Acne

Heal Acne with Chinese medicine and Acupuncture

I struggled with acne from when I was 13 until the age of the 27.  It was terrible and so many times I felt that I was powerless to do anything about. What eventually healed me wasn’t diet, supplements, pills or medication.  It was something on a deeper level in the body.   Have you also tried countless numbers of things that didn’t work from facial washes, creams, ointments, and even some hard core medications?  Has acne kept you from being more confident?  Has it taken a serious toll on your self esteem?  You are definitely not alone.  And while the above things have worked for many and may need to be tried during your journey of healing, I think some even more fundamental things can do wonders for those with acne.   Chinese medicine has been helping people heal from acne for thousands of years naturally with treatment that isn’t toxic or causes secondary side effects.  Hope exists and you can be free of acne with the proper understanding of the main triggers that lead to it.

As I mention in most of my articles on various health conditions, it is necessary to understand that there are Five Levels of Healing in the Body.  Healing acne may involve healing of some sort on every level of health in the body.  What does this mean in short?  Most people in the Western world are so accustomed and conditioned to think that because something is manifesting physically, it must have a physical root.  But if this worked, acne would no longer be a problem for people that did all the right physical things.  It is so important to understand the electrical, emotional or spiritual roots to the problem and how healing can occur on these levels in the body.  So let’s explore this below.

Physical Healing for Acne

The bottom line is that acne is inflammation.  Many complex theories are present that try to explain hormones, toxins, sebum, oil and other things involved with why this may be a problem for people.  It is so very important to look at the simple basic things first that contribute to inflammation in the body and then get into more complicated things once these things don’t work.  I have yet to have one patient come to me with acne that was doing the following things basic below.  When they did start doing these simple things, changes in their condition occurred and they began to heal.

In our diet, some very basic things contribute to inflammation in the body.  The things that cause the most inflammation are all dairy products (including yogurt, milk, cottage cheese and cheese), wheat products, corn, soy, refined white sugar, high fructose corn syrup, certain spicy things and fried foods.  I have seen people heal from acne just by removing these things from their diets.  If you took these foods away from many people today, they literally wouldn’t know what to eat.  So for some, this can be quite shocking and a big adjustment.  But a whole world of foods and healthy choices exists outside of these foods.

Next, the foods that provide the most nourishment and are the best at putting out inflammation are vegetables and fruits.  So often I see patients on very strong and toxic drugs such as accutane, tetracycline, clindamycin, and benzoyl peroxide to help their acne.  At the same time, their diet is filled with soda, wheat, junk food, non organic foods and tons of dairy.  It is also astonishing how I hear all the time how they were not told that these things were ever a problem in their struggle with acne.  If you want to be healthy and free from acne, consuming 6 servings of vegetables and 2 servings of fruits per day is imperative.  Clinically, we use very specific protocols to ensure people get this in their diet in the very easiest way possible.  Drinking a very good amount of filtered water per day is also very necessary.

Beyond these basics, a number of supplements have been tried and tested that have very healing effects for people that struggle with acne.  Detoxifying the body can be a very important part of healing.    Many times the focus is on working on things from the outside but the outside can heal most effectively when the inside of the body is addressed first.  Clinically, we use Nutrition Response Testing to determine what the weakest parts of your body are and whether heavy metals, chemicals, food sensitivities or allergies, pathogens (viruses, bacteria, parasites, or fungus) are at the root physical cause of the problem.  This tool can test for exact things and also the exact whole food supplements and amounts you will need per day to heal.  This testing is done using applied kinesiology or muscle testing and can also be done at a distance.

Electrical Healing for Acne

Chinese medicine identifies patterns in the body and then treats the pattern accordingly.  Many different patterns exist that can manifest as acne, which is why Chinese medicine is not a one pill fits all kind of medicine.  It is specific and tailored to your particular case and body.  Heat in Chinese medicine would be the modern equivalent of how we describe inflammation.  Five main patterns are seen in the case of acne.

  • Lung Heat. This can be the manifestation of whiteheads and blackheads that manifest mostly around the forehead and nose area.  Other associated symptoms may be dry mouth, nose and dry stool (constipation).  The best formulas are Pi Pa Qing Fei Tang and Liang Xue Qing Fei Yin.
  • Stomach Heat. What contributes most to this is the consumption of greasy, fried, or spicy foods.  This kind of acne can be seen around the mouth, chest and back.  Other symptoms associated with this pattern may be bad breath, constant thirst, dry mouth, constipation and a strong appetite.  The best formulas are Tiao Wei Cheng Qi Tang and Qing Wei San.
  • Blood Heat. Similar to the other patterns with symptoms on qi stagnation as well and more hormonal changes throughout the month. The best formulas are Tiao Wei Cheng Qi Tang and Qing Wei San.
  • Heat Toxins. Toxic heat manifests as acne that is pus-filled and blister like. The best formula is Cuo Chuang Jian Ji.
  • Damp Toxin with Blood Stasis.   This is deep, painful and inflamed acne that can result in scars on the body.  The best formulas are Chu Shi Jie Du Tang and Wu Wei Xiao Du Yin.

Chinese medicine also has topical formulas that are natural and that can be applied to the skin externally such as Dian Dao San and Qu Ban Gao that are very effective.  Please do not try these formulas for yourself without consulting an acupuncture physician first.  We are board certified in herbology to ensure your safety.

The electrical part of healing in Chinese medicine goes beyond the physical body.  Our electrical system can be balanced using acupuncture.  By stimulating acupuncture points in the body, heat or inflammation can be released from the body.  Acupuncture is based upon hard science.  We are electrical beings and the acupuncture meridian system functions in similar ways to your nervous system.  These points are normally found in connective tissue divides in the body.  Connective tissue, which is everywhere in the body, is piezo–electric. What this means is that is a fantastic conductor and generator of electricity in the body.

When these points are stimulated, the “power” or electricity get turned back on, power is restored to the part of the body being stimulated which increases the flow of oxygen, fresh blood and the necessary brain chemicals to balance out the body and put out inflammation.   Many people have reported very powerful healing responses to acne when getting treatments.

Emotional or Consciousness Healing for Acne

Our mind, which is controlled by our emotions, is a powerful influence on our health.  Acne has a collective set of negative emotions and belief systems that are associated with it.  For me, at the age of 27, some very powerful circumstances occurred in my life that profoundly changed my sense of self or self esteem.  When my self esteem rose, my acne cleared.  I didn’t change my diet (it was horrible at the time), I didn’t exercise more or less, and I didn’t take any new supplements or pharmaceuticals.  My mind literally shifted, which healed the physical body.  This is why a placebo can often times be just as healing as an actually drug.  Whatever is held in mind tends to manifest in the body. The mind is far more powerful than the body.

Inna Segal, in her book, The Secret Language of Your Body describes these factors as what contribute to acne in the body,

“Feeling uncomfortable in your own skin, insecure, unacceptable, rejected, not good enough, unworthy of love. Holding on to self-hatred. Trying to hurt and punish yourself for past mistakes. Controlling; demanding unrealistic perfection from self. Overly sensitive. Frustration and angry outbursts. Not getting what you want. Not liking yourself. Feeling provoked, irritated, teased. Uncomfortable in your own skin.”

Does any of this resonate with you?  Some of these may resonate with you, some may not. Think about your past and certain memories or experiences that may contain these themes.  Often times, those memories are not healed inside of us, even many years after it has happened.   In order to heal from these emotions, powerful consciousness based healing techniques can be used.  Clinically, we teach people how to release these things from your mind and body.  This is often the factor that brings about healing when nothing else has worked.  We must really face what is inside of us and let it go in order to heal on the deepest levels within us.

With the exception of acupuncture, the Nutrition Response Testing, diet changes, supplements and emotional consciousness processing can be done at a distance.  I have treated many people successfully that I have never met before and have just had phone sessions with.  If this information resonates with you and you would like to schedule an appointment, I would be honored to work with you.  Please contact the clinic at 407-255-0314 to make your appointment.  If you are in the Orlando, Florida area, I look forward to meeting you and helping you heal.  You can heal from acne and starting feeling better now.

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About Dr. Scott

Dr. Scott Graves, AP is a Board Licensed Acupuncture Physician who specializes in Naturopathic Medicine, Chinese Medicine, Nutrition Response Testing, General Health and more.