Acupuncture at Exhale Spa

I thoroughly enjoyed the attention you all gave me last week for my birthday. This morning, I saw a girl walking with one of those birthday balloons, and it jarred a memory that lends to the point I made last week. But first, some background: In high school, there was a trend of bringing your friend a balloon on her birthday. It was not uncommon to see a large cluster of balloons hovering around the cafeteria. I remember getting so many balloons one year that navigating the hallways — an already difficult task in a school of 4,500 that was built for 1,300 — was next to impossible. And imagine taking the MTA city bus with those babies, as I also did that year. I am sure I was not the bus driver’s favorite lady that day.

Anyway, my memory was as follows:  After the balloon trend already ended, I still wanted the attention that said trend brought. So before school, I went to the card store and purchased not one, but two birthday balloons. For myself. To carry around all day. For attention.

When my mom came home later that day she asked me who bought the balloons.

“I did.”

“You bought the balloons . . . for yourself?”

I realized all along how ridiculous yet hilarious this was. Her reaction was even better because — finally — someone noticed that this is how I roll.

[Credit: AAA Balloons]

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One more unrelated note:

Please check out my newest post on NBC New York, this one is really important to me because I talk about a memory I have of my father before he died and how he influenced my love of The Beatles (particularly George Harrison):

Dori’s Quest: The Beatles Yoga Experience

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On to the fun DSB  topic of today: Needles.

[Credit: Grand Stand Acupuncture]

Last year, shortly after I ran my second half marathon (within in two weeks!), I was emailed a discount code for an amazing price for the following year’s 13.1 Marathon NY on April 2, 2011. Back in April 2010 when I signed up, this seemed like an eternity away. What would my life even be in 2011? 2011 is absurd! But the $30 race fee was too good to turn down, and I figured — why not. I like half marathons.

And then I went and tore my labrum. Read Part 1 and Part 2 of my story.

As part of my healing, the always-incredible people at exhale spa offered me four acupuncture sessions to document here. I always wanted to try this, so of course I accepted their generous offer.

So last month I tried acupuncture for the first time. I had a wonderful experience with my acupuncturist Jordana Allen, which included a foot massage in addition to needles in my hip, legs, wrists and head. I learned about tongue diagnosis and stomach channels.

It wasn’t totally painless — they are, after all, needles.  It certainly helped that Jordana is one of the sweetest people I have ever met and she loves Core Fusion. I felt like I was just hanging out with a good friend. The kind of friend who likes needles.

Since that visit, I have been back to Jordana (who also dealt with a torn labrum) three more times.

My second session was much like my first, except that the needles actually hurt more. Jordana was extremely receptive to any complaints of pain, and if any needle hurt she would take it out and fix it. Which is why I didn’t tell her about all of it. I just wanted to get to my foot massage.

The third time was much better. It seems that the more you do it, the easier it gets. That’s what she said.

For my hip, Jordana put needles in the tender points for pain relief and to help assist in the healing process. And while I was originally there for my hip, after Jordana learned my medical history, she wanted to help with my GI issues. This explains why needles were in my legs (my stomach channel in my legs were blue, which indicates cold, which indicates stagnation), wrists and on top of my head.

By my last session, my hip was not hurting at all. I wish I could attribute this wholly to acupuncture, but in reality I had been going to physical therapy and also received a cortisone injection in January. My doctor did say that many people with a torn labrum feel pain again a couple of weeks after the injection. I don’t. I believe it is a combination of all the work I have been doing that helped, including acupuncture.

Because my hip wasn’t much of an issue anymore,  Jordana went above and beyond what was asked of her and she gave me an Acu-Organ Detox for my last session with her. From exhale’s website:

Experience higher levels of energy and mental clarity through regular acu-organ detox therapies. This method combines acupuncture and a highly effective hot oil abdominal therapy which releases and eliminates toxins while enhancing organ function. The 60-minute service includes an abdominal massage.

Jordana’s reasons for her needle placements and treatments are as follows:

• To help move the stagnation she saw in my tongue (which means that energy seems stuck)
• To help strengthen, or tonify, your body to move the stagnation and help with digestion
• She chose the stomach points with the needles to tonify stomach qi (*DSB tip – excellent Words with Friends word). This  means strengthening the energy of my stomach and help it descend, regulating the intestines, and dispelling cold (which she saw in my tongue, and the fact that I am always cold)
• Dispel general stagnation in my stomach
• Add the Acu-Organ Detox treatment by using the castor oil pack and choosing the large intestine (where I have the issues) and liver points to move stagnation, calm the spirit and help remove any obstruction in the channel itself

We combined both the castor oil pack and an acupuncture treatment as well as abdominal massage for you to receive the most benefit from the treatment.

Jordana sent me home with special paper towels and instructions to buy castor oil and treat myself with it. She also explained that the longer you have suffered from issue being treated in acupuncture, the longer it takes to heal.

A quick summary of acupuncture at exhale:

The Good

• Exhale employes highly skilled, caring acupuncturists who listen and respond to your needs
• There is a lot of research that it works
• Foot massage
• You’ve got nothing to lose by trying
• My hip feels great! (Though I can’t attribute this completely to acupuncture)

The Bad

• Needles are needles
• Can be expensive
• It could take multiple sessions to see results

The good outweighs the bad. Do I recommend acupuncture? Absolutely. At exhale? Yep — they hire the best. While I can’t afford to continue with my treatments regularly, I can guarantee that this will not be my last time seeing Jordana. After so many terrible experiences with doctors (who, by the end, recommended a life-destroying surgery), it is amazing to have someone who listens to me and truly wants to help me heal.

Is my stomach better? No. But like Jordana said, the longer you suffer the more treatment you require. I’ve had my problems since 2007 so it would take more time. But my hip feels great. Like, really great. I am cautious and still will not do any stretches or movements that bothered it in the past (turning out), but running is not a turned out sport. Thanks to the work I have done — all of it, including cortisone, extensive physical therapy, Refine Method and this acupuncture — I feel ready to give it a go.

So while I won’t be running the 13.1 Marathon NY as planned, I have high hopes for the rest of this year. I believe the acupuncture helped and I cannot thank exhale enough for my amazing experience.

I received four acupuncture treatments from exhale spa at no charge, aside from gratuities. While I am obligated to write a review, the opinions expressed are entirely my own.