Teacher Feedback: Asthma Attacks

This is some feedback I gave a student on his/her test this week. I wanted to share it with everyone as I felt it was an important point:

His/her answer:

2. Name two ways you can stop an asthma attack
1. You can apply pressure to the ling area with your palm.
2. Thyme and/or oregano oil rubbed on the chest can often stop asthma
attacks immediately

My response:

Very good! Also, we always want to remember the obvious – find the source and remove it. If it is an excercize induced attack, the person needs to rest. If it was induced by a smell then the person needs to be removed from that area.

Student Excerpts: Intuition by Avicenna

The following passage came from the homework of student, Ann Neadermann in Norway. I thought it was a wonderful description of Avicenna's views and intuition in general:

Ann Neaderman
Unit Four
Medicine of Avicenna

11. How does Avicenna define intuition? Do you think he believes in using it in healing a patient?

It receives the essences of universal things in so far as they are universal. The perfection of this power is to become an intellect in act. The first way is called reasoning, while the second is called intuition. Yet intuition can be very powerful or weak or mediocre.If the speculative intellect reaches this perfection by having present the first and derived intelligible principles, and these are there actually and in full view without being absent, then the derived principles are related to the first as "light upon light"; this is the acquired intellect, because it derives from both kinds of principles. The soul has mastery of intelligible principles and is able to recall them whenever it wants without effort or assistance, that power is called the intellect in act, and this is the "lamp" that it makes use of whenever it wants. You must know the difference between reasoning and intuition.

Consulting Tips - Don't Miss the Obvious

I learned a good lesson about #5 (see previous post) when I had a recent bout with allergies. I am severely allergic to molds. Although I can tolerate small amounts (due to my healthy diet and herbal therapy years ago) and short term exposure I get very ill when exposed to them in an intense or frequent way. This is usually easy to avoid. I don't sleep in basements, I wear a mask when cleaning the bathroom and am careful to check the house for molds and use vinegar on areas that need "cleaning up". Sometimes I will even employ the help of a friend if I find a large patch. I wear a mask when raking moldy leaves in the Autumn and Spring and don't usually worry about the problem very much at all. After all - how often will you be exposed to mold without realizing it?

That is why I didn't even consider mold as the culprit when I became ill during a trip four weeks ago and during another trip 2 weeks ago. During both trips I assumed that perhaps I was feeling overworked, my nerves were tense from the anticipation of travel and perhaps it had made me more sensitive to things in general. That can happen. During times of great stress a person can actually be allergic to things they were never allergic to before or their old allergies can increase in severity. Sometimes I sneak in a bit of junk food when healthier food is not available on the road and perhaps I reacted to one of the additives? Or perhaps it was the hotel room?

However, the intensity of the "attacks" confused me. My diet was good. I was not exposing myself to many allergens, I wasn't feeling very anxious. I was actually feeling very relaxed and at peace. And, I had not eaten any differently than I usually do at home. So why was I having these sudden allergy attacks?

I made the cats sleep in another room for a few nights, I avoided all things I was even slightly allergic or sensitive too, I took herbal teas and homeopathic remedies. And I was fine. Until I went to an Irish Concert last weekend. It was very confusing. I was completely fine and then somewhere in-between my home and the concert I had been exposed to something. What could it have been? I had been so careful? And how could I go from feeling perfect to so severely disabled in ten minutes? What could cause such devastation?

It was driving me crazy...

(there is a hint in that last line)

Have you figured it out yet?

I didn't.

It was not until my friend said the following words that it all made sense:

"I'm sorry my car is probably not making it any better with that musty smell in it."

Suddenly everything became clear. My attacks had coincided perfectly with the three times I had rode in their "new" used car! We tested the theory for the next week (by avoiding the car and using mine) and I was completely cured.

It had not occurred to me that the ventilation system in the car could be so filled with molds. However, it was. And many cars are. I felt so silly for missing "the obvious". It also taught me a lesson - don't ever assume or leave any stone unturned. Even if you have never had trouble with something before, don't leave that out of your detective radar. The problem could be in your clothing, your car, your pet, your diet, even a new appliance. Make sure you search well and don't miss the solution that is sitting right in front of you.

If not for that chance comment by my friend I might still be baffled about it to this day. However, I am certainly going to start including this question in some of the forms my clients fill out now - especially if they drive a lot or commute to work. I'll add that question after the question that says "What kind of water to you shower in?" (to see if they have a lot of chlorine exposure).

The Importance of Taking the Health History

I was on the phone the other day with a client. We spoke for almost an hour about her child. In addition to that hour she had sent me a few e-mails with descriptions of him as well as a 28-report by a child psychologist which was very impressive! After all this information, though, I still felt something was missing. It was a bit like looking at a large puzzle and realizing one of the pieces are missing. It is almost done...but not quite. Then I decided to go a little farther back into his health history. I askedm "Did he have any health problems as a baby?"

"Well, yes," she replied, "He did have eczema but not as much any more."

As I pursued this new "lead" it emerged that he had struggled with eczema his entire life and that she had used and was still using hydrocortizone creams as his only "cure". In addition, he had never been tested for allergies.

What amazed me is that this essential piece of evidence had not been shared with her local doctor or naturopath and was not anywhere in the 18-page report. It was essential to her child's healing and provided a major reason for the health issues she was complaining of and yet it had never been considered. Hopefully, with the real culprit behind his health issues unmasked he can now start on the road to healing.

However, it is not by any fault of the mother that this information was not shared before or connected to his present condition. Even the most perceptive healer can sometimes miss the obvious. To make sure you don't miss the obvious do the following:

1. Follow the client intake form provided for you in the Consulting Unit. Add to this form as needed and make it yours.

2. Make sure you ask about the health history of the client and use their answers as a clues to what additional questions you should be asking.

3. Don't accept short answers. Make sure you get details on everything.

4. Don't make assumptions. I almost missed the eczema connection with this client because I assumed she had included everything important in the forms she had already sent me. After all the forms were so complete! I couldn't imagine she would have left something out. As it turns out she simply did not answer one of the questions in very good detail or didn't think this answer applied to the current situation.

5. Explore everything and leave no "stone unturned". See my next post for some details on this.

Sharing Information with Clients

When I talk to clients about the results of their consult and give them suggestions about lifestyle changes they can make I find it is essential to give them reasons for those changes. Often, people have been told the same things all their life - "eat right", "eat more vegetables", "don't eat so much meat", "don't eat so much bread", "exercise more". What you need to do is describe to them what EXACTLY their habits are doing to THEM to cause THEIR issues (that they have described to you). This description will often be different for different clients. For example, if a client is consuming too many starches and/or too much bread and they are overweight I may talk to them about how starches help you gain weight. If a client complains of irregular menses I may talk to them about how starches can put your menses out of sync. In addition, giving details can make your evaluation more effective too. Clients often appreciate details such as ingredients, scientific studies or more. However, you must also remember that clients need to hear things in laymen's terms and you need to make it as short as possible. They don't always have time to read that entire book that inspired you or even to take a course. This is why I enjoyed the following article so much. The following article is one of the most effective ones I have seen to date that describes the dangers of fast food in an effective, yet concise way. I have files it away to share with future clients. I am sending the link to you so you can do the same.

The Shocking Facts About Fast Food
We all know it is bad but this article has some great DETAILS...
http://health.yahoo.com/experts/eatthis/45380/4-shocking-secrets-about-fast-food/

Client Tips: The Short Checklist

When I return a client consult form with their results I make sure I check the following items so I am sure I have provided them with the best program possible. This is the short list of items I go over in my head:

I always make sure my clients are "on track" with a number of things - this is my brief check-list:

1. Sleep - quantity, quality and rhythm

2. Diet - quality, proportion of healthy and unhealthy foods, amount of sugar in diet, amount of wheat in diet, amount of vegetables and fruits in diet, drinks consumed, amount of caffeine in diet, rhythm of diet, times and amounts eaten.

3. Lifestyle - stress factors (even exciting things), repetitive movements like working on a computer for hours at a time or sleeping on your arm at night, walking with the same shoes daily, etc...

4. Exercise - gentle -vs- intense, how often and does it include stretching?

5. Spiritual life - find a comfortable place

6. Personal relationships - need to resolve conflicts

7. Finances - bad-vs-good, develop coping mechanisms

8. Herbs and supplements - make sure they are the right ones, being taken at the right times, for the correct length of time and that they are quality supplements. Make sure the client does not have any contraindications in their condition or temperament to that therapy.

Each of these is just as important as the next one. There is not one that is more important than the other (although exercise, positive thought and spirituality have shown evidence that they may be) so each must be considered.

If you have any favorite consulting client tips please share them with other students on the list.

Blessings & Health,
Kristie Karima Burns, MH, ND

Client Consulting: Depression

Question:
I am almost ready to send in my 1st answers. I have a question about one of my client's and her son if you can help - The boy has been put on alot of medicines and labeled anything the parents asked about.so they have him on only 1 med but would love to get him off it and help him His moods are way up or way down and then she gets depressed also. I wondered if you had any specific reflexology tips to use on them I am also going to use reiki on them since I just finished reiki11.

Answer:
I would recommend doing a temperament evaluation on him and seeing which temperament he is first. In terms of mood swings it is really essential to know where the "normal" is for that temperament. For example the Sanguine has mood swings as a normal part of their life - it is called "seasons" and any extreme can be balanced, but cannot be eliminated. The melancholic can often go into depression and then out but the swings are usually not extreme. This is also normal. The choleric does not usually stay in a depressed mood for long at all. They snap out of things quickly so if they stay depressed that is bad. The phlegmatic can seem depressed most of the time. They just function at a slower pace and take things in stride more and don't get too excited about things although they can get very angry when pushed out of their comfort zone (which is much smaller than most people) so they CAN exhibit signs of mood swings if they are in their comfort zone they can seem depressed (but they are not) and when they get pulled out of it they can get really angry and lash out to protect themselves. It is really good to know this baseline first.

Secondly it is good to check his sleep habits and eating habits. Any caffeine at all will up his testosterone levels and hormone fluctuations can wreak havoc on a young kid. Also, in general check his rhythms - any "mood swings" are usually an indication that some rhythm in his life is off kilter - it could be his sleep rhythms, eating rhythms (sugar and junk foods - caffeine, etc...foods that cause big ups and downs can throw this off), lifestyle rhythms, etc...any thing like this can cause mood swings as it is the body's attempt to get itself back into balance.

The meds themselves can cause mood swings so also make sure they chart his mood swings and chart when he takes the meds. He MUST take the meds at the exact same time every day. This is essential for mood meds but a lot of people don't realize this.

In general, they can chart his mood swings and show you the chart after a week or two and that can also help. Also, can they/you be more descriptive about mood swings? How does he exhibit them? What are they like?

Hope this helps!

It really depends on the reason as to which herb he should take or which reflexology points you should use. Does he need an herb for hormone balance? For help sleeping? To balance blood sugar? Etc...