TCM helping with Oregon weather

Photo by leojmelsrub

A lot can be said about Oregon's weather. It sure seems to be the topic of a lot of conversations in the clinic, especially with the sun and pouring rain combination these past few days!

One thing I've noticed in the clinic is that lot of people are having similar experiences with weather changes- I know it seems like a strange topic, but I have noticed several patterns in the clinic (and within my community) that I'd like to share:

-People with arthritis are better with the extreme heat, and worse in that next day of dampness. The quick weather changes can be hard on the joints- it's important to come in for treatment at least once a week when this is occurring. - Allergies (sinus congestion, itchy eyes, wheezing) can also be affected by the extreme rain followed by blazing sun ten minutes later. The heat and steam seem to create dampness and a lot of phlegm in the body. It's interesting to see the different reactions in different body constitutions, because others report feeling better with the "steam room" effect! -Headaches with the rain: the drop in barometric pressure seems to really affect patients who are more on the deficient side that the excess. It's as if their energy can't quite handle the sudden change.

There are also a lot of great formulas to help with the symptoms. Personally, I chose to seek treatment from a practitioner who gave me a fantastic herbal granual formula from the OCOM dispensary. It was created with a diagnosis of all of my symptoms, and has truly worked wonders in dealing with these past few weeks of wacky weather :)