Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:00 Welcome to the more happiness, less suffering podcast. I'm Casey Howe, senior meditation and Dharma teacher for inside LA.
Speaker 1 00:00:07 And I'm Dr. Monisha bossa psychiatrist in our little podcasting studio in orange county, California. We bring wisdom from the couch and the cushion to your real life questions and struggles. So grab a cup of tea and join us. We're so glad you're here. Welcome back to the more happiness, less suffering podcast as always. We are so grateful to have you here with us, and we are especially excited today to have a very, very special guest. Today. We have Casey hill from flora fauna wellness, who is an acupuncturist and has a master's in Chinese medicine and also shares a name with our other co-host Casey. Um, and so we're so excited to have you here. Um, I think it's our first time having an acupuncturist on a podcast, so yeah, really excited to learn more today. So thank you for joining us. We're really honored to have you here. Absolutely.
Speaker 2 00:01:08 Thanks for having me. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:01:10 Yeah. Casey and I met and yeah, we met in person, but really just became Instagram friends. Uh, yeah, we connected on the IgG and then I just loved her content, so we just kept connected and yeah, I definitely want to talk about that a little bit too, as we go along, but yeah. Thank you again for coming up. Glad
Speaker 2 00:01:33 To be here.
Speaker 1 00:01:35 Well, we always like to kind of start at the beginning. I'm a psychiatrist, so I always like to start at the beginning. So would love to just hear a little bit about kind of your journey, maybe where you're from, where you grew up and your path to becoming an acupuncturist. Um, yeah. How, how that all evolved for you. So
Speaker 2 00:01:55 I am from a super small town in Wisconsin and, uh, moved to California right after high school. Um, I wanted to be in some form of medicine since I was in the eighth grade, I was drawn to dermatology and knew that if I went to med school, I wouldn't really be getting a job until I was like at least 30. So I needed a little mini career. In the meantime, I, uh, did an esthetician course. So I got my esthetician license and started working in skincare. I worked at an organic spa and started to see my clients come in and they had been on prescriptions like antibiotics or Accutane. And a lot of them had side effects from it, but had never really been talked to about their diet or even washing their makeup off before going to bed before being put on, on these prescription medications.
Speaker 2 00:02:47 And so that kind of got me thinking into a more holistic mind set or thinking about the body in a more holistic way. Um, and I took a plant medicine course while I was doing my undergrad and was like, so I thought it was so cool that I could learn how to heal people with plants. And that got me into Chinese medicine school. Um, I did that program. It's a four and a half year program. And, um, yeah, after that just started practicing and moved down to orange county. My acupuncture school was up in LA, so yeah, that's, that's how I got here.
Speaker 1 00:03:25 And so how long have you been practicing as an acupuncturist?
Speaker 2 00:03:29 It is about four years now. Um, and I started my own practice right out of school. There's lots of different routes that you can take. A lot of people will either work under someone or work with a chiropractor. Um, I was lucky enough to have one of my friends from school. She was like a senior when I was a freshman and she had an opening in the space that she was working out of, uh, for me to rent a room like right at the time that I wanted to start. And so it was the perfect balance of having someone who's kind of like a mentor and a guide without really like telling me how I need to do my own practice. So it was like the perfect amount of kind of like training wheels for me to, to start my own practice and, um, really create my own, you know, my, my own way with how, how I wanted my office to be run.
Speaker 1 00:04:24 Wonderful. And can you share, um, both for myself as well as for, um, our audience, um, a little bit about the philosophy behind acupuncture and maybe some of the most common conditions that you treat through acupuncture?
Speaker 2 00:04:40 Sure. So acupuncture is, um, and Chinese medicine is holistic medicine. So we look at the body as a whole, as opposed to different subsets or different specific, um, specialties. So instead of there being just a skin condition or just a gut or digestive problem, they can all be linked. So when I was seeing a lot of PA uh, clients as an esthetician coming in with acne, um, there's almost always a relation to the gut when it comes to breakouts. Um, and so with Chinese medicine, we see how all of the different parts are affected and how one body system is linked to another. And a big part of Chinese medicine and acupuncture is always healing the gut first. That's where we create our fuel. That turns into all of the energies and materials that we need to grow and heal and, you know, live as humans.
Speaker 2 00:05:42 So, um, digestion is, is a root of the medicine. And, um, yeah, some of the things that I see the most in clinic would be sleeping problems, pain, pain is one of the things people think of, I think the most when they hear about acupuncture and what you could, what you can, um, use it for, um, anxiety, depression. There's a lot of things that we can use acupuncture to kind of just realign the body and rebalance it in a way that, um, is really going to help you on so many different levels. Like a lot of times people will come in for their back pain, but then they start to notice that they feel less stressed that their sleep improves, that their digestion improves. So it's a really cool to see, um, just like how amazing the body is. Once you start to fix one of those little kinks in the system, the rest of it starts to move a little bit more smoothly as well.
Speaker 1 00:06:40 Wonderful. Amazing.
Speaker 0 00:06:43 Yeah. And you hit upon, uh, mental health. So we love to bring that into the fold here. What is some of the things that you could do for mental health, anxiety and depression? How do you meet those conditions?
Speaker 2 00:06:56 So one of the things that I've discovered for my own personal journey with anxiety and depression is how important the foods that I eat. Um, and, and your gut health can affect your mood throughout the day. And, you know, even long-term things that turn into conditions. Um, a lot of times that I'm not simplifying that all anxiety or depression can be linked just strictly to gut health, of course, but it definitely plays an important role. And so if you are tending to consume foods that are more processed, um, have more inflammatory, uh, like industrial seed oils, sugars, even gluten, these kinds of things can cause inflammation in the gut. And then in the body that can start to feel like anxiety. It can start to feel like that brain fog or that wet blanket feeling that can start, um, in depressive episodes. Um, so making sure that you're choosing nutrient dense foods and, um, really helping to heal the gut for me, that's one of the places that I, I always start with, um, when people come in for anxiety or depression, um, acupuncture is also super beneficial for, uh, conditions like this because it helps to rebalance the nervous system.
Speaker 2 00:08:16 So just by sticking the acupuncture needles in, it helps to, uh, switch on the parasympathetic nervous system or that rest and digest mode where the body can heal calm down and chill. Um, and so many of us are living in that fight or flight, go, go, go, uh, in this modern, modern world. So using acupuncture and food to help switch the body into the chill mode and also giving it again, those nutrients that it needs to feel grounded, secure, and produce good fuel for the brain and the body.
Speaker 1 00:08:50 Yeah, that's wonderful because, you know, as a psychiatrist, of course, working often with patients with anxiety and depression, one of the challenges that we have is that, you know, of course, medications and psychotherapy, which are kind of the mainstay of how we work with mental health conditions, you know, take time to work. And I think what we're also wanting to do is really empower patients to, from a lifestyle standpoint and do the things that they can do to support themselves. Um, and so certainly things like, you know, nutrition, sleep, uh, physical activity, you know, these are ways that patients can empower themselves to start to feel better, perhaps a little bit more quickly while they're waiting for, you know, medications to work or, you know, going through the process of psychotherapy. So really taking kind of that, as you said, holistic approach and approaching conditions like depression, anxiety from, from all these different perspectives and angles and the sum total of that really, um, allowing patients to feel supported and empowered on their, their journey to recovery, I think is so important.
Speaker 0 00:10:01 Yeah. Um, I wanted to ask you a bit about how you manage everything, because you're an entrepreneur you've just built your new facility. I'm excited to go check it out. Um, yeah. Running your own business, uh, being the sole practitioner, you know, in, in your clinic and running an awesome Instagram page. Uh, yeah. How do you, how do you balance it all? You know, we've talked a lot about like caring for the caregiver and, you know, really just, yeah, self-care in general. Just wanted to ask you about how you manage all of that.
Speaker 2 00:10:39 So it goes, I definitely go through waves where I feel like I manage it better sometimes better than others, um, such as life. Um, but for me this past year, um, I just opened the new clinic in, um, like March, April, may was when I was really getting it built out and starting it all. And there's so much when it goes into starting the business managing, um, like we did a out and like, I have no construction experience. Like this was my first big girl project. So doing all of this was putting me into this new world where I'm like, I know nothing like, so there's been a lot of stress within the last year or two making this transition. And one of the biggest lessons I feel like I'm trying to embrace or, um, get good at is letting things go and that I can't always be striving for perfection.
Speaker 2 00:11:39 Um, that's something that I always, you know, I have really high standards for myself. And so I get into that, um, analysis paralysis, where I have so many things and like, if I can't do it perfectly, a lot of times it just won't get done. And so, um, within the last year, I've really tried to embrace the whole, like doing what I can. And even if I don't feel like doing something now, um, I've noticed that, that if I just like, let it be, then it'll eventually get done. Which like for me has been, it doesn't, it doesn't make sense. Cause it's always been like, oh, well where there's a will, there's a way. And like you got to there, ain't nothing to it, but to do it. Um, but I have been working with my therapist, um, and she has a background in Zen Buddhism.
Speaker 2 00:12:28 And so for her it's very much like, or one of the things that she always tells me is she's like, if you can't force your way through anything, we think that we can, we think we have all this control, but if you just let it unfold, it will unfold the way that it needs to be. And so when I have all these things that I have on my to-do list or on my plate, I'm just really letting the ones that come naturally to me. Um, it's been like a weird lesson cause like, it feels so wrong and from what that we've been taught and what I've grown up with, where it's just like, you have to get it done. And like, if you don't put the effort in, it will never happen. But yeah, just letting things, letting things happen naturally has been like a real, a real lesson for me.
Speaker 2 00:13:14 Uh, the past year. Um, another like self-care things that I do is, um, exercise. Like I'm loved doing yoga, yoga for me is that perfect mind, body balance. That's helping me use my body, but also helps to ground and center me. Um, I also like to lift weights, but um, just moving my body in general and it's really easy when you're stressed and you have a lot going on to kind of put that on a back burner. But anytime I start to do that and say like, my to-do list is more important than movement or working out, it comes back to bite me in the end, cause I either start to get more pain or that stress just compounds. Um, so movement is, is super, super important to my book.
Speaker 0 00:14:01 Um, absolutely. Yeah. Like you're mentioning that, like that pushing when to push, when to rest. I remember the first time it was like years, years ago I was teaching and I was thinking about what I wanted to teach that weekend. And I was like when to push and when to surrender, you know, and that class was so big. And so, oh my gosh, I love that class. Like, you know, cause it's so difficult to know. And I, and I think that you do in Buddhism, there's like this inner surrender. Um, I like to call it like passionate, not attachment. Like we could have the passion and then not attachment to outcome because that's the wisdom piece. Like we actually can't control everything, believe it or not. So it doesn't matter how much we push, but there's like this inner surrender at the end of the day.
Speaker 0 00:14:54 Like, well, I just can't fix everything. You know? So that's something that I try to work with every day. Just that wisdom reminder of like, okay, I could really strive, but can I do so in a way that I know that I don't know how it's going to turn out, right. No matter what. And even if it did all come together, it's impermanent and shifting and changing. And it's always going to be in flux that I have to be able to ride that wave, you know, of just don't know what's going to happen next now.
Speaker 2 00:15:32 And that's something that I've noticed too, you know, with there being so much on my to-do list. Like when you stress yourself out, when you hold yourself to these standards, it's, you're just creating more of that for yourself. When you can focus, when you focus more on the surrender and just getting done, what you can get done. It it's just so much easier on your body. It's I call it a lot of the time being your own best friend and just like really being gentle with yourself. And you know, if, like you said, if the, the passion is there, it's not going to feel like work, you know, like it's going to come more easily, but if it's something that you're forcing yourself to do, and it doesn't feel as natural, it's just going to cause more stress and anxiety on your body and just make things harder and not as free-flowing
Speaker 0 00:16:23 For sure.
Speaker 1 00:16:24 Definitely. And I definitely think, I think all three of us have sort of an entrepreneurial aspect to what we do. And I feel like entrepreneurship is one of those things that it's kind of this like never ending journey. Like there's always new goals. There's always new projects, there's always new ideas. And that's one of the most beautiful things about the journey is that it's kind of this constantly changing, growing, evolving aspect of what we do, but it also makes for a never ending to do list, um, that is continuously filled with both tiny detail oriented tasks, as well as, you know, big picture kind of more creative goals and, and, and opportunities. And it can be really difficult to kind of prioritize, you know, what's most important. Um, and to find that balance between when to push and when to let go or when to allow, um, it can be a really challenging balance.
Speaker 1 00:17:24 And, you know, I often think like, especially with working with my patients, you know, so many of them struggle with the same idea of, you know, how to maximize productivity or time management or get more done. And especially if they might be struggling with motivation or concentration or energy or those sorts of things. And a lot of times our work is in not how we can get more done, but how we can actually our expectations to sort of the pace of being human. You know, it's like, we're not robots. We're not meant to function and operate, you know, at a hundred percent capacity, a hundred percent of the time, 24, 7, 365. You know, we all have sort of these, you know, ebbs and flows of energy and productivity and, and learning to work with that rather than trying to push through that all the time. Um, so yeah, a lot of times it feels more about expectation management than learning how to actually do more.
Speaker 0 00:18:22 Yeah. I liked that. Yeah. I really liked how you mentioned just prioritizing the exercise and, and all of that. And I think that we don't know how much it's working until you, like you mentioned, if you take it out, then the stress come compounds, you know? Uh, yeah. I see that with my meditation and workout program too. And Monisha runs you'd run like every day,
Speaker 1 00:18:52 Pretty much every day or six days a week usually. Yeah. Yeah. I do want to get back to yoga. It's been a while, but I agree with you that yoga was one of those practices that really helps to integrate mind and body. And for me running is a little bit like that as well, but yeah, it's one of those non-negotiables I kind of do it first thing in the morning because otherwise yeah, the, to do list does take over and it kind of gets pushed or more reasons come up that you just can't make it happen. You know? So, um, I really kind of look at some of those practices like meditation or whatever one self-care, you know, kind of core rituals may be to try to do those when possible, first thing in the morning before the busy-ness of the day takes over and all the other things that are clamoring for one's attention all the time.
Speaker 0 00:19:43 Yeah. Very proud of myself. I did eight miles over the weekend. One of my longest runs ever. It's awesome. It's like, whatever, I get up to a certain amount. It's like my body starts to tell me, Nope, you're not going to go further than this. So is it your body or your mind? It's the body I'm trying to listen to my body, but it's literally like, that's why I got to see you. I got to come in for 10 miles, my hamstring, my knees and stuff. So, um, yeah. Going back to your Instagram, you mentioned this in the intro, um, you know, I really feel like those platforms, they're very, uh, kind of all over the place. You can get some really good information out of social media. You can get some not so good information. You can get really positive information. You can get negative, negative information, but I think we can all agree that used for good, it's an amazing tool. And in my opinion, in the accounts that I follow, you're one of the best in providing just an amazing, amazing content expert with the expertise in a digestible fashion. Um, so tell me a little bit about that. Like how do you go about creating that content and your intention behind it and how you want to connect with people?
Speaker 2 00:21:07 So this has been such a, such a journey and learning process. Um, it is one of the things that I love doing, but also can cause me a lot of stress. Um, like there are certain times and kind of like how we were talking about earlier about how sometimes you're more creative. Sometimes you're more logical. You go through these ebbs and flows. So in terms of my creation process or content creation process, there's times where I just wake up and I'll be like, oh, this is, this is what I'm doing, where there's other times I try to force it and it kind of doesn't come as easily. Um, sometimes I'll use ideas of what comes up for me in the clinic, a conversational have with a patient I'm like, oh, like the people's need to know about this, you know, and I'll break it down.
Speaker 2 00:21:56 Um, and you know, there's, there is a lot of information out there and there's some people I feel like that have accounts that are very like scientific, which is, which is awesome and necessary. And there's certain people that are more drawn to that. Um, but for me sometimes when I read those accounts and, or read the stuff that those accounts post it, my brain kind of just starts to go elsewhere because it's not that captivating and it's kind of boring. So for me, I try to write the way that I talk or like how I would explain something to one of my friends. Um, and sometimes I'll swear sometimes, you know, I'll, I'll say potty talk, we talk about poop all the time. It is very important to your health or knowing about your poop. And it's, you know, it's, it's a sign of what's going on inside.
Speaker 2 00:22:48 So I try to make it funny. I try to make it not just like a normal health posts being like, you need to do this because it's good for you. You know, I try to make it relatable and, and memorable. Um, but it, it can be a lot. And like, especially over COVID, COVID kind of burnt me out with Instagram. I feel like everyone kind of went to Instagram as their sounding board and lots of people became health coaches and influencers. And not that there's anything wrong with that, but just like for me personally, constantly seeing or being told what to do with my health, um, or what, what to do. Instagram, social media just became overwhelming. Um, and I got real burnt out with it for a while. So, um, I feel like I was really on top of my game before COVID and then I like kind of took a step back and now I'm at the point where, um, you know, I have enough content, enough ideas where I can continue to put it out.
Speaker 2 00:23:53 Um, but I've made a rule for myself, especially when I start to feel overwhelmed and I'm stressed out even with other things that I'm not going to on to Instagram and just like get lost in the scroll hole. Cause like the scroll hole for me can, you know, bring up so many different emotions and it's like this constant, it can be a constant stress where, you know, you can get lost in comparing yourself of like, for me, what, like, oh, I'll see this other health accountant. Don't be like, I should be doing blank. I should be doing more better, et cetera. Um, and I go through phases with that too, but not getting lost in the scroll hole is super important for me. So I'll try to just go on and kind of post my thing, but not get too wrapped up in all of that.
Speaker 0 00:24:40 Yeah. Yeah. I love that last point. You know, the comparing mind, um, is so strong and it's so innocent, right. Speak it, just go on and on and compare against all these different things. And you know, there's, there's a teaching, there's a Buddhist teaching of just like, uh, well at moot Dita, which is rejoicing in the good fortune of others. And I call that like the social media Brahma Bahara uh, like one of the heart practices of like scrolling through and whenever you see something that you want or someone's doing what you want, you just say, oh, I'm so happy for them. Like, you know, oh, they have that. I want that, oh, maybe their good fortune, you know, only increase, you know, it's so funny. Cause back, you know, pre social media, when I lived at the meditation centers, our, our jealousy was for people who went on long retreats, like, oh, I want to go on a long retreat, you know?
Speaker 0 00:25:44 And so we would practice a lot of mood Dita for that, but now it's like social media. It's like, it's so incredible. Like, like how tantalizing that is to be like, oh, look at this, look at that. Um, I definitely, I definitely feel that, but I think that's what I like about your page is that, you know, you are an expert in what you do. And it's something that whenever I go to it, being that there are a lot of options with people just becoming a coach or something, you know, just kind of throwing information out there. I'm like, well, where's your credibility. Like being an expert is a thing, you know, like in your field. And so it is nice to have, you know, those, those choices, um, you know, when we're scrolling and something of value there. So yeah, I appreciate that. Yeah.
Speaker 1 00:26:37 And I, I really like your boundary about when you're, when you have that awareness that you might be sort feeling down for some reason or another, that you kind of make a conscious choice not to go onto social media would maybe your own defenses are down. I think that there's a lot of wisdom in that. Um, and I think it does take a really conscious intention or conscious action to do something else in those moments because it can be such an easy way to distract ourselves and, you know, to kind of do something a little bit mindless, but I think, yeah, that risk of, of comparison or seeing something that might potentially, you know, trigger a worsening of our already low mood or anxiety, um, is so great. You know, I mean, previously, prior to social media, we could really only compare ourselves to the people we knew in real life.
Speaker 1 00:27:31 You know? So there was only a handful and you only knew, you know, what, what was possible based on sort of who you were interacting with. But now, now with this kind of infinite exposure, there's so many opportunities to feel, you know, inadequate or to feel, as you said, like you should be doing something else or something different than what you're doing. And that can be really hard when you're already feeling down for some reason. So I think there's a lot of wisdom in that to have that self-awareness to be like, oh, I'm not in the best mental space and going on social media, most likely isn't going to be how I'm going to feel better. Okay.
Speaker 2 00:28:08 Something with that too, that I've, I've noticed with myself and even with my patients and just the world that we're living in now, it's, we're very overstimulated like between the way that TV's work. Right? Like the scenes are changing every, I can't remember what the average is like every three seconds or something, it switches to a different scene. And this is like a constant stimulation for the brain. Um, we're always seeing billboards or, um, you know, with our phones, it's, it's a constant stimulation. And so there's so many people who are burnt out overworked or overstimulated these days. And like, I'm definitely one of them. Um, so like you said, it, the habit, or it's easy to want to tap into something that's mindless. But like for me, and something I recommend for my patients too, is to actually step away from the screens, um, take a break from that and go recalibrate yourself with nature.
Speaker 2 00:29:03 So like for a lot of people who are working from home, something that I always recommend is to take a break every 15 minutes. And if you can't go outside and actually walk even just like staring out the window, looking at plants or like an organic life form, as opposed to something that's a screen or moving, um, can kind of help to recalibrate the brain and calm it down. Um, just because we are constantly being pushed, you know, or constantly being shown a million different images per second. And, um, it's good to tap back into that, that grounding nature of like, what is your actual environment?
Speaker 0 00:29:43 Yeah. That's such wonderful advice. Um, Mugisha and I just came from teaching a meditation, um, at a, at a group and, um, yeah, we were mentioning to them just, just sitting here, like, even if your mind is doing whatever and you're not really present, you know, you get caught up in thoughts, like how amazing is it that we just sat together for 15 minutes without a screen, without, you know, without nothing. And just, just sitting here is it's rare now, you know, just, just being with ourselves. And I think there was a time, you know, obviously where we would just kick it as kids and just chill out and sit on the lawn and just hang out for real, but without the screens and, and all that. Of course. So, yeah, it's such wonderful advice. Just, just a pause, you know,
Speaker 1 00:30:44 So I actually have a personal question, um, and I'm a little bit afraid to admit this, but yes, I am a doctor, but I do have a needle phobia. I'm afraid of needles. Um, and I still made it through medical school and everything, but maybe partly why I became a psychiatrist, but, um, I've, I've made my way through life, but so I've had very limited exposure to acupuncture in part because of this fear that I have of needles. Um, in fact, the only time I did it was when I was pregnant and very, very nauseous and nothing was working. And so we did try some, some acupuncture at that time. Um, and I was desperate because I was throwing up all the time. Um, but I'm curious what advice or guidance you have for people out there who might want to try acupuncture or who might have a curiosity, um, or who may benefit, but have a fear of needles.
Speaker 2 00:31:40 So that's one of the most common questions or concerns that I get when talking to people about acupuncture, almost everyone, I'd say like nine out of 10 people come in and say, they're scared of needles. Like, it's very rare that you find someone who likes needles. Like you might get like the random tattoo officiant auto or, you know, someone else, but most, most people are not fans of needles. And, you know, we are kind of conditioned to associate needles with pain from a really young age. Like a lot of times, you know, we're, um, we associate them with like getting shots or getting our blood drawn. So we have that association kind of programmed into us. But, uh, these needles in terms of size are super tiny. You can actually fit, um, like 10 to 12 acupuncture needles within one hypodermic needle. Like a hypodermic needle is usually the ones that, you know, it's a hollow needle that you're either, um, doing an injection or you're drawing blood, um, acupuncture, needles. Aren't, Tolo, they're, they're solid, they're super thin and flexible. Like they're the size of maybe like 10 strands of hair. Um, so there's some people who like, can't even look at the needles and that's fine. You know, like when you come in, you're laying down on the table. Um, some people like to watch it go in that just like makes them feel better.
Speaker 1 00:33:01 It's giving me anxiety and just listening.
Speaker 2 00:33:04 Other people are like, don't even show me. I'm like they shut their eyes. Um, but for the most part, by the end of the insertion process, which is maybe like two to three minutes, um, people are, are relaxed. Most people fall asleep during a treatment, um, path, the time people are like, that's it like they're in like, yeah, I didn't even feel them. So, um, just know that it's a really common concern, but almost everyone does okay. With it.
Speaker 1 00:33:34 Okay. I'll have to give it a try. Yeah. I mean, I do think of course the size of the needle makes a difference and of course, yeah, it's just so much of it is just the apprehension. Like the, um, the anticipatory anxiety rarely helps with things like needle phobias. Um, but it's of course such an automatic response if you have a fear. So, um, but that's really helpful to know. Yeah. They should give it a try.
Speaker 2 00:34:01 Yeah. Come on in. Yeah, that'd be gentle.
Speaker 0 00:34:05 So yeah, maybe the last thing I'm going to ask you is just the health of the acupuncture industry, you know, it's so cool to see. Cause when I was raised, it was like, people didn't know a lot about it and everything and now like say most major insurances cover it and all of that stuff. So how's it been, you know, with all the evidence-based, um, research out there now on, on, on acupuncture, like yeah. Just kind of talk about the public view and how it's been shifting and changing in the P in a positive way towards acupuncture.
Speaker 2 00:34:42 So it's definitely, like you said, become a lot more popular. Um, it's like people see it on TV shows now on social media, you're going to run into it a lot more. Um, and there is more research that's coming out, um, to show it for a long time. I mean, even now it's, it's kind of hard to design a perfect study on acupuncture just because what they generally use as the control group is sham acupuncture, which can still, um, like what sham acupuncture would be is where they're still like poking the needle in, or you still have to make the control group feel like they're getting a treatment. Right. And so even just stimulating that point can have a response within the body. So it's just really hard to design, um, studies that encompass that and acupuncture really incorporates the mind body connection, which doesn't always reflect perfectly in, in research studies.
Speaker 2 00:35:45 Um, Western medicine has kind of been better at incorporating that or is more accepting of it. Um, but it's, it's still just, it's hard to design a perfect study around that, but they've definitely been coming out with more and more research where, you know, you can S you can put a needle in an acupuncture point and see the different parts of the brain that light up, or by using acupuncture in some groups and other groups are just getting a pharmaceutical, you know, like there's a lot more research that's coming out. And the more that we learn, I think it's going to just continue to be more accepted by, uh, positions. Um, there are lots of insurance companies that are covering acupuncture, uh, blue cross, uh, Cigna United blue shield. Um, so if you do want to try acupuncture and you have insurance, I recommend that you call your insurance company and ask for a list of providers and see what your acupuncture benefits are. Um, cause they can vary depending on what your plan is, but, um, there's lots of companies that cover that cover it. So, um, definitely something to look into if you've been wanting to get acupuncture or try.
Speaker 0 00:36:56 Wonderful. Well, thank you so much for coming so informative. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 00:37:03 We appreciate all, you shared all your knowledge, expertise and perspective. Thank you. Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:37:11 And then yeah, we just wanted to let our audience know how they can keep in contact with you.
Speaker 2 00:37:19 So my Instagram is probably the easiest and you can get lots of, uh, interesting health tips and tricks and that is flora, fauna dot wellness. Um, you can also check out my website, which is flora, fauna, wellness.com. Um, and yeah, if you have any questions about anything we talked about or um, would like to try acupuncture and see how not scary these needles are, um, you can book online or send me a DM and we can chat.
Speaker 0 00:37:48 Cool. Very cool. Yeah. So we end, um, all of these podcasts with a little meditation. So yeah, we'll just kind of move into a nice little posture for a few minutes and hopefully if you're listening, you could join us. Of course, if you are doing an activity, you could just listen to the words and allow them to reverberate through your being. So maybe starting off with just collecting the awareness all around the body sensations that you find wherever you are, just inviting the mind into the body and then noticing that the body is moving slower than the mind. Most of the time mine may be racing.
Speaker 0 00:39:14 You could anchor it into the body and we hit upon self care today and slowing down and just simply being here for ourselves. So maybe just spending a few moments, just simply listening the sending to the body, the feeling tones that are rising and falling away the mind. And it's countless thoughts that come and go and do you mean, so like a dear friend, we're just listen and be there for you and just extending out this intention that all beings everywhere, it feels like they're listened to by themselves or others that all beings everywhere. What that exception, menthol be happy and free from suffering.
