If you’re a parent and you suffer from migraines or chronic headaches, you already know the special challenges of parenting through severe pain. Busy lives full of school events, sports practices, and errands mean that the days of disappearing into a dark room to sleep off a headache are practically non-existent when tiny beings depend on you for everything.

So, what can you do?

Here are 3 secrets to being an awesome parent, even if you suffer from migraines or chronic headaches:

1. Invest in Yourself
No matter how busy your schedule is, write in 15 minutes of “me time” every day, without exception.

Why? Because you need a minimum of 15 minutes a day alone to be your best self.

My 15 minutes starts the second I wake up in the morning. Whether my daughter is awake or not, I head straight to my journal and write 1 page of affirmations to start my day. Then I spend 10-15 minutes reading book(s) that nourish my soul. This “me time” is non-negotiable. Can’t get your littles to give you 15 minutes? If you’re married, ask your spouse to backfill your parenting position. If your kids are easy persuaded with bribes, give them something to keep them happy for 15 minutes. Build your “me time” into a daily routine. It’s not always easy, but kids and spouses are trainable especially when something happens every day at the same time of day!
 
2. Reverse-Engineer Your Life
Identify what obstacles are blocking you from living a headache-free life. Is it too many looming deadlines at work? Is it unresolved tension in your marriage? Is it sitting in 2 hours of traffic everyday and feeling stuck? Obstacles are everywhere and they come in all different sizes and shapes. Write down 5 obstacles that contribute to your headaches. Then, reverse-engineer a solution to all 5 or as many as you can. Some may be easier to abolish than others. But you won’t know how hard or how easy it can be to overcome obstacles in your life until you figure out what they are.

3. Claim Your Strengths
What are you “good” at?  Are you good at helping others? Cooking? Showing up on time? Going  to church every Sunday? Dancing? Take a quick inventory to write down 5 things you do well. Then, think about why you do those things well. Are you good at showing up on time because you plan ahead? Are you good at dancing because you dance like no one else is watching? Embrace your strengths and celebrate them. If you do get a migraine or a horrendous headache, celebrate tiny victories like having enough energy to get out of bed and give your kids a hug after baseball practice. On headache days, the small victories count the most.

Are you interested in learning more about natural approaches to long-term relief from migraines and chronic headaches? Indigo Healing Acupuncture has teamed up with Julie Balderrama Coaching to offer a unique holistic program for anyone suffering from headaches.  We help people (who have tried everything) break free from headaches by discovering hidden obstacles to healing. We empower them with knowledge and tools to find long-lasting relief so they can thrive with freedom and joy in their life. 

Do you suffer from Migraine or Chronic Headaches?

• Are you tired of hiding in dark quiet rooms to avoid light & noise?
• When you have a headache, do you feel pulsing pain that gets worse when you move?
• Do headaches cause you to cancel plans and activities?
• Are you ready to relieve your headaches without the side-effects of prescriptions or Botox?

We have a solution for you!

We’ve teamed up with Qi Gong Extraordinaire and Mind-Body Coach Julie Balderrama to provide a comprehensive program for relieving the root cause of Migraines and Chronic Headaches. This program will not only banish headaches, but improve your life with easy tools and strategies for migraine and headache prevention.

Join us at Skull and Cakebones on Saturday February 9, 2019 at 11am to learn how you can reclaim a headache-free life you love. RSVP required, click the button below or call 512-686-0777.

​Conventional medicine is great at some things, like emergency surgery. However, it often fails at treating more common problems, like frequent headaches or poor sleep.
 
Here are five common conditions that are poorly treated/managed by conventional medicine:

1. Chronic Pain...Treated with over-the-counter pain relievers (aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen), opioids, physical therapy, surgery, tough-it-out mindset
2.  Insomnia...Treated with sleeping pills, anti-depressants
3. Migraine Headaches...Treated with over-the-counter pain relievers (aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen), caffeine, beta-blockers, antidepressants, ergot, triptans, glucocorticoids, opioids
4. Anxiety/Depression...Treated with  antidepressants, benzodiazepines, beta-blockers
5. Vertigo (Dizziness)... Treated with diuretics, antihistamines, benzodiazepines, anti-nausea drugs

 
Acupuncture excels at treating these five conditions because it gets to the root of the problem. Conventional medicine only offers interventions (pharmaceutical or surgical) to relieve the symptoms of these condition, while acupuncture delivers long-term relief.

Often the quick-fix of drugs or surgery creates more health problems as the root cause of the condition is left untreated and/or undiagnosed. If you hear your doctor say the word "idiopathic" it means he/she does not know the cause of your condition. Not very comforting, right?

At your first acupuncture treatment, we’ll diagnose the root cause of your condition and get you on the road for long-term healing and relief. Acupuncture treatments not only prevent conditions from returning, it can prevent related conditions from arising.

About 12 years ago, I suffered from debilitating chronic migraines. They would start with an aura, usually consisting of a blind spot that would prevent me from reading anything, including my watch. The aura would last about 25 minutes, then the vomiting would start, followed by intense pressure building in my skull. The worst sensation of each migraine was the stabbing pain behind my eye that could last for 12+ hours. All I could do was lie in a dark, cool room waiting for the pain to subside. There was no sleep, just unrelenting pain and silent prayers for relief.

The migraines consumed my life, 2-3 days of every week. I lost work days, I lost friends, my marriage decayed, and I fell out of touch. People got tired of hearing me say “Sorry, I have a headache.” It was both depressing and terrifying.
 
I tried over-the-counter meds like aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen. I tried drinking coffee and dark chocolate during the aura. I had a CAT scan and a MRI, which revealed nothing. Neurologists prescribed an assortment of pharmaceuticals, but they either didn’t work or had terrible side effects (topiramate = hair fell out/slurred speech/memory loss). Plus, they were only mildly effective, reducing the rate of my migraines to about 2 a month. My neurologist warned me that I would need to take a beta blocker (propranolol) for the rest of my life to prevent the migraines from coming back.

​I was only 28. The rest of my life sounded like a very long time.
 
As a last ditch effort, I gave acupuncture a try. There was an acupuncturist across the street from my office and she performed nothing short of a miracle.
 
The frequency and severity of my migraines diminished over the course of a few weekly treatments. After a few months, I was able to stop the topiramate. After two years, I weaned off the beta blocker. It was a long journey to relief, but manageable with acupuncture and Chinese herbs.
 
At this point, I can look back and see how migraines caused me to stop and rebuild my life. The migraines called me to become a holistic doctor and help others find relief. They turned out to be an amazing blessing in an awful package.
 
What are your migraines telling you? 
​

Let's talk about Chronic Pain...

• Have your aches/pains persisted 12 weeks or longer?
• Do you suffer from osteoarthritis, headaches, migraines, fibromylagia, tendonitis, neuralgia, knee pain, back pain or other pain that just won't go away?
• Is pain preventing you from activities you love?

If you answered YES, acupuncture can help you return to your best life without drugs or surgery!

A recent study in the scientific journal Pain found, “90% of the benefit of acupuncture over usual care is retained at 12 months after the end of a course of treatment.”  Indigo Healing Acupuncture offers customized treatment plans designed to provide you with long-term relief of chronic pain.

If you're ready to live your best life and return to activities you love, schedule a consultation by calling 512-686-0777 or send an email to info@indigohealingacupuncture.com

• Do you suffer from an illness that is mysterious in origin?
• Do you have a condition that MDs have described as idiopathic (no known cause)?
• Have you tried every tool of modern medicine (pharmaceuticals, surgery, rest) and still haven’t found relief?

When I was in my late 20’s, I suffered from debilitating migraine headaches and idiopathic tachycardia (fast heartbeat). I had monthly appointments with a neurologist who had me try at least a dozen different medications to decrease the frequency and severity of my headaches. The side effects were brutal: weight gain, memory loss, personality changes… the list could go on & on.  As a last resort, a coworker suggested scheduling an appointment with an acupuncturist across the street from our office. The acupuncturist had helped her with chronic insomnia and she convinced me I had nothing to lose by giving it a try.  

I will never forget my first appointment. For an entire hour, the acupuncturist asked me about my illness and actually listened to my answers. I had never had a doctor really listen to me before.  After checking my tongue and pulse, she explained my diagnosis and explained how acupuncture could help. Three months later, I walked out of her clinic migraine-free. My neurologist was astounded when I told him I was no longer taking the daily cocktail of prescriptions and had not had a migraine in a month. 

So how does acupuncture solve medical mysteries?
Acupuncture is based on an entirely different medical system based on over 2,000 years of clinical experience.  Specifically:

1. Acupuncturists treat the body-mind-spirit as a whole. There is no division between the physical body and the mind, nor is there a division between the physical body and the spirit. Acupuncture is a form of holistic medicine that understands the whole person, not just a constellation of symptoms.
2. Acupuncture promotes self-healing through homeostasis in the nervous system, cardiovascular system, endocrine system, and immune system. Each acupuncture point stimulates these systems which allows the body to self-regulate and heal itself. 
3. Through tongue and pulse diagnosis, acupuncturists can diagnose and identify the root cause of every illness or pain. Unlike modern medicine, there is no such thing as an idiopathic illness or a mysterious symptom. Everything is connected and explainable, much like a leaf on a tree is dependent on healthy roots in the ground. 

These three aspects of acupuncture enable modern medical mysteries to be solved in a gentle, safe, and nourishing manner. 
 
To schedule a consultation to solve your own medical mystery, contact Michelle. 

• Have you recently ended your marriage?
• Do you feel emotionally drained?
• Are you holding onto anger and/or feelings of resentment towards your former spouse?
• Are you grieving the loss of your marriage and your shared future?
• Has divorce caused old patterns of anxiety and depression to resurface?
• Are you ready to reclaim your new life?

Oriental medicine provides a holistic approach to healing from a broken heart. Symptoms of a "broken heart" can manifest as difficulty sleeping, depression, anxiety, poor appetite or overeating, inability to focus, acne, asthma, tight muscles and soreness, TMJ, sciatica, headaches, migraines, heartburn, constipation or diarrhea, uterine fibroids, endometriosis, and more.

​Indigo Healing Acupuncture offers a comprehensive 12 week program to help you process the end of your marriage and reclaim a new vibrant life. 

This customized package includes acupuncture, Chinese herbs, traditional fire cupping/gua sha, and self-care suggestions to boost your Qi and bring forgiveness & hope back into your life. This program is offered on a limited basis and a pre-consultation by phone is required.

Contact Michelle to learn more about this one-of-a-kind Holistic Divorce Recovery program.

​It primarily affects children who are three to ten years old and can show up suddenly with symptoms like abdominal pain, nausea/vomiting, sudden loss of appetite, skin sensitivity, and pale complexion. These symptoms also appear in more serious conditions, like appendicitis, so if your child is suddenly sick with the symptoms listed here, it is best to immediately call your pediatrician and/or visit the emergency room.

Cause of Pediatric Abdominal Migraine:
Scientists have not yet identified all of the biomedical mechanisms or causes of migraine, but migraine is known to be hereditary, meaning it runs in families. If Mom and/or Dad suffer from migraine, their child is more prone to experience migraines in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. 

Pediatric Abdominal Migraine Triggers:
One way to help your child is to become aware of specific migraine triggers, or things/activities that can trigger the start of a migraine. Common migraine triggers in children include:

• Sleep: Not enough sleep, sleeping in too late, waking up too early, getting overtired
• Meals: Waiting too long between meals, dehydration, high-sugar diet, or food allergy
• Emotions: Stress or anxiety about something going on at school or home, anger or frustration (can be as simple as feeling anger towards a sibling over not sharing toys)
• Environmental: Changes in weather, exposure to gusty wind, exposure to bright lights or flickering lights, too much TV or computer screen time, general overstimulation 
• Travel: Car sickness or motion sickness, jet lag

Treatments for Pediatric Abdominal Migraine:
When a child is suffering from symptoms that look like abdominal migraine, I advise parents to carry a small notebook to record the date, time, and events leading up to the abdominal pain, such as long car ride, up late last night, skipped a meal, etc.  Your pediatric acupuncturist or pediatrician can review the log to help identify specific triggers and patterns.

At Indigo Healing Acupuncture we treat pediatric abdominal migraine holistically by examining all aspects of the child's mind-body-spirit to identify areas of imbalance. Lifestyle adjustments, needle-free painless laser acupuncture, and customized Chinese herb drops can reduce the frequency, severity, and pain of abdominal migraine attacks in children.

Hey, are you...​

• Feeling stressed?
• Suffering from anxiety?
• Plagued by tension headaches?
• Tired of mood swings?
• Up all night overthinking and worrying?

Have no fear, Enlighten Herbal Elixir is now available at 
Indigo Healing Acupuncture!
 
What is it?
Enlighten Herbal Elixir is a hot beverage containing eight Chinese herbs.  The herbs work together to help relieve:

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Insomnia
• Mood swings
• Depression
• PMS
• Headaches, including migraine

 
What does it taste like?
Enlighten Herbal Elixir tastes good. It has a golden color and smooth consistency that feels great on the throat.
 
Still have doubts an Elixir made out of Chinese herbs can taste good? 
Over the past month, Enlighten Herbal Elixir has been extensively taste-tested and approved by one of my most discriminating patients… my two-year old daughter! She loves it and serves it up at her tea parties!
 
How do I know it will work?
This Chinese formula has been used for over 900 years. Western science has conducted clinical studies on its ability to treat the conditions listed above. For a list of clinical studies, contact Michelle and she’ll email it to you so you can see the evidence yourself. 
 
Why is it so hard to find?
Enlighten Herbal Elixir is currently farm-direct to only 150 clinics in the US. Indigo Healing Acupuncture is blessed to be one of those clinics! The Sichuan farm produces herbs in a sustainable manner, therefore quantities are very limited. All raw herbs are stored in humidity and temperature-controlled warehouses and the dried herbs are free from sulfur and sulfites. Thin Liquid Chromatography qualitative analysis and High Performance Liquid Chromatography qualitative/quantitative analysis are conducted on the raw and dried herbs to ensure the highest level of active constituents of the herbs are preserved. There is further testing to check for pesticide residue and heavy metals.  In short, the eight herbs in this elixir meet strict European Union standards for quality and potency.
 
Contact Michelle to find out if Enlighten Herbal Elixir is right for you!

When summer temps rise above 100°F, drinking a cup of hot tea sounds like a crazy idea, right?
 
I don’t know about you, but when I get hot, I get cranky with a monster tension headache. 
(Not a good place to be, especially for an acupuncturist!)
 
That’s when I take a few deep breaths and enjoy a cup of organic Peppermint tea.  
 
Peppermint is an aromatic, pungent Chinese herb called Bo He that is known to release wind-heat from the body’s exterior. It enters the Liver and Lung meridians where it

• eases tension headache
• clears heat (redness) from the eyes
• soothes a sore throat
• clears heat rash
• calms the colon

 
Peppermint’s cooling sensation is produced by the organic compound menthol. A factoid is that menthol chemically triggers cold-sensitive receptors, which results in a cooling sensation when ingested. It actually relaxes the “smooth” muscles in the walls of the intestine which is helpful for relieving indigestion, diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, and menstrual cramps.
 
As amazing as Peppermint tea is, there are some people who shouldn’t drink it:

• Breastfeeding moms (it will decrease milk supply)
• People with heartburn
• People who are allergic to menthol
• Someone who is acutely ill with cold sweats

 
These are my favorite loose and bagged organic Peppermint teas. Enjoy!