Exciting news, Exciting news…!
by Miguel on Sep.22, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
I have had the pleasure of being in the professional company of William Flaherty Hayes, the new massage therapist in Suite 250 (in the Quarry Arts Bldg in Madison WI where I practice too, for those of you who don’t know) for the past 1.5 months (almost 2) and it’s been a good time. Will just moved down here from Hokah MN (Hokah is a small town of about 500 in the Root River Valley) within the last 3-4 months and has settled in Oregon WI with his lovely partner Jenny. He not only gives a wonderful uplifting massage and reads an insightful astrological chart (Eastern, Western and Mayan) he also digs playing disc golf, basketball and playing the didgeredoo. I will stop gabbing at ya’ and let you read his own introduction…
Sensory Re-patterning: A passive joint movement therapy. Exploring the range of motion of our bodies and tapping into muscle memory of being rocked like a baby. Re-patterning helps our repetitive motions shift to evolved movements of opening for infinite possibilities.
Power Massage: Is an integrative therapy of circulatory, deep tissue, and acupressure delightful experience. This is for those of you who want to relax, relieve and release muscular tension. It’s also GREAT for blood circulation and immunity strengthening and an increase in overall comfort. If this sounds appealing to you, look no further, you have arrived.
Usui Reiki: Universal life force healing (bio-electromagnetic energy; scientific) energy serving your most appropriate vibration. Whether the pain is physical, emotional, mental or energetic imprint this therapy goes exactly to that source in the moment.
Mayan Astrology Readings: I give personal and relationship based reviews and discussion of this unique vibrational spiritual time tool. Accessing inherit connection with the earth and the universe’s bigger picture for you. With Mayan Card reading and chart explanation.
I encourage you to let go of mental control within and listen to the inner guidance of your heart. So that you can do that at a more affordable price, right now I am excited to offer a special deal – You can purchase 2 sessions for the price of 1-one hour session. Yes, that’s right; it’s just about the deal of the century! It makes a great anniversary gift, thank you gift, prize for your office drawing, or just keep both sessions for you, that’s wonderful too!
Thank You for being you!
In Lak’ech! (in Mayan this means “I am another yourself”)
Love on, Live on, Flower on!
Will Hayes- At the Quarry Arts Building 715 Hill St. Suite# 250
Phone# 608-238-1622 email – willpowerflower@gmail.com
September 09 free e-newsletter
by Miguel on Aug.24, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
Hello true believers – the September newsletter from Gentle Tiger Acupuncture is coming out soon, so keep your eyes on the horizon for it! This month I talk more specifically about acupuncture and some F.A.Q. that will put your mind at ease and give you deeper insight about the actual process of acupuncture. And I’m still working on the coupon, but it’ll be there. Until then, keep on breathing! – Miguel
Gentle Tiger at the Chakra House in August 09
by Miguel on Aug.20, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
Healing Party – Come to pamper and take care of yourself. You might even learn a little something new about you.
It’s a complete day of healing at The Chakra House the last Sunday of every month! Come mingle and receive mini sessions and consultations from a variety of energywork practitioners and the cost is $FREE.
When: August 30, 2009 11a.m – 1:30 p.m. (on a continuous rotation of every last Sunday of the month, too)
Where: The Chakra House, 330 W. Lakeside St., Madison
Cost: FREE
Sweat lodges are hot!
by Miguel on Jul.16, 2009, under Metaphysical/Shamanic
Greetings true believers and carriers of faith, the inspiration that infuses this blog was fired up by my friend Michelle and her great question a month or so ago about whether or not a sweat is a desirable place for one to open up access to psychic doors or close issues that need to be laid to rest. I believe that both of these items of spiritual endeavor are approachable in a sweatlodge during a sweat, but indirectly.
In his book, Mother Earth Spirituality, Ed McGaa Eagle Man gives a brief overview that sums it up nicely, “the Inipi (Sweat Lodge Ceremony) has been used as a cleansing and a preparatory ceremony. It is like a spiritual sauna; one feels reborn, renewed and strengthened through the commingling of one’s own lifeblood (sweat) with the lifeblood of the planet. These commingled waters are carried forth out of the lodge by the four winds, the four directions. The lodge itself allows a special closeness to Mother Earth.”
A participant in the sweat lodge ceremony reaches a trance-like state of spiritual elevation in a sweat lodge, despite being crouched over and close to the ground, which puts us closer to Mother Earth. There is a taking of turns where a participant can speak his mind and offer up his prayers to Father Sky.
The whole tradition of sweat lodge is full of meaning from the choosing of the 7 willow trees brought in to bend over in order to provide a strong but flexible skeleton for the sweatlodge frame to the exiting of the sweat lodge after the ceremony.
My own personal experience of the sweat lodge was ecstatic and meaningful for me. I was brought in by my teacher, friend and colleage Diane in order to participate in a sweat. The leader’s name was Thomas and his spirits resided in thunder. He was friendly as was his wife, whose name I cannot remember, but food was prepared to provide the strength to endure. I met a few of Thomas’ friends who were also there to participate. There was a friendliness, a community if you will that seemed instant. I felt that I belonged there.
Without giving away too much detail of our particular ceremony, everything that I’d read about up until that point about sweatlodges, proved to be true. It was an amazing experience. I’ve spoken with others about their experiences in the sweat lodge and found that the ingredients really need to be right. It’s a powerful, yet delicate process. Without knowing why, but feeling certain about it, I absolutely trusted Thomas with my safety. In my opinion, it’s crucial that this aspect is present. He leads the prayer, directs the direction of the circle, pours the water on the fire, etc. If you don’t feel comfortable for whatever reason, don’t do it. I’ve learned this from other people that spoke to less than pleasant overall experiences in the sweat due to this fact. That doesn’t mean it’s wrong for everyone present, just for you. With trust in your sweat leader, everything else will fall into place.
So, to answer Michelle’s question, there is a spiritual door opening aspect to the sweat lodge ceremony, but I also take what I’ve experienced and liken it to going to church, you enter, you bow down before those powers that support you and are infinitely bigger than you, you give praise and thanks and express humility and gratitude for all you have and ask for help with those things that make us uniquely human. And laying to rest issues is definitely included in these activities.
And then from a completely biological standpoint, the negative ions that are released with the steam from a sweat can help to release toxins, help with respiratory issues, move fluid through your lymph system, move out skin problems, moisturize your skin, etc. but I feel that’s a secondary motive when I participate in a sweat and not something I really think about during that actual ceremony.
There is one more thing I’d like to pass on about the sweat ceremony – I prefer a small group of people – There were 6 of us in my sweat and we were all very close to each other. I’ve heard of sweats where people were standing and spread out in the dark. It seems to me that it loses some of its focus, concentration, power and significance when it loosens up physically (people not right next to each other, able to stand, etc.) I strongly recommend you keep the group small and the sweat lodge small and the grounding, focus and experience will be the exact opposite, powerful, expansive and fulfilling.
Gentle Tiger Acupuncture and you at the Chakra House…
by Miguel on Jun.23, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
check out our events page for more scoop on the chakra house this Saturday June 28th where we’ll be having a free drop-in healing party.
Free Gentle Tiger E-newsletter…
by Miguel on Jun.04, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
Yep, that’s right! Maladies and Germs! I have a free e-newsletter. Ready for your consumption! Woo Hoo, sign up and dig in! Loads of practical usable information, the occasional freebie and special offers from some of my and your favorite local businesses. It doesn’t get any better than this, unless I gave you chocolate after you signed up. That would be good. Maaaaaayyyyyybe I will. And none of that namby pamby milk chocolate either, I’m talking 50% + dark chocolate. The kind that’s good for you…and me.
p.s. The free newsletter signup is located on the “contact & free e-newsletter” page. Go figure -hee hee!
God Bless allergy season!
by Miguel on May.08, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
It’s the high point of allergy season according to the Wisconsin State Journal this past week and from what I am hearing from my allergy people, they’re feeling better than years past, so I am strongly recommending you feel free to give me a call and talk to me on the phone for 10-15 minutes and we’ll see if acupuncture is the right answer for you. mention this blog and I’ll give you 10% off your first visit for working to increase your wellness and alleviate your allergies…thank you – Miguel
. p.s. Act now, this offer is good until July 31st.
Now that we all have Spring in our step…
by Miguel on Apr.26, 2009, under Acupuncture/OM
Yep, Spring is here! it’s here! woo hoo! It’s important to maintain our energy levels on an even keel while the winds and rain of Spring are blowing and washing winter out of nature’s nooks and crannies. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the prevalent pathogenic factor in Spring is wind. Wind is a yang (meaning it’s a dynamic energy that is more moving than a “yin” pathogen, which would be more static and unmoving) pathogenic factor. A natural feature of wind is it’s unpredictability, it rises and falls, can catch you as you turn a corner and stop as suddenly as it starts. This metaphor of unpredictability explains how wind moves in the body. As an Oriental Medicine practitioner when I see wind affecting someone it is most often in an outward and upward fashion. This means that usually symptoms of wind appear in the head, body surface and limbs. There are several different characteristics of wind in the body. In this blog I am going to talk about acute and chronic wind and talk about how the metaphor of wind translates from western medicine into eastern medicine aaaaand what you can do to protect yourself from a wind invasion.
An example of a western pathology that translates easily in to wind is Bell’s Palsy (BP). BP comes on quickly (even as quick as overnight onset) and last 24 hours or 24 months, only to disappear sometimes as quickly as it arrived. A side note with BP - In order to get the best treatment with Oriental Medicine, seek out treatment from a qualified licensed acupuncturist as quickly as possible – the longer you wait the more difficult it is to alleviate and recover from BP.
While in direct contrast to acute wind diseases, the chronic wind pathogen usually takes a long time (over several years) to manifest and can be the results of long term damage caused by (this list is not all inclusive):
1. Excessive western medication use.
2. Not wearing the appropriate clothes for inclement weather, such as wet, cold and windy weather.
3. Excessive consumption of fatty and acidic foods.
4. Excessive consumption of highly processed foods.
Most of the issues I run into with wind are more often acute and involve neck and shoulder pain, headache in the back of the head (sometimes the front), blurry and/or red eyes, runny nose with white or clear discharge, post nasal drip, nasal stuffiness, facial pain, allergic responses to seasonal change, difficulty turning the neck to the left and/or right, difficulty breathing, an aversion to wind, sore throat or laryngitis. There are definitely other reasons for these problems, but the big give away is the sudden onset. I ask, “How long have you had this problem?” And the answers involve the following details, “I went to bed this last Sunday and woke up with it on Monday.” or “I was outside over the whole weekend on my boat, because it was so nice and I’ve been cooped up most of the winter because I can’t stand the cold.”
So I’ve included a list of what I strongly recommend during this glorious springtime to keep yourself out of the wind. These are some VERY simple cost effective solutions that can keep you from having to endure any of the acute wind syndromes:
1. When outside in the Spring, make sure that you cover your neck with a scarf or a gaiter (a gaiter is a neck sleeve that goes over the head and sits on the shoulders completely encircling/encasing the neck and usually has a drawstring to tighten it).
2. Cover your head with a hat. (I thought long about whether or not to include this one, because I figured everyone knows, but better to err on the side of too much info than not enough, so thank you for bearing with me)
3. Zip up your jacket…you’d think it’s a no-brainer, but I’ve seen more than my fair share of people walking in BLUSTERY weather, holding their jackets shut when I’m sure not ALL their zippers could be broken.
4. Eat warmer foods on windy days, it helps speed up your metabolism, thereby keeping your body warmer and better able to keep cold, wind and dampness (humidity) out of your pores.
5. Keep your abdomen covered, I’ve also seen younger women wearing midriff baring shirts or ill-fitting shirts that show mid-section skin. Wind loves bare skin, because it’s so much easier to get into the body through bare skin than it is through a couple layers of fabric. Wind on the mid-section can cause lower back pain, menstrual problems or digestive disorders such as constipation, bloating or cramping.
6. Don’t sleep directly in front of an open window or fan. It’s okay to have circulation in your room at night, but keep it off any part of your body, esp. the head, neck and face. At night our yin energies come to the forefront and the yang energies (which push out into the world and keep pathogens at bay) become more dormant, this makes us more susceptible to things like a breeze coming from an open window (who knows how much the wind will pick up while you’re asleep?) or a ceiling fan.
7. When riding in your car during windy days that are partly cloudy (meaning they shift between warm and cold temps all day – like they do in the Spring, when the world is trying its darnedest to shake off winter) do not ride with your windows all the way down. I highly recommend opening your window 5-6″ on the passenger side (if riding alone) and roll down your window 1/2″ – 1″ a little breeze to cool off your car is okay, it’s also nice to smell the foliage blooming, the fresh Spring air and hear the bugs buzzing, etc. Note: #7 is based on my experience of driving and however you arrange the windows, the point I’d like you to take away from this tip is thus: Avoid wind blasting directly into your face and stressing your eyes, ears, nose and throat. Leave the wind in the face experience for your dog; They have all that fur to protect them. – LOL!
8. Finally, even if it seems like a GREAT day and a coat, scarf, etc. won’t be necessary, keep it on hand in your car, office, breakroom, wherever, because as I said, wind especially in Spring is unpredictable and can get into your body where you leave yourself open.
thank you. I’ll talk to you again, soon!
Yep, Spring is here! it’s here! woo hoo! It’s important to maintain our energy levels on an even keel while the winds and rain of Spring are blowing and washing winter out of nature’s nooks and crannies. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the prevalent pathogenic factor in Spring is wind. Wind is a yang (meaning it’s a dynamic energy that is more moving than a “yin” pathogen, which would be more static and unmoving) pathogenic factor. A natural feature of wind is it’s unpredictability, it rises and falls, can catch you as you turn a corner and stop as suddenly as it starts. This metaphor of unpredictability explains how wind moves in the body. As an Oriental Medicine practitioner when I see wind affecting someone it is most often in an outward and upward fashion. This means that usually symptoms of wind appear in the head, body surface and limbs. There are several different characteristics of wind in the body. In this blog I am going to talk about acute and chronic wind and talk about how the metaphor of wind translates from western medicine into eastern medicine aaaaand what you can do to protect yourself from a wind invasion.
An example of a western pathology that translates easily in to wind is Bell’s Palsy (BP). BP comes on quickly (even as quick as overnight onset) and last 24 hours or 24 months, only to disappear sometimes as quickly as it arrived. A side note with BP - In order to get the best treatment with Oriental Medicine, seek out treatment from a qualified licensed acupuncturist as quickly as possible – the longer you wait the more difficult it is to alleviate and recover from BP.
While in direct contrast to acute wind diseases, the chronic wind pathogen usually takes a long time (over several years) to manifest and can be the results of long term damage caused by (this list is not all inclusive):
1. Excessive western medication use.
2. Not wearing the appropriate clothes for inclement weather, such as wet, cold and windy weather.
3. Excessive consumption of fatty and acidic foods.
4. Excessive consumption of highly processed foods.
Most of the issues I run into with wind are more often acute and involve neck and shoulder pain, headache in the back of the head (sometimes the front), blurry and/or red eyes, runny nose with white or clear discharge, post nasal drip, nasal stuffiness, facial pain, allergic responses to seasonal change, difficulty turning the neck to the left and/or right, difficulty breathing, an aversion to wind, sore throat or laryngitis. There are definitely other reasons for these problems, but the big give away is the sudden onset. I ask, “How long have you had this problem?” And the answers involve the following details, “I went to bed this last Sunday and woke up with it on Monday.” or “I was outside over the whole weekend on my boat, because it was so nice and I’ve been cooped up most of the winter because I can’t stand the cold.”
So I’ve included a list of what I strongly recommend during this glorious springtime to keep yourself out of the wind. These are some VERY simple cost effective solutions that can keep you from having to endure any of the acute wind syndromes:
1. When outside in the Spring, make sure that you cover your neck with a scarf or a gaiter (a gaiter is a neck sleeve that goes over the head and sits on the shoulders completely encircling/encasing the neck and usually has a drawstring to tighten it).
2. Cover your head with a hat. (I thought long about whether or not to include this one, because I figured everyone knows, but better to err on the side of too much info than not enough, so thank you for bearing with me)
3. Zip up your jacket…you’d think it’s a no-brainer, but I’ve seen more than my fair share of people walking in BLUSTERY weather, holding their jackets shut when I’m sure not ALL their zippers could be broken.
4. Eat warmer foods on windy days, it helps speed up your metabolism, thereby keeping your body warmer and better able to keep cold, wind and dampness (humidity) out of your pores.
5. Keep your abdomen covered, I’ve also seen younger women wearing midriff baring shirts or ill-fitting shirts that show mid-section skin. Wind loves bare skin, because it’s so much easier to get into the body through bare skin than it is through a couple layers of fabric. Wind on the mid-section can cause lower back pain, menstrual problems or digestive disorders such as constipation, bloating or cramping.
6. Don’t sleep directly in front of an open window or fan. It’s okay to have circulation in your room at night, but keep it off any part of your body, esp. the head, neck and face. At night our yin energies come to the forefront and the yang energies (which push out into the world and keep pathogens at bay) become more dormant, this makes us more susceptible to things like a breeze coming from an open window (who knows how much the wind will pick up while you’re asleep?) or a ceiling fan.
7. When riding in your car during windy days that are partly cloudy (meaning they shift between warm and cold temps all day – like they do in the Spring, when the world is trying its darnedest to shake off winter) do not ride with your windows all the way down. I highly recommend opening your window 5-6″ on the passenger side (if riding alone) and roll down your window 1/2″ – 1″ a little breeze to cool off your car is okay, it’s also nice to smell the foliage blooming, the fresh Spring air and hear the bugs buzzing, etc. Note: #7 is based on my experience of driving and however you arrange the windows, the point I’d like you to take away from this tip is thus: Avoid wind blasting directly into your face and stressing your eyes, ears, nose and throat. Leave the wind in the face experience for your dog; They have all that fur to protect them. – LOL!
8. Finally, even if it seems like a GREAT day and a coat, scarf, etc. won’t be necessary, keep it on hand in your car, office, breakroom, wherever, because as I said, wind especially in Spring is unpredictable and can get into your body where you leave yourself open.
thank you. I’ll talk to you again, soon!
Psychic Attack – do you know when it’s happening, how to protect against it?
by Miguel on Apr.15, 2009, under Metaphysical/Shamanic
Hey all! - I am already planning the next talk topic in regard to spirit work. It’s about how to recognize, remove and defend against psychic attack. Sometimes we are psychically attacked on purpose, but I believe that for most, in this busy crowded world that we live in it’s mostly accidental on the giver’s part as well as the receiver’s. Stay tuned for more details. 
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Welcome to Gentle Tiger Acupuncture LLC
As this website grows and creates community it is my highest wish and responsibility that it becomes a resource and a place you can lean on and turn to for your mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health and wellness; A reflection of where you live, laugh and love. When you desire spirit-centered wellness...
