We’ve arrived at springtime: a time known to 5 Element Theory as an era for movement, growth, and change. In this season, if you’re feeling a little stuck, flustered, or bored, you may have what we Acupuncturists diagnose as “Qi Stagnation”. Qi stag, as its known shorthand, can show up as depression or irritability, pain or discomfort that comes and goes, a sense of bloating in the belly, PMS, or a stifled feeling in the chest or throat.

Luckily, you don’t need to drop in on your Acupuncturist every time you’ve got the Springtime Emotional Itchies (though we do recommend it if you can!). There’s plenty you can do for yourself to work out those kinks and keep yourself from becoming a live …

Today, on International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating the legacy of Dr. Miriam Lee. She was a pioneer in the field of Acupuncture in the U.S., and helped legalize & popularize the practice. All California Acupuncturists owe her a great debt of gratitude & respect for our right to practice this medicine.

Good Trouble

Dr. Miriam Lee was a nurse, midwife, & acupuncturist in Asia before coming to the US. In her book Insights of Senior Acupuncturist she shares,

“When I first came to California acupuncture was illegal. I worked on an assembly line at Hewlett Packard and attended church, building a life for myself in this country where my medicine was against the law.”

Seeing the suffering of members of her community, she began to provide acupuncture …

We’ve loved hosting virtual events & sharing the wisdom of East Asian & Integrative Medicine on our social media & on our blog.

What do you want to learn from us next?

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We’ll miss the usual fun and camaraderie in the student lounge around Lunar New Year. We’ve got a few suggestions to help everyone get in the spirit and welcome the year of the Metal Ox.

With the recent rise in violence against Asian Americans and the state of the economy, it is more important than ever that we stand up in support of our local Asian communities. Be sure to support local restaurants & businesses in Oakland and San Francisco’s Chinatowns.

Here are some of our free virtual event suggestions:

Wednesday February 10th, 6:45-8:45pm

History of SF Chinatown

Join the Chinese Historical Society of America for a tour of San Francisco’s Neon Chinatown.

Thursday-Saturday February 11th-13th, Various Times

Culture & Dance

Watch the Nai-Ni …

It’s been three years since our first Doctoral Cohort began. We wondered, “what are our graduates doing with their Doctoral degrees?” It turns out, they’re pushing our field forward by teaching, publishing books, working alongside physicians in hospitals, physical therapy clinics, & integrative medicine clinics, founding their very own wellness centers, and even growing organic herbal medicine to make our field more sustainable.

Teach

Many of our doctoral graduates are teaching or supervising Clinic Interns right here at AIMC. The list includes Dr. Nishanga Bliss, DAIM, DSc., LAc.; Dr. Hideko Pelzer, DAIM, LAc.; Dr. Joyce Kwok, DAIM, PT, LAc.; Dr. Jody James, DAIM, LAc.; Dr. David Caruso-Radin, DAIM, LAc.; & Dr. Christine Tarradelles, DAIM, LAc.

Dr. Jody James is the most recent …

What makes AIMC a great place to begin your career in acupuncture and herbal medicine? Read this blog to find out!

Opening a private practice during a pandemic may seem daunting, but AIMC graduate Syndey Malewar made it happen. She’s now successfully working as a practitioner here in Berkeley. To find out how she made this happen, check out this blog post!

Curious about what it’s like to work in our student clinic? Use this blog as your resource!

A conversation with our Academic Dean & Program Director, Thomas Siemman, about our re-vamped Doctoral Completion program launching mid-January 2021. We’re now enrolling Licensed Acupuncturists into our two-semester program with the option of completing coursework fully online. Future cohorts may continue to be offered in at least a partially online format.

The Interview

Q: COVID-19 and shelter-in-place required creative re-imagining of how we could run a doctoral program of the same quality and caliber that we ran when we were able to host students on campus & in our hands-on internships. We’ve graduated two cohorts of Doctoral students already, what’s different this time around?

A: It’s the same program that we start in 2018, but this time it will be all online, distance-learning. The …

Eating Well for Immunity

Fall is here and it’s time to support our immunity! How well we take care of ourselves in the weeks leading up to the coming cold and flu season can greatly enhance (or weaken) our resistance to illness. Once we begin to fall ill, it can be too late! Wise use and nourishment of our inner resources can help us stay healthy, and diet is one of the foundations here. Even just cutting out white sugar, which reduces white blood cell activity by almost 50% for up to 5 hours after eating it, can do marvels.

Fall is the season of the Lungs and the Metal element, and the Lungs control our Wei (Protective) Qi, which acts like a forcefield around our bodies …