My Top 4 Tips For Staying Healthy And Having More Fun

 

The pre-summer vibes have started.  Picnics, BBQs, kids are almost out of school, pool parties, planning for travel…it’s common for people to be more social and have more fun plans as we start to feel the pre-summer vibes.  Several patients have asked me lately what I recommend to stay healthy for their trip that they’ve been looking forward to, the upcoming girls weekend, or the busy weekend with lots of fun plans.

I get it. I struggled with my immune system from age 11-25 and I had to be careful about doing too much and being too social because I got sick a lot and it was a big Bummer with a capital B!  I know what it’s like to get sick right before an event that I’ve been looking forward to–Bummer.  Or to go on vacation and the moment I relax I get sick–Bummer.  Or to come home feeling rejuvenated from an adventure and then get sick and all that it takes to try and get better and not fall even more behind on life–Bummer.  In order to try to manage not getting sick at an inconvenient time I tried not to get run down or be around too many people–in other words I held back on all the fun I wanted to have so it wouldn’t ruin my fun.

I turned that all around with Acupuncture, Chinese Herbal Medicine, and some other good natural self care tools and now I don’t worry about getting sick.  I love sharing this with patients so they can get sick less often and have more fun! 

Here’s a review from a patient who had 2 young kids and was always getting sick when we started working together.  I love that she says that she now knows what to do to stay healthy and that makes her life more enjoyable.  I get super excited when patients realize this kind of freedom–self care can be easy and fun!  

In recent years more and more people have been interested in not getting sick and it’s come up a lot in the office lately.  My advice hasn’t changed that much in recent years because humans fighting off viruses is not new.  But we do have a lot more information about what is working and how because people have been looking at this more closely since the pandemic.

So here’s my top 4 tips for not getting sick and having more fun:

 

1. Boost Your Vitamin D Ahead Of Time

 

The quick advice is take 5,000 IU of Vitamin D3 daily.

For those that want more details: There was a legit study in Israel during the pandemic that showed that people that had higher levels of Vitamin D when they got sick had a dramatically reduced occurrence of significant illness.  In recent years advice about Vitamin D has changed based on updated information like this.  The current recomended target for optimizing your immune system is a blood level of 50-60 ng/ml.  You can get your numbers from a blood test and supplement accordingly.  But the good news is that current information shows that we don’t need to be as careful as they used to think about taking too much Vitamin D–you’d have to super-mega-overdose for a long time to experience any negative side effects.

And don’t assume that you get enough sun to make enough Vitamin D just because we live in CA.  This far North you’d need to have frequent full body sun exposure for at least 20 minutes in order to make enough Vitamin D to get your blood up to the optimal level.

On average the supplement dosage to achieve the optimal target range in your blood is between 5,000-10,000 IU/Day of Vitamin D3.  I’ll be honest that until the past 5 years I wasn’t consistent with taking Vitamin D and I didn’t get consistent results.  I used it more as a super dose when I got sick and I wasn’t sure if it helped.  But once I started taking it daily I get sick less often and if I start to feel like I am run down or fighting something off it’s easy to kick it quickly with the below support.

2. Nasal Spray–Xlear

 

The quick advice is use Xlear after you’ve been extra social or traveling to stop those viruses in their tracks. 

For those that want more details:  Xlear did a study during the pandemic that showed that using it helps people not get sick from respiratory viruses after exposure.  They weren’t allowed to share it because things were weird.

Xlear has xyletol and grapefruit seed extract in a metered pump that gets a fine mist far into your upper respiratory system.  The xyletol opens up the biofilm to allow whatever is stuck in there to wash out and soothes the membranes.  The grapefruit extract is antiviral and antimicrobial.  A lot of people use Xlear during allergy season after exposure to allergens and it works just as well after exposure to viruses.  It also helps to make your upper respiratory system a better first line of defense when used regularly.

With my history of sinus issues I use Xlear morning and night pretty much year round–2 sprays each nostril, wait a bit, then blow your nose to clean it out.  And I use it a couple more times a day if there’s something going around, I’m feeling run down, or if I just want to stay healthy.  Yup even 15 years ago you could have seen me using this on the plane b/c my sinuses would get so uncomfortably dry when flying .

If you’re motivated to stay healthy for a trip for example, I recommend you start using it twice a day the week leading up to the trip.  You can also simply use it or increase it if you’re run down, around more people, on the plane, or if someone you are traveling with gets sick.

3. Throat Spray–Beekeeper’s Naturals Propolis Immune Support 

 

The quick advice is to use the throat spray similarly to the nasal spray–after you’ve been extra social or traveling to stop those viruses in their tracks because viruses like to hang out in the nose and throat.

For those that want more details: There have been some recent studies showing that just as the nasal spray stops viruses that have entered your nose and sinuses, propolis throat spray stops viruses that have entered your throat.  Propolis is antiviral, antifungal, antimicrobial, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory so it also helps your throat be a better first line of defense.

My throat gets run down easily from talking a lot so I use this morning and night–1 spray on the left and 1 on the right of the back of the mouth into the throat.  I use it extra anytime my throat feels run down which is a lot since I talk to people all day long.

Similarly to the nose spray I advise people to use it morning and night if your motivated to stay healthy.  Or simply use it or use it more if you’re run down, around more people, people around you are sick, or your throat is tired from talking, presenting, or singing.  

4. Antiviral Chinese Herbs

 

The quick advice is have some Antiviral Chinese Herbs on hand to take if you’ve been extra social or traveling.  We have pills (easy) and powders (stronger and coat your throat). 

For those that want more details:  Chinese Herbal Medicine has been used for thousands of years to treat viruses from every day colds to pandemics.  Because the herbs help humans fight viruses, classic formulas work on modern viruses.  During the pandemic I took a class from the owner of our main supplier of Chinese herbs–John Chen, Pharm.D., Ph.D., O.M.D., L.Ac.  He’s a pharmacist and herbalist from Taiwan and he had information on what the hospitals in China were using to treat patients and what the staff was taking to prevent getting sick.  I diligently took notes for 4 hours.  At the end he summarized “For prevention use “this kind of formula” and add this.  At the first stage of disease use “this kind of formula” and add this.”  I laughed at all my notes because this was what I had been doing for years for me and my patients for any cold, flu, or virus. 

As someone who had a history of getting sick a lot and treating a lot of patient like me, I have always believed that the herbs work best if you have them on hand so you can start them ASAP.  Before the pandemic some US Chinese herbal medicine practitioners thought this was a bad idea.  I think they were not confident or scared and hadn’t experienced it themselves.  I’m actually not quite sure because in China everyone has antiviral herbs at home and they sell them over the counter like we buy cold meds.  Fast forward to today, and all the US Chinese Herbalists are on board with a have-some-antiviral-herbs-on-hand approach.

We have a pill or a powder (my custom formula that I have been using for years, updated with what I learned in the class at the start of the pandemic) that anyone can get to have on hand.  For some patients I make a custom formula if they have a thing they are more prone to and we want to dial in the herbs for them.  I am prone to ear issues so I add herbs to treat them to my formula.

I take Chinese Antiviral herbs at a low dose for prevention if there is something going around, I have something coming up I want to stay healthy for, or I’m extra social.  I increase the dose to a pretty big dose if I start to feel run down.  I always have some handy in my travel bag, at work, etc.

Staying Healthy Is FunMy husband is now one of those people that barely gets sick and knows that self care can be easy and fun.  During the very start of the pandemic I set him up with a simple don’t get sick routine.  He doesn’t like feeling like he has to take things (even if they are just herbs or Vitamin D) but after a while of him not getting sick he said “I didn’t want to keep taking those things, but I can’t stop–because I just don’t get sick.”

If you want a testimonial from someone other than my husband (OK but let’s be real family is the hardest to treat) here’s a quote from a patient:

 

If you are looking forward to some more social fun, or have a trip coming up, and want to have some simple supplies on hand to stay healthy you can pick them up at your next appointment.  If you don’t have an appointment you’ll want to reach out ahead of time so I can ask some simple questions to get you the right antiviral herbs for you, and then we’ll set up a pickup time.

You can also check out our longer list of recommendations we’ve been sharing for the past 5 years called “The Golden Window For Treating Viruses”:   https://thrive-acupuncture.com/the-golden-window-for-treating-viruses/.

If you have a more complicated struggle with your immune system or want to get truly customized full support, schedule an appointment through our online booking system or get in touch via phone or email.  Even if your health feels complicated I know we can support you so that you can get to the point that self care is easy and you can have more fun.

Price Update For July 1

 

In order to continue providing the best care possible, starting July 1 our prices will be:

Follow up Acupuncture Treatment (time of service/non-insurance rate):

• $120 Per Treatment

-OR-

• Packages that work out to be $100 per treatment:
  • $600 for 6 Treatments (Buy 5, get 1 Free)
  • $1200 for 12 Treatments (Buy 10, get 2 Free)

Packages never expire so you can buy one before July 1.  Let us know next time you are in or reach out by email or phone and we’ll be glad to help you.

No Change For the Missed Appointment Fee: $75 for cancelling less than 24 hour before a follow up appointment or less than 48 hours before an initial appointment.  We do not charge the missed appointment fee if you are sick/contagious, but we appreciate an early heads up.

We appreciate your commitment to your health and wellbeing and we’re honored to share the journey with you.  Thank you for being the best patients around!

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Product Highlight

 

Each box of Nature’s Poison ivy Relief contains dried leaves from the sweet fern plant which grows near poison ivy.  Poison ivy is on the east coast and poison oak is on the west coast, but they have the same oil that causes the rash.  It’s a common truth in herbal medicine that the remedy grows near the problem, so someone along the way discovered that sweet fern treats poison oak/ivy rash.  You brew the dried sweet fern leaves into a tea, store it in the fridge, and then apply it topically to the rash.  If you’re a mountain biker, like me, or nature lover who gets frequent poison oak exposure, you can keep it in the fridge for 6 months to have on hand.

I had been hearing colleagues rave about it so my expectations were high, but I was still really excited when patients told me how well it worked to stop the itching instantly and help clear up the rash.  Here’s what one patient said:

Since we’re mountain bikers in my house we have a box at the ready so we can brew it up and start treating it asap.  Let us know if you want a box to have on hand and we’ll make sure we have one for you at your next appointment or arrange a time for you to swing by and pick it up. 

I’ve unintentionally become a poison oak treating expert for those that can’t or don’t want to take prednisone.  For bigger cases I treat poison oak with acupuncture, herbs that you drink, and supplements.  3 years ago I updated the foundation of the formula with info from a dermatology herbal mentor and started getting even faster results.

And then a year and a half ago I got an allover histamine reaction while I had poison oak that made me itch all over.  That was way worse than the poison oak.  I can’t take prednisone because I don’t sleep AT ALL when I’m on it and Benadryl didn’t touch it.  It was so much worse than the poison oak that I woke up in the middle of the night and started crying.  I reached out to another herbal mentor because I was not thinking clearly enough to be able to treat myself.  His herbal prescription worked so fast.  In less than an hour the all over itch had calmed down.

Well this year I got the all over histamine reaction before the poison oak actually broke out.  (I’m not a fan of my new pattern, but once again I’m always learning and doing product research )  The herbs worked great again.  I’ve talked to few people in the past year and a half that also get this all over histamine over reaction when they get poison oak.

So if you know you’re prone to a histamine over reaction I can help you have herbs on hand for that or if your poison oak goes haywire, make an appointment through our online booking system or get in touch via phone or email because I’d love to help you.

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