What brought you to the Bindu?
At 5’8” and 175 lbs, I am a BIG girl. I was never athletic and my talents were concentrated on sitting down and doing art projects. While I was growing up and while raising kids, I tried to lose weight and in the process got into walking and  jogging. Soon my knees started to hurt and I had constant back problems. Fast forward to 1993. I moved to NC and met Lucy Ravich who was an avid Yogi. We became friends and finally in 2002 she convinced me to take my first Yoga class with Kelley. At the time, my schedule allowed me to practice only once a week on Sundays and so for years it was Yoga once a week for me with different local teachers. It was Lucy again who said that it was time to go to the next level and that I should try the Bindu and Kelley’s class.

What keeps you coming?
I love Yoga and the benefits I get from practicing. Since I joined the Bindu, I feel that I am being challenged every class and that I am getting stronger by the week. My body is moving in ways that I did not know it could. I feel that I walk straighter and I am thinking about the Yoga principles such as; keep the side body long, pull your shoulders back, soften the upper palate. I also find that the classes are fun, because you never know what Kelley will ask us to do next, and although the basic principals are the same, we practice them in so many different ways.

What do you get out of your practice?
In addition to feeling really good physically (how many 60+ year olds can do all the things we do in class?), I use the breath work to calm down and even go to sleep. I can center and calm my thoughts in stressful situations. I can focus better.

What challenging pose are you growing to love?
Balancing poses are very challenging to me. I am starting to love them now that I understand the principal of pulling everything into the center and firing up my legs. I hope to be able to do Eagle with the same ease that I do a Downward Facing Dog.

In my last blog, I talked about Grief and Chronic Pain and the four emotions one needs to go through in order to be happy and well -adjusted with a chronic illness or a life changing injury.

One of those energies is “bargaining.” It’s the one I see most with clients who continually struggle to change their habits in order to undo the bodily damage their current habits have created.

Some of us have committed to changing for the better but continually do something  counterproductive to the change we want. One reason why we fail is an underlying energetic block, deficiency or imbalance in the chakra system.  Yes me, Mr. Muscle and Dr. Trigger point sees the body as more than just soft tissue.

Anodea Judith, in her workbook “Eastern Body Western Mind,” beautifully lays out the Chakra system. She presents each chakra’s purpose, symptoms of deficiency, excess and blockages and offers healing exercises to bring balance to the entire chakra system. She clearly compares psychological problems with the correlating chakra issue.

I have used this book in my own life with success and I recommend Anodea’s teachings for clients who are having trouble with commitment. Those that do the chakra healing work slowly become more resilient in their commitments.

Anodea uses the example of a woman who desperately wants to lose weight but always fails in her commitments of new eating and exercising habits. Why? Unknowingly there is an unconscious emotion and specific chakra deficiency that sabotages her.

I think this explains why people “bargain” with lifestyle and habit changes.  Rationalizing why fast food is easier than prepping breakfast and not having enough time to get on the yoga mat 4 times a week may just be a chakra issue.

If you’re having trouble making some positive changes in your life, check out Anodea’s  website, explore the chakra system, buy a product and do some chakra work.  Self – defeating talk, negative patterns, lack of motivation and other roadblocks to success will begin to transform into positive self – talk with motivated, positive and constructive behavior.

Marty has been integrating chakra work into his bodywork practice successfully for the past 2 years.
mkestin@ensomabodyworks.com • 704.335.8115 • www.EnsomaBodyWorks.com

I was at an acupuncture seminar recently and one of the attendees from the audience asked the acupuncture physician during one of his demonstrations: “I’ve always heard that acupuncture can be quite helpful with infertility and difficulty conceiving. Is this really true?” In typical old-style Chinese teaching fashion he replied, rather emphatically “Look how many people we got in China! What do you think?!”

If you are having difficulty conceiving, or know someone who is then read on. Acupuncture is a truly phenomenal medicine and for centuries has helped women have a healthy conception, pregnancy and delivery.

So then how does putting tiny needles in my skin help me conceive?
There are many reasons why a woman may be having difficulty getting pregnant. In general, however, in Chinese Medicine conception, pregnancy and delivery require and ample amount of energy (or Qi) and Blood and that they be in harmonious circulation for everything to work smoothly. Acupuncture, and sometimes, herbal supplement, can help ensure all these components are present and interacting as they should be.

Your body is a garden, metaphorically speaking.
Ancient Chinese acupuncturists often referred to a woman’s womb as a garden. “When planting a seed in your garden you first prepare the soil. You make sure there is plenty of rich soil to work with, you add fertilizer and water, you remove all weeds and rocks, you protect the area and churn the soil to make it soft and ready to receive roots. Then, when a seed is planted a strong and healthy plant will take root and grow. Preparing for a baby is just the same.” How elegant! I couldn’t have said it better myself. Acupuncture and herbs are the tools for preparing the internal environment to support a new life.

Whether you are having trouble conceiving, know someone who is or would just like to find out more about how acupuncture can help you find optimum health for pregnancy come by the Bindu any Thursday from 1:00 – 5:30 or give us a call at AcuCare Clinic 704-483-5441.

Abe Rummage, AcuCare Clinic, 704-483-5441, www.AcuCareClinic.com

What brought you to the Bindu?
My Aunt Eileen.

What keeps you coming?
Definitely the kula!  I love the folks attending class, the teachers, and all the ladies working behind the front desk.  The Bindu’s kula is my second family.  The yoga is amazing, but I find myself thinking about all the wonderful people first and the yoga second.  I’ve made so many good friends whom I know will be in my life for a long time.  At every class I’m greeted so warmly by the teacher and I usually end up making a new friend.  This community of people is special.

What do you get out of your practice?
I always feel refreshed and energized after every yoga class. The asanas not only stretch out any tightness in my body, but also clear my mind of all the craziness of the day.  While inside walls of the Bindu, all my worries and stresses seem to melt away.

Tell us about a challenging pose that you are growing to love:
Okay, I had to look up the name of this pose.  Its Utthita Hasta Padanguthasana – translation – standing on one leg, extending the other in front, and holding the toes of the extended leg.  My hamstrings need this pose.  The other pose I’m working to love is Pincha Mayurasana – the trunk and legs are lifted off the floor and the body is balanced on the forearms and palms.  This pose makes me laugh when I learned about it because it resembles that of a peacock starting to dance. Dancing has always been fun and easy to me, but this pose is definitely a challenge. I really want to dance like a peacock!

What does Open to Grace mean to you?
For me it means opening my mind, body and soul to myself and others.  Accepting myself first and secondly accepting others.  Forgiving myself and of course working to forgive others.  Practicing yoga at the Bindu is so much more than a physical practice for me.  I’m learning to view life differently.  I’m learning patience and gratitude.  These things can be quite difficult to embrace, so working out life’s daily struggles through physical practice, meditation, and chanting creates a happier me, wife, mother, sister, and friend.  I need this in my life!

Thank you to all you Bindu yogis!

One of the difficult things I encounter as an acupuncturist is only getting one chance to “cure” my patients. No matter how much I tell them that acupuncture requires a course of treatment to realize its full benefits, people will come to me with the idea that they’re going to get one treatment and see if acupuncture works. Often times they’ll come out of the treatment room feeling much better but when they leave they’ll say “Yeah, it’s probably 50% better but I can still feel it. Oh well, I guess it just doesn’t work for me.”

Acupuncture is therapy, not a pill
Do you go to the gym, get in a good hard work out and then step on the scale and think “I haven’t lost any weight, this must not be working.” Do you get in your car, set out for grandma’s house, drive a few miles and ask “Why aren’t we there yet?” Of course not! Acupuncture should be seen the same way. Acupuncture treatments build over time to strengthen the body, remove blockages and balance energy.

Well then, how much therapy do I need?
How long have you had the problem? As a general rule, the longer you’ve suffered with a condition the longer it can take to correct it. This doesn’t mean that you won’t begin to feel relief after the first treatment or two, you probably will, but older problems can take longer to completely resolve.

What if I have a ruptured disk, a torn ligament or degenerative arthritis? Acupuncture can’t “heal” that can it?
Technically, no. No matter what treatment you use, traditional or alternative, your body is the one that does all the healing. All any form of medicine can do is simply help the body do what it already does naturally. Acupuncture can, however, reduce inflammation, swelling and pain as well as encourage the proper blood and energy flow to an area so that healing can happen as efficiently and completely as possible in the shortest amount of time. And that brings us back to our original idea: Acupuncture is therapy. Healing takes time but with a good course of acupuncture incredible things happen very quickly.

Would you like to know more about what you’ve read here?  Please call, check out our web site or come visit us at the Bindu for Community Acupuncture on Thursday afternoons.

Abe Rummage L.Ac • 704-483-5441 •  www.AcuCareClinic.com

The Anusara Immersion (Click here)

We invite you to deepen your yoga practice on every level by learning the universal principles of alignment in a broad range of yoga poses, studying the history of yoga, yoga philosophy, energy anatomy, breathing techniques, meditation, and much more. This immersion will happen once a month on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Meet great new friends and experience a complete transformation of your own practice.
Space is limited, so reserve your spot today!

If all the weekends don’t work for you or you would like to taste what the Immersion is all about, sign up for Part 1 only (an excellent overview…you’ll be happy you did!)

Yoga Teacher Training (Click here)

Starting in September 2010, the Anusara Immersion is the first piece of the complete teacher training. After successful completion of the Immersion, we teach you a clear, systematic, heart-oriented way to teach yoga to others.

Kelley Gardner (thebindu.com), Stacey Millner-Collins (cityyogasc.com) and Sarah Faircloth (sangati.net) will host immersions in each of their studios starting in September. And each teacher will guest teach for the others’ immersions throughout the trainings. For the final Teacher Training portion, all three of these inspiring teachers will co-teach together at the Bindu.

____________________________________________________________________________________
“What a fantastic weekend. I am already counting the days until March. The knowledge and energy that the 3 of you have is unbelievable. I just want to stand next to you and hope that some of it will just enter my brain.” – Betsey W.

As a rehab specialist I have had many clients struggle to make the necessary changes in their lives to address underlying causes of pain. For example – John has a bulging disc in his lower back and he agrees that it was caused by poor posture at work and not exercising enough.

John starts off great with weekly treatments and is doing postural exercises every morning for the long day ahead. After a month he begins telling himself he has no time for the am routine every day. Soon his back begins to hurt more and he questions the effectiveness of our work.

Why?  John began to rationalize (excuse) why he could not continue his daily postural care. What John does not realize is that this rationalizing is actually “bargaining,” a step in the grieving process.  He is not acknowledging the loss (his healthy back) in his life and is subsequently sabotaging his progress unconsciously.

I was a social worker and worked with people grieving and realized a few years ago that many of my massage clients with chronic pain or a life changing injury would benefit from consciously looking at their situation from a grief perspective.

The most well known grief model is by Elizabeth Kubler Ross.  Her model involved the person working through 4 emotions / energies:

• Anger
• Denial
• Depression
• Bargaining

Once having done so, they come to the 5th emotion / energy of acceptance. The first 4 steps need to be dealt with if there is to be acceptance and the ceasing of unconscious sabotage.

If you or someone you know has had a serious loss or injury and are not well adjusted years later maybe doing some grief work is in order?

Call or email Marty today to get more information about grief work: mkestin@ensomabodyworks.com • 704.335.8115

A lot of the questions I get asked start this way. A large majority of the patients I see have already sought help for the problem they are presenting me with and are already on some sort of medication or in some sort of therapy. Below are some of the most common questions about combining acupuncture with other treatments.

Can I get acupuncture if I am already on a medication for my problem?
Yes. Acupuncture works very well along side traditional pharmaceutical treatment. It is important that I know what medications a patient is on so I may take them into consideration when formulating their treatment.

Will acupuncture interfere with my treatments from a Physical or Massage Therapist?
No. In most situations it is even ideal to receive acupuncture along with manual therapies like massage and physical therapy. Receiving treatment on multiple levels will most often greatly enhance one another’s effects.

How does acupuncture affect my Yoga or Tai Chi practice?
It will affect the practice of both, in a very powerful and synergistic way. I wish all of my patients pursued some sort of mind-body exercise. Disciplines like Yoga and Tai Chi very powerfully supplement and encourage the flow of the bodies’ vital energies. When practiced regularly the developed student will need less and less intervention of any kind to maintain optimal health.

Can I get acupuncture and Chiropractic care at the same time?
Yes. Just as with massage and physical therapy, acupuncture and chiropractic can provide tremendous results when properly coordinated.

Can I get acupuncture if I am pregnant?
Absolutely! While there are some points that are avoided when treating pregnant women it can still be a tremendous help with things like morning sickness, back pain, swelling, heartburn and many of the other discomforts associated with pregnancy.

These are just some of the most common questions surrounding acupuncture and how it combines with other therapies and conditions. If you have any questions please call us, visit our web site or come to Community Acupuncture at the Bindu on Thursday afternoons.

Abe Rummage L.Ac • 704-483-5441 • www.AcuCareClinic.com

Most health and fitness professionals would agree that better posture and physical alignment results in less pain and improved health. In my private neuromuscular practice I improve clients’ posture with a unique postural program.  When I am asked by a client what they should do to maintain their posture and alignment once we are done I usually say “continue what you have learned and try Anusara Yoga”
Why?  A few reasons:

• The postural program I use is purely physical and a great place to start for people with pain and orthopaedic issues. Yoga however is a body / mind practice that will take the person to another level of health once the immediate pain and issue is alleviated.
• Any exercise is good exercise as long as it does not hurt you. But are you improving posture and alignment in the process? Yoga not only will improve posture but fosters self awareness and induces the relaxation response which is very important in today’s stressful society.
• The needs of the body and mind are nourished in many yoga styles but Anusara Yoga has an elegant set of alignment principles and a methodology of instruction that releases the natural form of the body and elevates the spirit.

What is this natural form?
Think of the most graceful moving person you have ever seen: She walks smoothly, stands erect, has little to no pain and her body does what is asked of it without discomfort.

Most joint problems and pain begin when the body does not get enough sufficient and functional movement leading to muscle dysfunction and joint misalignment. Anusara Yoga corrects these misalignments and dysfunctions and so much more. As we know ill health (even orthopaedic problems) have more than just a physical cause and Anusara Yoga will help heal and align you physically, emotionally, energetically and spiritually.

If you are reading this Blog chances are you already practice Anusara Yoga. Why not bring a friend with you next time you are at the Bindu? They just might like it as much as you!

Marty Kestin, 704.335.811, mkestin@ensomabodyworks.com, ensomabodyworks.com

When considering a visit to an acupuncturist, many of us think of Chinese Medicine for treating problems such as low back pain, migraines and allergies. While acupuncture has proven very effective for these ailments, did you know that it’s also very successful in the treatment of sports injuries?

Acupuncture and injury in ancient times

Photo c/o: RodrigoFavera

Much of the development of Chinese medicine took place in Taoist temples. Monks who studied acupuncture and herbs and those who studied martial arts lived together and regularly trained together as well. This cross training gave birth to a rich tradition of using acupuncture and herbs to treat traumatic and sports injuries. Over the centuries this tradition was honed into an extremely effective set of treatment skills and injury remedies.

Ancient cures for modern times
Many of today’s licensed and certified acupuncturists know the ancient skills for rapid and effective treatment of acute and chronic sports injuries. Keep in mind that broken bones, open wounds, head trauma and other critical injuries should always be treated first by your doctor. But for lesser injures like sprains, strains and bruises, acupuncture and herbal medicine can be very helpful in reducing pain and inflammation as well as dramatically reducing healing time

Acupuncture for amateurs and pros alike
Many professional, semi-pro and college-level teams today know the benefits of acupuncture and Chinese medicine and employ acupuncturists to exclusively treat the athletes, helping them get back in the game – and in some cases even increasing their performance.

Click here for more about sports injuries and acupuncture article from healthy.net.

If you have any questions about how acupuncture, herbs and therapeutic massage can help acute and chronic sports injuries – or any other conditions – please give us a call.

Abe Rummage, L.Ac., LMBT at AcuCare Clinic, 704-483-5441, www.AcuCareClinic.com