More Spring Cleansing Tips

Do you eat differently with the shift of seasons?  

This practice is very common in many parts of the world and in our human history prior to supermarkets and the ability to ship foods globally became common practice.  

In the winter we lean to slow cooked soups and stews and long lasting root veggies, and at long last the spring brings tender greens, to cleanse our livers from that heavier winter fare.  

One of the first and some may say best of these greens is the lowly dandelion. 

All parts of this herb/plant are edible, unless harsh lawn chemicals have been applied to it.  The early leaves are tender and an adaptable green that can be added to salads or stir fries. The leaves may have a slight diuretic affect as energetically they cleanse the kidneys.   The flower buds are crunchy and tasty with my preferred ways of enjoying this spring treat in stir fries, or pickled.  

The flowers themselves can be added to teas, salads or into mocktails or lemonade, with lemon being the sour flavour that energizes our liver in the spring. The pairing of the sweet flowers and sour lemon is a wake up for our taste buds too.  Lastly the root can be dug  washed and chopped, dried or used fresh to make tea or tinctures from, to cleanse our hard working liver.  

If spring is your favourite season to enjoy the great outdoors and some nature therapy that it provides, remember to do some stretching before and after your exercise activity, or as your exercise activity.  We probably see more tendon injuries or sprains at this time of year than any other. Some  of these are from overuse situations, yet many are from demanding more of our muscles and tendons before they are warmed up or in condition for the demands we ask of them.  

Qi Gong, Tai Chi or yoga are all good choices to activate and condition the connective tissues of our body.  We often send patients home with a few of these type of exercise as homework between visits.  

Adequate hydration and even  added electrolytes are also important to minimize risk of strains. A home made type of electrolyte is a tsp of lemon juice and pinch of quality sea salt to your liter of water.  Commercial flavours  of electrolytes are also widely available.  Magnesium glyconate is the best form of magnesium to aid for relief of tendon or  muscle soreness.  I am also out picking poplar buds to make a liniment which will be available at the clinic soon.  

Spring sale  of 40% off on all of last years infused oils, tinctures, salves and dried herbs is now on to make room for this years batches.  

Both Heather and Morven are back to full strength and our hours are set for  the spring season.  Morven is available Mondays 12-5:30, Wednesdays 3-5, Fridays 11-5:30, and Saturdays 10-3.  

Heather is available on Tuesdays 1 – 6:30, Wednesdays 10 -3, and

Thursdays 9-3.  

If you need a time outside of the schedule above please let us know and we will try to accommodate you.  

Here is the booking link or call 250-688-0033 for appointments.  https://flourishinghealth.janeapp.com/

We are very open to new clients, and welcome referrals from past patients.  We also promote Acupuncture /TCM as a maintenance type of health care to prevent a worsening of symptom, as well as relief from symptoms.  

We have several treatment options with the two most commonly booked sessions being: the 40 minute consult and Acupuncture  for $110, and the Combo treatment which includes nutrition, diet and lifestyle coaching, massage and acupuncture in an hour time frame for $145.  

Other options are: Lymphatic Drainage Massage, Reflexology, Relaxation Massage, Aromatherapy consults and blends,Cupping,  and Diet therapy sessions.  Another reminder is many benefit plans cover acupuncture and TCM therapies.  

We invite you to support your health through these tools this spring, & hope to see you soon.