Practice Strategy

In the last issue of AIM, I discussed the importance of boundaries. In this article, I’d like to go to the other end of an entirely different spectrum and discuss the type of boundaries we place on ourselves that are dangerous. These self-created boundaries often hold us back from reaching our highest potential and experiencing all that life has to offer.  Come with me as I share some real-life stories, offer some strategies for going beyond limiting beliefs (which we all have), and tell you why I believe it’s even more important that we, as healthcare professionals, learn how to effectively master this. Years ago, my best friend was inspired when she attended a Leukemia Society charity event. She went home with a strong desire to run a marathon. She called me the next day and asked if I would run a marathon with her since I had already completed a few.  I was a bit skeptical, to say the least, because at the time of this conversation she was living in New York, smoking almost a pack of cigarettes a day, didn’t really exercise, and hadn’t ever really run for distance.  Fast forward three years from that conversation and through a series of unlikely events, my best friend found herself living four doors down from me in San Diego. She quit smoking, started exercising and we began running three to five days per week.  We started off slowly by running/walking a couple of miles, and gradually increased over time. I still remember when we crossed the finish line at the Rock n Roll Marathon in San Diego. As she cried tears of joy and amazement at what she had just accomplished I remember feeling honored to be witness to her transformation and dedication to getting out of her comfort zone and pushing beyond any self-limiting beliefs that came up. Consequently, my best friend has run over five marathons to date and has since experienced a physical body and health potential she didn’t know existed.  There’s a bit of back story that makes this story even more potent. Her father was a cancer survivor and when she was inspired to run a marathon by attending the Leukemia society charity event her “why” for running the marathon was very strong. While she wanted to become healthier, not ever get cancer and feel better about herself, she also wanted to run the marathon to raise money for cancer.  She had extremely strong “what” and “why’s”. By focusing on those and not the details like how this will happen and when the Universe conspired to manifest it for her by giving her even more than she asked. Originally, she just wanted me to meet her at a marathon and run it with her. Instead, the Universe presented her with a job opportunity on the West Coast, she moved out, met the love of her life, got married, and had me and several other running partners.  Remember, the how will always get in the way of a good what.  Therefore, it’s your job to stay focused on the what and the why’s while allowing the Universe to take care of the how and when. And if your what and/or why’s are tied to service to others, I believe it amplifies your ability to manifest your dreams and desires. While my best friend may have had doubts, she never once said “I can’t do this.” Sadly, this wasn’t the mindset of another friend of ours.  She repeatedly told us she couldn’t run because “I have bad ankles.” “In fact,” she would say “I’ve always had bad ankles. I’ve tried everything to fix them, and nothing will work.” So, we ran without her.  After some time, this friend with the “bad ankles” had so much FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) that she came to me privately and asked if I could do acupuncture on her ankles. After one 30-minute treatment, her ankles were miraculously cured. In fact, she has gone on to complete three marathons and three half Ironman races! By the way, my acupuncture was not a miracle. Rather, removing her limiting beliefs and negative self-talk is where the miracle, ability to run distances and achieve such things was hidden all along.  “Argue for your limitations and they are yours.” ~ Richard Bach from the book Illusions. I’d like to share one more story before offering you steps you can take to bust through any lingering limiting beliefs and deliver you to a life beyond your wildest imagination. This story is more aligned with the limitations we place on ourselves around our careers and private practice. A practitioner came to me saying that she wanted more patients. Quickly into our coaching session, we realized she didn’t want more patients (she was already seeing 50 patients per week) she wanted more money. As we explored further, she admitted that she secretly wanted to leave the field of Chinese medicine altogether – that she was burned out after nearly 20 years of private practice and seeing an average of 50 patients per week for over 10 years.  When I asked her what she loved to do in her spare time she shared with me that she enjoyed doing interior design for a friend of hers who rents out Airbnbs. She also shared with me that she and her husband had a nest egg of money and that a far-fetched dream of hers was to open her very own Airbnb and decorate it Zen style with a healing atmosphere. I asked why she didn’t do just that – buy a property that she could turn into a Zen-like healing sanctuary Airbnb and advertise it as such.   “I can’t leave private practice,” she said.  “Why not?” I asked.  “Well, um, I don’t know. Who will take care of my patients? They will never let me leave.”  That’s when I invited her to write her own permission slip to follow her dreams and open her own Airbnb. I

There are countless anti-aging tools, supplements, modalities and biohacks out there today, many of which are super expensive. However, over the past fifteen years of teaching, lecturing, and practicing within the realms of anti-aging, longevity medicine, peak performance, cosmetic acupuncture/rejuvenation and what I now refer to as “Radiant Aging” I have uncovered five things you can do that can reverse aging AND they won’t cost you a penny.  In this article I’d like to first explain the concept of Radiant Aging then provide you with five things you can start recommending to patients and do yourself to slow down the hands of time. What is “Radiant Aging”? Simply said, it’s accepting the fact that we are all going to age and therefore instead of fighting it like we fight so many things in society, we lean into the aging process with grace, wisdom and see it for what it is: the opportunity to give more. As we age, we live out our “Hero’s Journey”.1 We essentially go through life experiencing ups and downs and it’s in the challenging moments when we are tested that we grow and come through the other side with experience and wisdom. The wisdom from that experience as well as the “how we made it through” are the gifts we share with others. The more we go through challenges and hard times, the more gifts we then have to give to others.  Think about it. Many of us came to Chinese Medicine because of a challenge in life which was solved with this incredibly powerful medicine, so we then dedicated our careers to offering it to others. So, that’s the first part of “Radiant Aging” – adopting a different perspective on it or “Flipping Your Flaws” as my dear friend Renee Airya Chan2 says.   There are some amazing discussions from Ram Dass3 on the topic of aging. He reminds us that we are all going to age so why not do it gracefully and with a happy heart rather than fight it. Do the leaves on the oak trees fight the Autumn season? No, they become beautifully radiant as they turn from green to wonderful hues of orange, yellow and gold.  Something that occurred to me about this phenomenon of leaves changing into beautiful colors in the Fall time is that the longer the leaves stay on the tree, the more gorgeous they become.  Can it be that the more we stay connected to our source, God, the more beautiful and radiant we will become? Something to think about for sure. In fact, in a study of Centurions (people who live into their hundreds) called Power 9, the 4th commonality is a strong spiritual belief in a higher power/God4.  Back to the leaves… In the Fall, as the leaves age, they become so beautiful that many of us take long drives in the countryside just so we can see the turning of the leaves. Be like the leaves: age radiantly and perhaps people will take long drives to see you! This leads us to the question: “Ok, so how can I age radiantly?”   While I’ve found an almost countless amount of biohacking methods and tools for slowing down and reversing the aging process in the body, here are five of them that do not cost any money. 1. Forgiveness I put this first because I honestly believe this is the most powerful of the five and has the most impact on every aspect of your life. It may even be the most difficult. However, I can say from over 25 years of clinical observation and a lifetime of personal experience that forgiveness – letting go of resentment, anger and negative emotions is the key to not only the fountain of youth but to healing and optimal health.  Lester Levenson5 was literally given a few months to live. He went back to his NY apartment and decided he wasn’t going to accept this fate. He sat in that apartment all weekend and examined his life. It was full of anger, resentment, fear, attachment, victimhood, and a plethora of negative energies. Slowly he began to let things go.  Lester lived another three decades and went on to share the gifts of his hero’s journey through what is called the Sedona Method. If Lester Levenson can use forgiveness to reverse a fatal prognosis and failing physical body, imagine what it can do for the aging biology of your body.  A Course in Miracles (ACIM) is a text and workbook that can help with forgiveness. The Bible and many other spiritual texts point to forgiveness as the key to a fruitful, well-lived life.  Like many of you, I have experienced some extremely painful periods in my life, many of which were in my childhood and came from abusive relationships that left me feeling unworthy of love, unwanted and insignificant. Three of the things that have helped me let go and genuinely forgive have been ACIM, the Bible and the work of John W. James, who founded the Grief Recovery Method6.  I attended the Grief Recovery Method program when my mother died unexpectedly from a heart attack. It was one of the only things that helped.  Years later, I went on to complete the training to be a certified Grief Recovery Method facilitator. The entire process of the Grief Recovery Method guides you to forgiveness, even if it’s an inch into the direction of forgiving someone or something for not being better, more, or how you had hoped it/them to be. If you are still struggling with letting go of some aspect of your life, the Grief Recovery Method may be a resource for you. I’ve offered a few tools to help with landing you in a state of forgiveness but there are countless others. The urging here is for you to find a technique or method that works for you, that will help you to release the toxic feelings, emotions and thought that are undoubtedly showing up

Cold showers, intermittent fasting, running, nootropics, music, surfing, dancing to EDM, high-intensity sports, creative outlets such as painting or starting new companies, kittens, funny movies, having fun with my kids, weekend getaways with my husband, laughing with family and friends, girls’ weekends and Marie Kondo-like organizing the heck out of my office and home. What? You don’t consider cold showers to be a turn-on? Perhaps I should clarify what I meant by that. I was referring to things that turn on my flow state. Now that you understand what I meant with the title of this article, what are your turn-ons? In other words, what puts you into a flow state? Maybe you’re asking yourself something along the lines of “why would I even want to pursue this?” Perhaps it is because of what might be possible:• Feeling that you are at your best physically, mentally, and spiritually• Feeling a sense of purpose in life• Having a genuine passion for everything you do• Loving, supportive, and deeply connected relationships• Prosperity and financial abundance• Acceptance of what is and stronger love of self• Experiencing a deeper connection to source, spirit, God, and your higher self• Clarity regarding what you want and where you are going in life• Feeling like you make a positive impact on the world If you want any or all of the above, tapping into your flow state will get you there. In this article, I’d like to share some strategies for getting you into the flow state (also known as “the zone”) and keeping you there. Some of these may be obvious, or activities in which you already engage, but other might be entirely new for you and could potentially be your new “turn-on”. Where to start if you are unsure. The turn-ons for flow state are similar to the sexual context of turnon in that they are different for everyone. Some people enter a flow state while engaging in group activities, while other people enter “the zone” by sitting in silence. Where do you fall within this range? If you aren’t sure, the folks at the Flow Genome Project may be able to help you. This company, founded by a group of peak performers, is dedicated to assisting people in reaching their peak potential. They have created a simple 10-question survey to determine how you enter the flow state and offer different training and educational programs. It might be worth checking out as a place to start: www.flowgenomeproject.com. Variety. Remember the first time you had coffee, espresso, tea, or something caffeinated? What a buzz, huh? Then, over time, you became immune to the effects of caffeine and needed more of it to achieve the buzz. Flow state inducing activities are similar in that we need to mix them up in order to sustain our peak performance. Otherwise, we can build up immunities to the same routines and activities. As with caffeine, we can find that over time we will either need to add more intensity to our activity or an entirely new actively altogether. Therefore, this strategy is two-fold: (1) Make sure to mix it up and engage in a variety of activities; and (2) try new things. Every mentor I’ve had throughout my life has encouraged me to try something new at least once per year and make sure that something new scares the crap out of me. That’s because they understand that by doing so, I have an opportunity to expand myself through a new flow state activity. Are you engaging in the same flow state activities, over and over? Is it time to try something new? Some activities and strategies that could put you into a flow state: BREATHWORK There are so many breathing techniques and methods out there. Here are a few that I’ve come across and tried for myself: Wim Hof Method Box Breathing Holotropic Breathwork Shamanic Breathwork Pranayama Rebirthing Pineal Gland Activation by Joe Dispenza Transformational Breathwork You can experiment with most of these methods by searching for them on YouTube, where the creators offer guided samples of their techniques. A few, like rebirthing and shamanic breathwork, require a coach. I’ve tried all of the above methods and found them helpful during different periods of my life. The many benefits of breathwork are varied and far-reaching. They include reduced blood pressure, stress management, strengthening of intestinal and abdominal muscles, pain reduction, improved sleep, improved circulation, and assistance with thebody’s detoxification process. Lately, my favorite is the Wim Hof Method. I was especially intrigued by his technique when I read abouta study conducted in 2014 in which twelve participants injected with botulism experienced zero adverse reactions after performing the Wim Hof breathing method, meditation, and exposure to cold (2014, Kox et al.) If breathwork can fight off botulism in your body, imagine what other beneficial physiological effects it can have. The key with breathwork is to find which one works best for you atthis time in your life and make sure to include it in your self-care routine. COLD SHOWERS AND ICE BATHS Trust me. I am a baby when it comes to cold. I downright can’t stand it. However, after reading the many benefits of cold showers, andthe Wim Hof research results, I tried it for myself. I have to say that I honestly have a surge of energy for at least 4 hours after ending my hot shower with a cold shower. Ben Greenfield has a great YouTube video where he provides instructions on how to take a cold shower. It’s one of his most watched videos. With the following benefits of cold showers/ice baths, perhaps it’s worth a try: Increased circulation, detoxification, improved exercise recovery, improved sex drive, improved stress response, reduced muscle inflammation, boosted happiness levels – sign me up! NOOTROPICS This morning I had a big ole cup of nootropics. Yup, coffee. Coffee is considered a nootropic because it can enhance brain function. However, coffee is just the tip of a huge and growing iceberg

According to one of my favorite thought leaders, Brené Brown, people with strong boundaries are the most compassionate. What do you think of that statement? Does it seem counterintuitive to you? It often seems to me as though many of us lack solid boundaries because we don’t want to disappoint our patients or hurt their feelings. However, aren’t we actually hurting our patients, and ourselves, by not having solid and clear boundaries? I’d like to begin by sharing something that came to my mind as I contemplated the question: “How important are boundaries in private practice?” My neighbor grows plumerias in his yard. He literally has over 300 plumeria plants, each one carefully planted within its own large pot. Many of his prized plumerias are rare and exotic with values over $1,000 each. He keeps telling me he is going to give me a clipping from one of the plumerias. I’m eagerly waiting… but that’s not the part about boundaries. This is:Let’s say he gives me a clipping from one of the prized plumerias and I place the clipping on my driveway with some dirt around the exposed roots. How well do you think that little plant will do? Not very well, I can tell you that. Wind, rain, and the elements will damage this little plant and most likely send it down the street in the gutter with the other leaves and landscaping discharge. This little clipping needs a container within which to grow and thrive. A thick plastic or ceramic pot filled with good soil would give it a much better chance. Isn’t that the same for our patients? They need a container in which to grow, heal, and ultimately thrive. Having boundaries with ourpatients is just like having a solid container or planter for growing a plant. If we use a weak container, water, soil and nutrients can leak out. We can also look at how important boundaries are in raising children. Solid boundaries give children a sense of safety and security. Can’t we say the same for our patients? Giving them clear boundaries within our practice will give them a sense of safety and security. Furthermore, could we also say that having solid boundaries in our practice, and holding to thoseboundaries will also give us a sense of safety and security as well? “Boundaries are essential to a successful practice and enjoyable career” Let’s face it. People-pleasing (in other words not holding up your boundaries) isn’t sustainable. Sooner or later a people-pleaser will find themselves feeling taken advantage of, burned out, resentful and angry! Sound familiar? How about any of these common scenarios:• You don’t like working on weekends or evenings, but you keep saying yes to that one patient because you feel bad for them.• You don’t want to raise your prices because you feel bad for your patients, but you feel resentful because you can’t afford somethingyou really want and now you are thinking to yourself “maybe I chose the wrong profession”.• Your patient cancels last minute again, and you are so frustrated because you turned away other patients for that appointment slot and now, because you don’t have a cancellation policy, you are not going to receive anticipated income.• Your coworker left the room a mess again and now you are hustling to clean it up before your first patient arrives. The stress and resentment this causes you leaves you flustered during the session with your patient rather than grounded and present.• Your patient shows up 20 minutes late, which will now push out all your appointments for the day and ruin your whole workflow. Let’s move on to the many benefits of having strong boundaries. After that, I’d like to offer strategies on setting some boundaries in your practice so that you can increase your level of compassion and feelings of inner peace and joy. Benefits to having strongboundaries:• You won’t feel taken advantage of• Eliminate burnout• Feelings of safety and security foryou and your patients• Equal exchange of energies• Feeling respected• Your needs are met• Greater sense of joy since you aresaying “no” to things that depleteyour energy• Less conflict• Eliminate stress and/or anxiety SIX STRATEGIES FOR CREATING & MAINTAINING SOLID BOUNDARIES Communicate your boundaries. Don’t keep your boundaries in your head where they can’t serve you. You’ve got to communicate them to your patients and any prospective patients. Clearly state your practice policies on your:• Website• New patient paperwork• Intake forms• Signs in your waiting room• Newsletters to patients• Welcome emails and appointment and confirmation emails• Social media posts• Promotional materials like postcards and brochures The practice policies that you want to make sure you clearly state include:• Hours of operation• Your service offerings• Prices for your services• Cancellation policies and fees associated• Package cancellation policies and fees If you once offered massage but hate doing massage, stop offering it and take it off your services page. No exceptions. Otherwise, you will find yourself doing massage again! On my intake/new patient form I clearly state prices for my services and that if for any reason they cancel their appointment with less than 24 hours’ notice, their credit card will be charged the full amount for the service for which they booked. In addition, for facial rejuvenation package patients I clearly state that if they decide to cancel the program/package at any time, theywill be reimbursed according to my single-session price and not by prorating how many sessions they have used out of their package. Stay true to yourself. If you don’t like to work weekends–don’t. If you don’t like working late at night–don’t. If you like having yourdog at the office instead at home, bring your dog. When you start making exceptions for certain people you start to weaken your boundaries. Over time you will become resentful. In addition, you will not be fully present during your treatment sessions because all you will be thinking about is either “I hate working on weekends”, “I hate working late at night”

I saw a funny meme recently that got me thinking. At the top it read “Choose Your Fighter” and below this heading sat photos of three women: • Susan: She is gossipy and addicted to wine.• Karen: Summons the manager.• Brenda: Watches Grey’s Anatomy and believes she is a medical expert. It got me thinking: Do I need a fighter right now? If so, who should it be? Like many of us, I have been riding a roller coaster of emotions. I feel inspired and motivated one moment and unsure, confused, and tearful the next. Then there are those moments in which I allow myself to go deep down any of the many rabbit holes that are present right now. That’s when I get into even more trouble. I inevitably feel as though I am caught in the whitewater at the beach on a big surf day, pounded by waves, held beneath the water, unsure of which way is up, having difficulty breathing, and screaming, “Help! Somebody save me!” But how can I help others if I need someone to help me right now? This brings me back to that meme: “Choose your Fighter.” In a sense, aren’t we all fighters? We fight for our patients. We are helping them to feel comforted, protected, listened to, and loved. Who, then, can be our fighter? I will suggest we pass on Karen, Brenda, and even Susan from the meme mentioned above. Instead, I would like to select Quan Yin as our guiding light. Quan Yin, a principal deity in Buddhism, is known as the Goddess of Compassion, something we all most certainly need right now—compassion for others and ourselves. With Quan Yin leading the way, can we, as healthcare providers, tap into her unwavering compassion and offer the same to our patients, especially right now? How many of you are frustrated at the current state of affairs, ready to throw in the towel and give up your practice? Are you making plans to move to a small island or mountain range somewhere and grow coconuts or herd sheep? What if, instead, you stayed? Quan Yin stayed–did you know that? Legend has it that after Quan Yin reached full enlightenment, she was on her way to heaven to live out eternity in nirvana. Before entirely leaving this world, she heard cries of pain and suffering coming from the people of our planet. The countless prayers for help, hope, comfort, and strength from so many suffering people were her reasons for returning. Instead of entering heaven, Quan Yin chose to return to our planet and help deliver us from our pain and suffering. She came back to comfort us with a blanket of compassion and mercy. How can we do this for our patients? What would that look like for you? Her heart is full of unconditional love, which she shares with humanity. Can she help us exercise our ability to love unconditionally? Most depictions of Quan Yin show her barefoot, symbolizing her groundedness, simplicity, and humility. What keeps you grounded? Do you engage in grounding activities or rituals regularly? Quan Yin reminds us of the importance of being grounded so that we may continue to serve and assist others. Simplicity may be one of the missing keys to happiness right now, especially with everything in such flux. Could simplicity be a key to more feelings of inner peace? Ask Quan Yin, perhaps. How can you keep your humility, especially during these tumultuous times, where so many people disagree? Can Quan Yin show us a way to have compassion for others even if we do not agree with their perspective? Can Quan Yin teach us how to stay humble even when we feel so strongly that we are right? In some translations, Quan Yin means “she who hears prayers”. I would venture to say that people are doing a lot of praying right now. They pray to Quan Yin, God, Buddha, Jesus, archangels, and an almost unlimited number of deities, higher powers, and ascended masters. Have you ever considered that all of those prayers get answered through us and our work? Perhaps the enlightened beings and higher energies might bring these people to us because we can help them? So, when asking yourself: “Should I stay, or should I go?” Stay. Continue to be a lighthouse for others. Lighthouses get people through horrible storms; they are guiding lights of hope and safety. They stay put. They don’t move. They shine bright and even brighter when maintained properly. To do this, you will have to choose your fighter wisely. While Quan Yin is an excellent choice for your fighter, she is not the only option. There are others out there. You simply need to look for them. When choosing your fighter, make sure to find one that comforts you, fills up your compassion and love gas tanks, and makes you feel grounded and protected. I want to leave you with an oracle card2 that is currently displayed next to my computer. It reminds me of my current fighter, Quan Yin. She encourages me to approach everyone with more compassion, forgiveness, and unconditional love, including myself. QUAN YIN Care and Compassion Meaning of this card: “Choose to be love. Do what is right for everyone involved. Offer a helping hand.”

When I was a little girl, my uncle gave my parents a West Highland Terrier puppy. My uncle was a breeder of these dogs. With his certifications, bloodline, and paperwork, this little guy was worth about $1,000. We named him “Westy” (of course we did – my name is East, my brother’s name is West, and we just had to have a dog named “Westy,” right?). Sadly, Westy didn’t work out for our family, so we decided we had to give him up. We placed an ad offering the little guy for free (seeing that we got him for free we figured that seemed fair). Days, weeks, and a month went by without not even a single person expressing interest in Westy. Hmm? What was going on here? My parents considered the idea that people were holding the perception that Westy wasn’t valuable because we were giving him away for free. Why would someone give away something valuable, right? So, they changed the advertisement to offering Westy for $750. Within hours we received eight responses, and someone bought Westy that night for $750. Can you see where I’m going with this story (besides letting you know that I didn’t change my name to East to go to Chinese medical school)? In this article, I will present you with five strategies for raising your prices. Before I give you my secrets, however, I’d like to propose we shift our way of thinking (kind of how my parents did in offering Westy, the dog). I’d like you to shift from selling to offering. In my years of coaching practitioners, I have found that they an almost visceral reaction to the words “sell” and “selling”. If you think about it, we aren’t selling our treatments or even ourselves. We are offering to help. We are offering to use the tools, wisdom, and education we have gathered to help someone feel better, to heal, to laugh again, to live a life of well-being. Another shift I’d like to propose is from treatments to results. We don’t sell needles, acupuncture, massage, gua sha, moxibustion, or counseling. We offer our patients a way to their desired results. Because of us, people have babies when everyone else told them it was impossible. Because of us, people play golf without having to take prescription medications or receive surgery. Because of us, people no longer have debilitating migraines, back pain, pee their pants, suffer from extreme anxiety or depression. It’s all about the end result – that is what we offer. I’d love for all of us to recognize this and hold that in our minds when we are coming up with our pricing structures, marketing, and/or communications to our communities. Lastly, before I divulge the goods: When raising your prices, I’d like to offer you three rules: Time it Right. Do it when you have happy patients—in some cases a full practice where everything is going well. Clearly Communicate. Use newsletters, a poster in your office, postcards, your website and verbal communication to let everyone know that your prices are going up. You don’t have to explain why. In fact, DON’T explain why. You don’t have to. No Apologies or Reasons. It’s your business. These are your decisions. The sooner you practice how you want, when you want, with whom you want and where you want you will align with what I refer to as your Three P’s: Purpose, Passion, and Prosperity. Okay, as I get off my mini soapbox, and without further ado, here are five strategies for raising your prices. #1: Raise Prices for New Patients Keep current patients at old pricing. All new patients are given the new, higher pricing structure. Raise prices across the board but raise prices slightly for current patients and more for incoming patients. Good for: Moving your practice to a new location, or a growing practice. Maybe you are feeling super loyal to your existing patients and don’t want to raise prices on them. That is okay. What if you just raised prices on any new patients? Your prior/existing patients can be “grandfathered” into your old pricing structure. This is a good strategy if you are moving to a new location, and only a handful of your patients will follow you or if you are phasing out of a specialty and entering into a new one. Perhaps you once were the Queen of fertility, but now you want to treat more sports injuries. You can keep all your fertility patients at the old pricing structure and publish your new pricing on your website and any other marketing for new patients. #2. Give a Grace Period Give a grace period to all patients: current, new, and potential. Give grace period to existing patients only. One month is entirely adequate. Good for: All situations. You can announce the grace period by having a sign at the reception desk. Something like “As of (this date) our prices will be (this price). Thank you for allowing us to continue to provide service, comfort, and support to you and your families.” In addition, you can provide grace period notice in newsletters, emails, text messages, social media posts and on your website. For the website notice, create a small pop-up message on the main page or on the page that describes your services. Again, you can write something like, “We love our patients and community. As of (this date) our prices will become (enter new prices). Thank you for allowing us to be of service. If you have any questions, please (enter how you want them to ask you questions). #3. Add Value Gain new knowledge, skill, or techniques that make your sessions more valuable Add new modalities or products that also make your sessions more valuable Good for: Those who have been in practice for several years, just completed new training, or bought new equipment or tools (aka practice toys). Many of you have started using expensive tools like lasers or Acugraphs, which cost

Acupuncture and aromatherapy are two individual modalities that have been used for thousands of years to successfully treat a gamut of conditions and diseases. But what happens when they are combined together in one treatment? Is the treatment session more effective? Is there no difference at all? Does it merely increase patient satisfaction and comfort? I set out to answer these questions in 2011 while obtaining a doctoral degree in acupuncture and Oriental medicine. Here I will share with you what I discovered and suggest that yes, combining aromatherapy with acupuncture can make a treatment more effective. Let’s begin this discussion the same way I began my research – by asking the question: “What is something that nearly all patients complain about?” The answer is: Stress. Stress is something that affects every one of us in one way or another, especially our patients. Some may even take it further and suggest that stress is the underlying cause or root of the majority of conditions we treat. Many of us know from personal experience that we can effectively reduce stress with acupuncture treatments. In fact, this notion has been proven through multiple studies and a great deal of clinical research. But what if we add aromatherapy to an acupuncture treatment which is aimed at reducing stress levels? Will the addition of aromatherapy reduce stress even more? To determine this, I ran a clinical trial comparing the efficacy of reducing stress levels from acupuncture treatment alone to a treatment session where acupuncture was combined with aromatherapy. In the early days of gathering research for my clinical trial I was immediately surprised that I could not find a single published study or clinical trial on the combination of aromatherapy with acupuncture. Rather, I found three trials wherein acupressure was combined with aromatherapy but none where acupuncture was combined with aromatherapy. Here was an opportunity to enter uncharted territories. Selecting a study design for my trial was the next step and I chose to perform a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study. At the time I remember several people asking me: “How can you have a placebo when performing a trial on aromatherapy?” “You either smell something or you don’t, right?” Well, it turns out that many of the previously performed trials on aromatherapy which elected placebo controlled trial designs simply utilized spring water or alcohol as a placebo. In many of these studies saturated cotton balls were placed on the chest area near the study participant’s nose. The cotton ball either contained aromatherapy (the intervention) or spring water (the placebo). Therefore, I decided to adopt the same deliver method and water-based placebo for my trial. For the acupuncture portion of the trial, I created a point protocol that was made up of acupuncture points that had all been previously proven to reduce stress. The protocol included: Liver 3 Tai Chong, Large Intestine 4 He Gu, Stomach 36 Zu San Li and Yin Tang M-HN-3. This protocol provides a simple and effective stress reducing treatment. Next, I formulated an aromatherapy blend of essential oils, each of which had also been proven to reduce stress levels. The blend included: Ylang-ylang, rose, grapefruit, and lavender all-natural essential oils. From here I had to select study participants, preferably a demographic with inherently high stress levels. Fortunately, finding study participants was an easy task for me as I was, at the time, the off-site supervisor at an in-house drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility for women. Under my supervision, acupuncture students would provide treatments to the patients that resided at the center, many of which were court-ordered to be there, had their children taken away from them and/or were required to be there for up to 18 months. Believe me when I tell you these women had high stress levels. So, with approval from the center’s corporate headquarters, I recruited thirty (n=30) women to be study participants. I acted as the primary researcher/acupuncturist and a prior student of mine, who was subsequently waiting acupuncture licensing, was my amazing research assistant who administered the aromatherapy, conducted all the paperwork and helped me manage the trial. The thirty participants were randomly assigned to either Group A (n=15) or Group B (n=15). While all thirty participants began the six week trial and completed at least two treatments, by the end, only fourteen had completed the entire 6-week trial with Group A containing six (n=6) participants and Group B eight (n=8). High participant attrition was a reflection of participants having to appear in court or tend to sick children, thereby missing a treatment session. The trial had a strict policy that if a participant missed a single treatment session, they would be removed from the trial. Unfortunately, due to this policy and the demands on this particular participant population, we lost more participants that we had anticipated. In retrospect, perhaps a trial length of only four weeks or a study design that allowed for one missed treatment may have yielded higher outcomes. Nonetheless, we ended up having an adequate number of participants and sufficient data to provide results. Each week, for six consecutive weeks, participants came in for a 30-minute treatment session. All participants received the exact same acupuncture treatment from the same primary researcher/acupuncturist (me). Every acupuncture treatment protocol was exactly the same using these points: Liver 3 Tai Chong, Large Intestine 4 He Gu, Stomach 36 Zu San Li and Yin Tang M-HN-3. After needles were inserted, I left the room and the research assistant would come in and administer the aromatherapy by spraying the contents of either Bottle A for Group A or Bottle B for Group B on a cotton ball and placing the saturated cotton ball onto the participant’s chest near their nose. The cotton ball would remain on the participant’s chest as they rested during treatment. After 30 minutes the research assistant would return and remove the cotton ball from the patient’s chest and room before I would return and remove the needles. The rooms were aired

Like Chinese Medicine, aromatherapy has been around for thousands of years. Ancient cultures from all over the world have used various forms of aromatherapy ranging from the burning of incense to utilizing the extracted oils from various plants, herbs and flowers. These ancestors used aromatherapy because they understood the healing properties of essential oils and the aromas that come from them. This article aims to provide a general understanding of how aromatherapy works and ways in which you can incorporate aromatherapy into your practice. Since many of us are familiar with the term “aromatherapy” it is interesting to first explain where this term originated. Back in the late 1920’s, French chemist Rene-Maurice Gattefosse was severely burned in a laboratory experiment. It is said that he applied lavender oil on his burned flesh and discovered that not only did his pain and swelling reduce significantly, but the wound healed rapidly and almost miraculously. It was around this time that Gattefosse began a life-long exploration into this healing modality and coined the term “aromatherapie” (basically referring to the use of essential oils for treating the body, mind and spirit). Generally, aromatherapy can be applied in three ways: Direct application to the skin, inhalation and internal consumption. In all three scenarios the properties of the essential oils, which constitute “aromatherapy”, travel through the body and eventually go to the brain where they have both physiological and psychological effects. When applied to the skin, the essential oils are absorbed and enter into the lymphatic system, which then circulate into the blood stream, making their way into the brain. Similarly, when essential oils are inhaled or ingested, they are absorbed into the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, lungs and/or gastrointestinal system, transferred into the blood stream, and make their way to the brain. Inhalation of essential oils also utilizes the body’s olfactory system which processes the smell, sending a signal to the limbic system of the brain. The limbic system is directly connected to the parts of the brain that control heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, memory, stress levels, the balancing of hormones and the processing of emotions and memories. For these reasons, it is evident that aromatherapy can have a very powerful effect, both emotionally and physiologically. We can also look at aromatherapy from a TCM point of view. Lavender (Lavandula Angustifolia) and Grapefruit (Citrus Paradisi), two very common essential oils used in aromatherapy, can serve as good examples. Lavender is spicy and sweet, has a cooling nature and affects the Lung, Liver and Pericardium. Two of the major functions of lavender are to promote the smooth flow of Liver qi and calm the shen. Grapefruit is spicy and bitter, has a slightly warming nature and affects the Lung, Stomach and Gallbladder. Major functions of grapefruit include regulating the flow of Liver qi and breaking up qi, food and phlegm stagnation. With their positive influence on qi, just using these two essential oils would be a good start to incorporating aromatherapy into your practice. So, now that we have a basic understanding of aromatherapy, healing mechanisms of same and two essential oils which we can start to use immediately, how can we specifically incorporate this powerful, ancient healing modality in our practice? Here are a few simple and extremely effective ways: DIFFUSERS Diffuse essential oils in your waiting/reception areas and/or treatment rooms. You can buy special plug-in diffusers designed to slowly release essential oils based on your desired strength (i.e. from light to heavy scent). You can also use a small tea-light oil/scented wax burner that does virtually the same thing without the need of electricity or batteries. ACUPUNCTURE POINTS You can place drops of essential oils onto acupuncture points prior to needling or in lieu of needling. If you chose this technique, it is extremely important that you dilute certain essential oils before doing so as some oils can burn the skin. Lavender is an example of an essential oil that is safe to place on the skin directly. SPACE SPRAY You can make an aromatherapy spray by placing drops of essential oils into a bottle (preferably dark colored glass) filled with spring water. Similar to making an herbal formula, you can chose one essential oil or create a blend based the individual make up of each essential oil and the desired therapeutic outcome. For a one ounce bottle, eight to ten drops of essential oils is sufficient. You can spray over the patient during treatment or between patients in the treatment room. EYE PILLOW Many eye pillows come infused with aromatherapy. However, if you do not possess one of these, you can easily make one by lightly spraying essential oils onto a folded Kleenex tissue and placing the Kleenex tissue onto the eyes of your patient. Instructions on making an aromatherapy spray are given above. COTTON BALL Place a few drops of an essential oil or essential oil blend onto a cotton ball and place it on the patient’s chest, near the face, during a face-up treatment. This way the patient is able to receive the aromatherapy while they are having an acupuncture treatment. If they are face down, place the cotton ball on a chair under their nose so they can receive the aroma. When the treatment is over, you can give them the patient the cotton ball to take with them, directing them to continue smelling it throughout the day. You can also give a cotton ball to patients that become extremely relaxed from a treatment and feel “out of it”. Saturate a cotton ball with a few drops of an uplifting essential oil like grapefruit and have them inhale a few times before leaving your office and have them take the cotton ball home with them so they are alert as they drive away and go about their day. MASSAGE Add drops of essential oils into your massage oil and apply to specific channels of the body or even to the UB channel where we find the

Over the course of 15+ years of private practice I have realized that there truly is an art to being a continuously successful and completely fulfilled practitioner. Sometimes we get burned out. Sometimes our patients get bored with the same treatment every time they come in. Sometimes we get a patient that our traditional treatments don’t seem to help effectively. So, what do we do? In this article I hope to offer you some ideas. While I have a steady stream of new patients I also have a solid base of returning patients – my “regulars”. They have been coming to see me every week or every two weeks for years. I have found that for these regular patients it is important to keep the treatments fresh, new and exciting. Luckily for us, practitioners of TCM and alternative medicine, we can be creative and add different things to our treatments to enhance the experience, maintain the transformation in our patients and keep them coming back to us. Whether you are a brand new practitioner or a “seasoned” one like me (so much better than saying “old”), it is absolutely vital to keep your practice fresh and keep your bag of tricks filled so you can approach all types of situations. By doing so you will not only increase patient satisfaction, you will also increase your own job satisfaction greatly. In this article I share 6 simple and effective things you can add to your treatments and/or practice to prevent burn out and/or stagnation, enhance the over-all treatment experience and increase patient satisfaction: Aromatherapy. I have always used aromatherapy in my practice and patients love it. The easiest way to incorporate this ancient healing technique is to simply add essential oils or aromatherapy sprays onto a cotton ball and place the cotton ball within your patient’s sniff zone while they are receiving a treatment (i.e. place the cotton ball on their chest or under the head rest if they are face down). Then, when the patient leaves after their treatment have them take the cotton ball with them, instructing them to smell the aromatherapy frequently to keep the treatment going through their body. Even though it is a cheap little cotton ball with aromatherapy on it patients will covet it like prized gold and look forward to their cotton balls with each treatment. I once walked a patient to her car and saw a line of cotton balls on her dashboard from prior treatments. For basic aromatherapy you can add lavender to cotton balls to help them relax or try a citrus oil like grapefruit or orange to move Qi and increase energy. It’s simple – we all have cotton balls. It’s effective – efficacy of aromatherapy has been proven over and over again in clinical trials. It is inexpensive – it costs you pennies and pays you back in spades when your patients want to come see you regularly. It has even been proven that adding aromatherapy to an acupuncture treatment increases its efficacy. Cards.  No, I don’t mean business cards.  I’m talking more about oracle cards or positive affirmation cards.  While thought leaders like Doreen Virtue and Denise Linn were some of the first people to come up with these cards, everyone seems to have their own deck and there are decks for all areas of life.  Louise Hay has positive affirmation cards, Deepak Chopra has several decks for spirituality, Doreen Virtue has dozens of decks and now Gabby Bernstein, one of our newest thought leaders in personal development, has her own positive card deck “Miracles Now”.  There are even little tiny angel notes that have positive affirmations on them that you can have placed in a bowl in your waiting room.  Patients can pull one while they are waiting and take it with them as a little positive pick me up.There are several ways you can use them with your treatments. You can have your patient pull a card before treatment as a way to get them to share what is going on inside them. Perhaps the chosen card reminds them of something they forgot to mention to you or the card really speaks to how they are feeling. So much is revealed in these discussions. You can also use them to provide encouragement. I’d like to share one particular experience I had with using these types of cards. I had a fertility patient who was finishing her third month of treatments as was becoming impatient as she wanted to get pregnant now and didn’t understand why it was taking so long. I asked her if she wanted to pull an angel card from Doreen Virtue’s Daily Guidance From Your Angels card deck. She agreed and after shuffling the cards a bit she pulled one from the middle and it was the “Child” card which reads: “ Your life purpose involves helping children – A child in Heaven is saying ‘I love you’ – Pregnancy or adoption might be part of your life”. She couldn’t believe it and started to cry (I couldn’t believe it either!). Then she said to me: “Hey, are they all Child cards?” inferring that I may have stacked the deck. I went to turn over all the cards and show her that there were 44 different types of cards in the deck and a card fell on the floor between us. I picked it up and we both looked at it. It was the “Have Confidence “card. We both laughed. She felt encouraged and left my office. She conceived 2 weeks later. True story!! Auricular To Go.  If you are not already using ear seeds I recommend adding them to your practice even if you just put a seed on Shen Men.  I do not provide ear seeds on every treatment or even on the first treatment.  I save it to add to future treatments.  It can also be something that you can suggest at the end of a treatment.  For example:  “While