Crazy Sexy Life

Bianca Beldini, M.S.O.M., L.Ac, P.T.

“Every adversity carries with it a seed of greater benefit.” If anyone knows me, they would tell you that this is my daily tag line. I read it for the first time 10 years ago in a book written by Napolean Hill but didn’t really understand it until adversity slapped me in the face, knocked me to the ground and dragged me through the streets of NYC’s financial district on September 11, 2001.

I entered the twisted, internal psycho-emotional world of Dante’s Inferno, otherwise known as Post Traumatic Stress. It wasn’t pleasant to be afraid of the sounds of trucks backfiring, or having panic attacks while sitting on a subway train or contemplating how I might stop my scalp from forming bleeding plaques of psoriasis brought on by stress. I was a city girl, born and bred and had no idea that life on the outside could affect me so profoundly on the inside.

In the 1st century BC, an Ancient Chinese medical text was written that described the art of an all-encompassing medical philosophy. It was a book that described the human being as a small version of the cosmos and told the secret of how to live and sustain a healthy life. It stated that humans needed to learn to balance their internal state of being with their external environment. It was based deeply on Taoist theory, which believes that nature is the very expression of the essence of the universe and the force that creates all things.

One day before 9/11, I began my official academic quest into the eastern healing art of Oriental Medicine. The words “art” and “medicine” are rarely ever found in the same sentence however I learned early on in my career as an eastern practitioner that there is indeed a need for creative interpretation of someone’s symptoms of complexity. The human landscape is complicated, diverse, highly individualized with each of us beings holding our own unique set of blueprints.

The human internal environment often mimics the external world. If there is outside chaos and one hasn’t the tools to dissipate the fractionated energy, the inner energetic systems will become synchronous to the turmoil. Over a prolonged period of time, this will cause internal disruptions within our physical systems causing “symptoms” to appear which lets us know that our inner orchestra is playing out of tune.
Unfortunately, along with the advent of technology and fast paced lifestyles, came the “don’t stop, reach for the top” behaviors. It is the wake up with caffeine and need for pills/alcohol to wind down and sleep habits. It is the “eat while watching TV, having debates or making deals” habits. It is women being given synthetic hormones for 20+ years of their lives and having their reproductive health taken away habits. And it is the “let me eat genetically engineered food out of cans and boxes because it takes less time” habits.

But how does one know they are out of balance before the body begins to show signs? This is where the Taoist theory has been lost in translation along thousands of years of interpretation. The 11 categories of health include: sleep, lifestyle, digestion/elimination, menstruation/reproduction, temperature, emotions, skin, bones/ligaments/muscles, respiration, cardiovascular and physical energy. One must be aware of each of these daily in order to stay healthy and well. This is where Oriental Medicine is becoming the missing link in our healthcare options today.

Acupuncture is the practice of an ancient theory of Oriental Medicine based on an intricately woven thread of philosophy, culture, mysticism and empiricism. It addresses an intangible energetic internal meridian system of the body, which is manipulated by way of small stainless steel needles. These channels are complex networks that are filled with a life force, often known as Qi (chee). There are over 2000 ‘acupoints’ found on the human, including the hands, feet and ears and each juncture has a specified action. What appears to be as simple as the insertion of one needle into an appropriate acupuncture point on the skin, could become the actual compass that points you on the direction of internal balance. This needle is often thought of as a tuning device or a lever system, which allows excesses to be dispersed or deficiencies to be filled. When the correct combination of points are chosen, the pieces of the fragmented human puzzle can be placed together and disharmonies often disappear.

I have two questions for you:

1. Can you incorporate a daily scan of these 11 categories into your life so that you can become conscious of even the slightest imbalances before they go awry? For instance, if you are a woman and your abdomen feels cold to the touch combined with difficult cycles and digestive complaints, you might want to seek Acupuncture for a warming technique called moxibustion or seek suggestions on the use of botanicals to move stagnation or maybe you can stop using ice in your drinks!

2. Can you attempt to create a healthier external ecosystem now knowing that we are the microcosm within? For instance, you can make your way into nature to exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen by just hiking in a tree filled landscape. Or maybe you can stop buying plastic bottles for water consumption and replace them with glass that can be washed and re-used. How about knowing not to dump outdated pharmaceutical prescriptions into the toilet bowl or sink where they will eventually wind up in our water supply.

When mind-body, spirit-mind and environment are in equilibrium, the dance of life is rhythmically in tune with being healthy and well.

Here’s to the wellness of us all!

Bianca Beldini is a licensed Acupuncturist, Physical Therapist and Certified Aromatherapist and practices out of her office, Sacred Space Acupuncture in NYC. She teaches graduate level courses with a specialization in approaching pain through a muscular mapping system. Learn more about Bianca Beldini at SacredSpaceAcupuncture.com

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