quiet. This is also my favorite breath for when I meditate.

This past week I have been feeling an incredibly amount of stress, and have been unable to pinpoint its root, which only frustrates me more. Doesn't much help the situation. To make matters worse, in the last three days, I've staved off four panic attacks. I'm glad I was able to prevent them, but it's been a little unsettling that they've resurfaced after so many years. So I'm going back to basics. Protein. Stay off the caffeine. Practice deep breathing. Now I have even more tools in my arsenal, though, which is encouraging. Here are the new additions:

1. In addition to deep breathing to get me through a tough moment, regular meditation to help keep me on an even keel. (If you're thinking, hey, wait, you've been doing this meditation thing for a few weeks now, and you're getting panic attacks for the first time in years. Why would I want to do that? It's because I've been slacking on the meditation. Doh.)

2. Beyond just eating more protein, work to limit my sugar intake as much as possible, thus keeping my blood sugar as stable as I can manage. (Yes, I've been slipping up and having more sugar and alcohol lately, too.)

3. Acupuncture also really helps me to feel centered and grounded. I think it's a combination of the treatment itself, and having twenty minutes to lie in quiet on the table and just decompress. After nearly having a panic attack this morning as I was getting in the shower, I booked an appointment for this afternoon as soon as I got to work.

4. Spend time outside, get some sunlight, experience some nature. I think there's a lot to be said for honoring our circadian rhythms; it makes sense that we'll feel better when we're in sync with our natural clocks.

5. Work up a sweat. Exercise gets the endorphins pumping through your system (the source of a runner's high), which brings extra feel-good chemicals to your body. Who wouldn't prefer that to feeling stressed out. It can also help you work through some pent up aggression and get out of a toxic thought loop. Find something you love -- riding your bike, doing yoga, going for a run or a swim -- and let it act as a resource rather than something on your to-do list.

6. Talk it out. If something's weighing on your mind, find people who care about you and vent a little bit. Ask if they have some insight into the situation. There's no point in going on the journey alone.

If you have other resources you call on when you're stressed out, I'd love to hear them. I'm feeling encouraged just having taken the time to think through all the resources I have at my disposal.

Good News, Bad News

Friday's preemptive measures in preparation for a night of sipping wine definitely helped. This morning I woke up feeling relatively well-rested, and just about everything seemed to be in good working order. Except my lip.

I was afraid of this. For about the last three years, the middle of my upper lip has been a little swollen, some days more than others. I tried to tell myself no one noticed as much as I did, but every once in a while I'd get comments like "Did you...get collagen? What happened?" or "How did something manage to sting your lip?" For the most part, though, it just felt a little strange.

When I asked my GP, she didn't know what to tell me, and certainly didn't seem concerned, so she referred me to a dermatologist, who also had no idea what was going on. "But the tissue here feels different," I said. They didn't seem to notice. Then, on my last morning in Italy in June, I woke up like this (sorry about the picture quality):


I'd woken up early because I tasted blood in my mouth; my lips had swollen so large that they'd split open in some places. Ouch. My lip returned to it's regular, only-slightly-puffy state within a day, but it was still unsettling. When I landed, I booked an appointment with an allergist. He was the first doctor to acknowledge that my lip is not normal, that the tissue is different, and that it's something that needs to be solved. He suggested I take Zyrtec every day for two months, just to see if it helped, and referred me to a lip specialist. I didn't even know those existed. I passed on the Zyrec -- I would much rather try to figure this out naturally/holistically -- but I did book the appointment with the specialist.

While on the elimination diet, though, my lip just about returned to normal. Eva, acupuncturist extraordinaire, said it is likely a curious manifestation of inflammation, and at this point I'm nearly certain it is. In Chinese medicine, the area just above the middle of your upper lip is an inflammation point, so it makes sense to me that the center of my lip is what swells up. I believe the elimination diet cleansed my of the major inflammatory triggers, which allowed my lip to finally return to normal. Once I added the booze, the lip puffed right up. Just to be sure, I plan to have another stint (much shorter this time) without alcohol, and then add it again to see if we get the same result. I'm also very curious how long it will take the swelling to go back down.

To wrap it up --
Good News: The Great Lip Mystery may be nearly solved
Bad News: Yet another reason I shouldn't indulge in the sauce as often as I'd like

How Acupuncture Saved my Tuesdays...and other stories

Tuesdays used to be, hands down, my least favorite day of the week. Monday's done a swift job of wiping away the weekend, and you've got a long way to go until Friday. Then, sometime this spring, everything changed: I got acupuncture. My friend Mandy had been getting acupuncture for a few months, and raved about its effects. The group I volunteer with invited Mandy's acupuncturist, Eva, to come speak at our Women and Health seminar, and my curiosity grew even greater. I had to make an appointment.

I had recently starting practicing yoga, and my favorite class was Tuesday nights, but so often I just plum didn't have the motivation to go. Every Tuesday I would have a conversation with myself (it happens more often than I'd like to admit) that went something like this:
- Go. You'll feel better.
- I know I will. But I don't wanna.
- Oh come on. Get off your duff, walk the four blocks to the studio, and work through it. You love Jeremy's class!
- I know! Let me think about it while I eat this ice cream... [insert ice cream eating] Oh...now I can't go. I can't do yoga with a belly full of ice cream.

Acupuncture though, acupuncture was different. What was required of me? An open mind. A list of ailments to present to Eva that I was sure would stump her as it had stumped all my doctors to this point (#1 thing I was not expecting to hear? Her saying Oh this all makes sense together!). A willingness to let a stranger put upwards of two dozen needles all over my body. And lying on a comfy table in relaxing quiet while the needles did their magic.

Hmm...lie on a table, or stretch and sweat. Table please! But then something strange happened. After acupuncture, I felt the most clear-headed, grounded, and energetic I had felt in months. Energy? Me? What was I to do? Oh. Right. Jeremy's yoga class. And with how great I felt post-acupuncture, I had no desire (that's no lie) to dig into ice cream.

Having Tuesday recast in this new light managed to shift my outlook for my entire week. Tuesdays were no longer this wasteland between weekends; they became a night dedicated to my health and wellness. I knew I was busy on Tuesdays, so I didn't make other plans. Often it would be my only night all week to decompress, relax, curl up with a book, check in with myself.

I still go as often as I can, once a week whenever possible, but now I know that I have other tools in my wellness arsenal, too. If I can't go to acupuncture in a given week, I try to compensate by eating particularly well and getting a little more activity, and still taking time for myself. One thing I've really enjoyed about seeing Eva regularly is how well she knows me and my body. She can pick up on subtle changes and knows how to address them. That, and she's not put off by my request to for her to take pictures of me once I've been stuck full of needles. In fact, she wanted to get it just right, so she took two.

Now that's service. What I love about this shot is that you can see my reaction to the needles. Depending on the location, I get very strong blush points/reactions. None too surprising that with all my tummy issues, the points relating to inflammation, which is what you see here, react as if to say "yeah! give me some love!"

Because I am a very curious sort of bear, I usually ask Eva a smattering of acupuncture related questions every time I go. I'm still just beginning to wrap my mind around it all, but she recommended a great book in one of my first visits. The Web That Has No Weaver, by Ted Kaptchuk, O.M.D., is widely recognized as an authority on Eastern medicine. In fact, Dr. Andrew Weil (who works with the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, where I just enrolled -- yay!) says it is the book that first piqued his curiosity in Eastern medicine, and continues to be one of the best sources out there. I've only dipped in and out of it, but every time I open it, I learn something fascinating.


Right now I'm my typical post-acupuncture excited mind-whirl, and want to write about all the cool things I learned today while reading Digestive Wellness (from the Good News! post), and my experience meditating last night, and some of my favorite tricks for keeping my kitchen stocked so it's conducive to making better choices. But if I'm going to stick to my bedtime (and I've been slacking lately...) and my 21 day meditation resolution, I'd better sign off for now.

If you've ever tried acupuncture, or are just curious, I'd love to hear about it.