I frequently get the question “Is there an Acupuncture point to make me lose weight?” As one typically expects of things that are too good to be true… it simply doesn’t exist. I do, however, work with patients looking to lose weight and willing to make little changes that add up to major lifestyle reformations. Sometimes is a few bad habits and lack of health education perpetuating the issue, but often it’s a laundry list of deep-rooted imbalances – possibly thyroid sluggishness, constant stress leading to adrenal exhaustion, emotional trauma, repeated antibiotic use and other contributors to poor gut microbiota. Kind of a lot to cover, right?

I urge people to give a hard pass to quick-fix diets and drugs, and recognize that transformation must occur in all areas of life in order to keep your physical transformation both healthy AND permanent. Chinese Medicine offers multiple angles from which to address this imbalance. Needles help relieve metabolic disruptions heaped on the body by stress, poor gut health, and chronic depletion, by assisting the body’s innate healing function and getting the nervous system, hormones, and Qi-flow back on track. Herbs do much the same, but from a plant chemical pathway that interacts with these same areas.

 

 

Then there is the undeniable advantage of showing up for yourself; it’s the message you hand deliver to your psyche when you regularly dedicate time to your personal needs. That act alone is powerful! Regularly scheduled treatments instills accountability in the process of reaching your goal and provides a space to highlight your wins and learn from little missteps, rather than throwing in the towel. One major reason people don’t lose weight, is that it’s too challenging to enact change and stick with it for the long haul. I won’t gloss over how complex weight loss can be, or the fact that, for those dealing with complicated endocrine disorders or lifelong obesity, it can be extremely slow and difficult going. The worst thing that will happen by making positive life changes is that you will feel remarkably better than you used to, learn a ton about yourself and what you can accomplish, but may not lose as much weight as you wish. That’s the worst thing, and it’s still a great place to land!

 

 

SOME KEY ELEMENTS FOR WEIGHT LOSS:

 

  • Keep a Food Journal and be honest and non-judgmental with yourself.

 

  • Carve out time for YOU. Reflect, Breathe, and check in with yourself. Mediation is one of many ways to do this, and it’s free and ready to use.

 

  • Engage in things that bring you joy, and that are not related to food.

 

  • Build a Team if possible. Not everyone has the resources financially or in time, however, it will make your journey much easier with some help. Try Chinese Medicine, a physical trainer, nutritionist, and/or spiritual-energy work.

 

  • Visualization can actuallyinform our reality. Indulge in nightly sessions of deep breathing and visualize yourself as genuinely happy in your body today, as well as the sense of accomplishment and freedom you’ll enjoy as you move toward your goal.

 

Above all, the ability to love yourself at all ages, shapes, sizes, and degrees of strength, is paramount.

This is the place where healing begins.