Balanced Thistle NoCo

If we spent as much time concentrating on the nutrients in our food- such as B vitamins, zinc, selenium, choline- as we do on the calories, imagine how healthy we could all be.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Some of the most NUTRIENT DENSE food isn't always what we think it is. We say sweet potato, someone might hear "carbs." We say real maple syrup, someone might hear "sugar." The truth is, we aren't looking at what matters any more.

We fill our schedules with few minutes to spare, we fill our plates with what is fast and convenient, we forgo sleep for another episode of our show... and yet we wonder why we feel so dragged down.

We thought we'd drop something simple but powerful in the tips today. Including a recipe for our FAVE chimichuri:

1 cup fresh parsley, no stems
3-4 cloves fresh garlic
2 TBSP fresh oregano
1/2 cup olive oil
2 TBSP red or white vinegar
1 tsp salt
1/4tsp black pepper
1/4tsp red pepper flakes

Green leafy herbs like parsley and cilantro pack a nutritional PUNCH and this chimichuri will have you completely hooked on first bite. Pair with steak, burgers, or even sweet potatoes! Enjoy!

The only place in town with an all cupping facial. PLUS, this cupping facial taps into it's roots- Traditional Chinese Medicine. Where we don't just talk about lymph and muscle, but the lifting and movement of qi, the boost in blood circulation, the draining of dampness, and the energy at the root of cosmetic concerns.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​We pride ourselves on the blend of wellness and beauty that is delivered by a team of like minded healthcare and beauty professionals working together. It's also a combination of traditional, ancient techniques, with modern, evidence-based medicine. We can pamper you with the most blissful of facials, and even order the blood-work to help decipher if your acne is rooted in excess androgens or gut dysbiosis (or both, of course). We can tackle your goals from the inside out, together, as a team.

WHOLE body, whole beauty- inside and out.

Or, like we said, we can simply just bliss you out :-)

Happy, happy birthday to Sara!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Thank you so much for all you bring to Balanced Thistle- a cool calmness, a toss of sass and spice, and amaaaazing care for our patients. We love you for you quiet sense of humor, your honesty, and the way you describe buying a treat at the grocery store for your drive home in a way that makes the rest of us feel normal about it!

Balanced Thistle wouldn't be the same without you, and we're so glad to work alongside someone so amazing. We hope your day is filled with all your favorite things.

If you see Sara this coming week, be sure to wish her a happy birthday!

Hi Balanced Thistle Friends, let's re-meet Brooke!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Brooke is an amazing acupuncturist here at Balanced Thistle.

She is an enneagram 9 and proud Gryffindor.

At Happy Hour, Brooke would order a gin and tonic with extra limes (we all seem to like the sour drinks, is that an acupuncturist thing?!).

Her guilty pleasure food is Siete brand wedding cookies.

She's seen every episode of Friends.

Her secret talent is that she can juggle. The staff has kindly requested video proof of this via Reels soooo... hopefully we see this soon!

Her favorite quote is "Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure" -Luna Lovegood

What is something she loves about her job? "I love helping women. It's very empowering to help empowered women and work on a team full of empowered women!"

Continuing our re-intros!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Let's re-meet Dr. M.

Dr. M is an Enneagram 5 and proud Ravenclaw.

If you actually saw her at happy hour (not super likely) she would order what Sara ordered- a yummy marg, sour not sweet.

Her guilty pleasure food is most certainly ice cream.

She's seen every episode of Gilmore Girls and I Love Lucy.

Her secret talent is that she won a national collegiate lighting design contest for theater- for her prize she got to spend a month in Prague studying design for entertainment around the world! Did you know she worked on the entertainment crew on a cruise ship before going to acupuncture school?

Her favorite quote = "No risk, no reward," which her dad told her many years ago as he navigated opening his own business. Bet he didn't know it'd stick with her through her own life, in business and outside of it.

One thing she loves about her job? "The shear surprise people have when they realize their hard work is helping- be it a surprise period without symptoms, a full night sleep, or probably best of all- that positive pregnancy test!"

Man, it's been a while since we were on Instagram all that much. So much has changed. In the midst of the excitement, we thought we'd pop on here and intro our BT Team!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Meet Sara, acupuncturist extrodinaire.

Sara is an Enneagram 8 and proud Gryffindor.

When she's at happy hour, she orders a margarita, as long as it's a sour one and not sweet!

If you ask her what her guilty pleasure food is, she'll say "I honestly don't feel guilty about any foods that I eat because - moderation! BUT, I do have a guilty pleasure of spending too much on nice pajama sets! lf I HAD to pick a food, it would be nacho cheese Doritos, the only kind of dorito! "

She's seen every episode of Homeland.

Her secret talent is that she is surprisingly handy! She feels like she can figure out how to do any job. (We know this to be true based on how quickly she yanked up the carpet in our next clinic space- we blinked and it was gone!!!).

Fave Quote? "Not all who wonder are lost."

We love to drop lists on here that sort of knock your socks off. It seems that people enjoy a tough love dose of reality. So we thought we'd do it again.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Whoa moments in hormone health...

In women, high testosterone can lead to the following- insulin resistance, central weight gain, hair loss, cystic acne. So supplementing testosterone should be done carefully, and only in women who have healthy levels of estrogen. Women with excess estrogen shouldn't add testosterone! Best way to boost low testosterone? Regular exercise, particularly weight lifting!

Vitamin D, which acts an awful lot like a hormone, is essential for immune health and fertility. Truth is, few people achieve adequate vitamin D levels from the sun alone. Oftentimes, vitamin D should be supplemented, and often times not at a dose you would actually expect. Test your vitamin D and have your clinician recommend a good quality supplement if you need to raise that number up.

Estrogen is both your best friend, and that friend that's kinda mean some times. Estrogen dominance, or too much estrogen, can cause weight gain, brain fog, depression, and heavy, uncomfortable periods. Not enough estrogen can also cause weight gain (whoa- wait, what?) as well as loss in bone density and amenorrhea. When estrogen is just right, it can boost energy, improve your skin, regulate insulin, calm the nervous system, and support digestion. Who knew?!

Cortisol, like estrogen, can be friend or foe, depending on what it's doing! Too much or too little cortisol can amp you up or run you down. Buuuut, even though it has such a bad rap, cortisol is great. Balanced cortisol can help regulate blood sugar, reduce inflammation, help our brain and memory, and is a key player throughout pregnancy and labor.

What else do you want to hear about hormones? Drop it in the comments!

You might not want to hear all these things, but it doesn't mean you shouldn't!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Part of the reason we love working as a multi-license team is that we get to blend the knowledge each team member has to create amazing customized care! Herbal medicine can lend unparalleled support for skin health, so we thought we'd share a few of our faves.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Pearl- Pearl powder has been used for beauty in Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of year. It can boost collagen production, help heal wounds and regenerate tissue, plus gently exfoliate while clearing out local dampness, like cystic break-outs. It's rich in antioxidants, micronutrients, and amino acids.

Tremella is quite trendy in the beauty world these days but has also been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for years. A natural source of hyaluronic acid, white snow mushrooms taste yummy AND boast amazing skin benefits. This funny looking mushroom is high in antioxidants and vitamin D.

Hu Shu Wu is a hidden gem in the beauty world. Considered a beauty and fertility tonic, he shu wu can enrich both the skin and the hair. It promotes blood building and circulation, hydration, hormone health, and longevity.

Part of the balance in holistic skin care is learning when to use which tools. Knowing the difference between care that is skin deep and when to delve deeper is important. But achieving that glow from INSIDE is unlocking a whole new level of beauty.

Little inspo on your Friday.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Truth about working with fertility- many women come to our clinic, but it seems to be drastically harder to get their partners in for treatment.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Why this doesn't work? It takes BOTH parties to make a baby, and oftentimes dad's health is playing a significant role in why a couple isn't achieving pregnancy.

Things we see on dad's side that contribute to fertility issues:

Low Testosterone (yes, even in the young dads)
Low S***m Count
Low S***m Motility
Varicocele
Etc.

The trick is knowing how all these concerns might be related. For example, a varicocele might be the reason behind the low T. Or the low T might be the reason there is low s***m count.

You can't just toss a man trying to conceive onto testosterone, because that has a major NEGATIVE impact on s***m.

Vericocele's are complicated, and more often than not the best way to correct the issue is surgical, but there are still ways to support the hopeful dad through the other aspects involved (like, as mentioned above, the fact that a vericocele can cause low T).

Low T can be caused by soooooo many things.

It feels a little like we're just brain-dumping about male fertility health, and that's kind of what this is. The root of this message though is this- it takes a healthy egg AND healthy s***m. Fertility struggles can happen on either end, or with both at the same time!

Send dad in for help too!

Yes, that's Dr. M reading a massive text book about nutrition... In case you ever doubted that our team is kinda nerdy.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Nutrition is an essential aspect of human health and is ever changing, and often-times overwhelming. How can someone decipher what to eat when the internet and social media is filled with so much contradicting information and trends?

The fact is, no one diet is perfect for anyone, and certain nutritional intake can be used to help people achieve certain health goals.

We can confidently give the following generalizations:

1. Eat whole foods- pick items from the perimeter of the grocery store that don't have an ingredient list.
2. Cook your own food as often as you can as opposed to buying processed foods or choosing to eat out or order in.
3. Eat local, if you can! If you can find some local farms and ranches, cutting out the middle man will increase the nutrition in what you eat!
4. Eat seasonally- what your body needs can vary by season. Eating what is in season can support this, and the easiest way to know what's in season if that isn't something you just know is to shop the produce section according to what's on sale!

How could you go wrong with a cup full of healthy fruits and veggies? Turns out, some people really don't feel better drinking smoothies. But even we have to admit that sometimes they're pretty convenient, and yes they're a better option than swinging through a drive through for a greasy breakfast sandwich and sugary coffee on the way to work. So check out our tips to make the smoothie work better for you!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Want to know something crazy?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Heavy periods can cause iron deficiency, and iron deficiency can cause heavy periods. Isn't that a fun little loop-d-loop?!

Iron comes in two forms- heme iron, from animal sources, and non-heme iron, which comes from non-animal sources like beans and spinach. Heme iron is much, much easier for the body to absorb, and absorption of all iron can increase if you pair it with vitamin C.

Whenever a patient is anemic, it might be iron deficiency anemia, but it might not be! Iron deficiency can cause all sorts of pregnancy issues, but having too much iron during pregnancy can ALSO be an issue.

We just thought it'd be fun to demonstrate that iron is a tricky little micronutrient. Oftentimes supplementing it can be pretty harsh on the belly too, so the answer is never simple.

Have you had your iron tested? And your ferritin, TIBC, etc... Little lab joke for ya.

We know the gut has a microbiome, but did you know your skin does too? We're talking about the bacteria that naturally lives on and in your skin. And we're especially talking about the importance of keeping the good bugs right where they are.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​We can take care of our skin both internally and externally, and both are important. It's not just important to clean and moisturize, but also to eat good foods and get good pre and probiotics.

Check out our easy tips if you're just starting to contemplate the fact that you have bugs crawling all over you (and inside you) at all times!

The amount of research supporting regular, steady blood sugar for hormone health and fertility is rapidly growing. Practitioners aren't just looking at fasting glucose any more either. Those that study fertility will also take a look at fasting insulin. Or even a continuous glucose monitor. Learning how your insulin and glucose are functioning in your body can provide some key insight into hormone health. If labs aren't on your to-do list, try these three easy tips!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Team work makes the dream work.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

If you are concerned about your hormones, you should be concerned about endocrine disruptors and xenoestrogens. Cleaning up your life to reduce your toxin load can be intimidating. We like to encourage out patients to do what they can but, the truth is, it will never be perfect. We are so overwhelmed in life today by exposure that you can't completely remove it all for your life. However, making small changes can make a big difference!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Microchanneling sure is getting busy in this clinic! Want to know some of the why's?!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Microchanneling is a lot like microneedling, but instead of dragging needles across the skin like with microneedling, our device stamps straight up and down. This reduces the risk of micro-tears, which can toughen the skin over time. We pair the stamping with stem cells to get B-E-A-U-TIFUL results on fine lines and wrinkles, acne scars, pigmentation, and skin texture concerns.

We truly haven't had a disappointed customer yet. Plus, we will stamp face, neck, and décolletage in one appointment without charging for each area, and our price is shockingly affordable!

This treatment is recommended once every 3-4 weeks in a series of 4-6 sessions depending on your goals. Feel free to drop questions in the comments :)

Reframing or rewording your perspective can have a lot of positive power.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

We've had a lot of interest lately in the "unique" or "weird" things acupuncture treats. Want to hear some examples?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Breech Baby- we use moxibustion (an herb) to warm certain acupuncture points famous for flipping a head up baby head down. It's a warming technique that's been used for thousands of years!

Frequent hiccup- not kidding! We've treated this! If you get the hiccups multiple times a day, your Qi is getting stuck and going the wrong direction. Let's reroute that traffic!

Feeling like something is stuck in your throat- This is something patients say A LOT. Like there is just always something lodged in their neck. It's actually so much more common than you might realize. To the point that it even has an official name in Chinese Medicine- Plum Pit Qi!

Feeling "heavy." We're not talking weight. We're talking when you just feel as though your muscles or bones are made of sand. That you've had bricks for dinner. You get the idea. Sometimes a patient might choose the word "damp." Chinese Medicine is really good at explaining these odd descriptions.

Non-Stop or frequent periods- Assuming we've ruled out an explanation like uterine polyps or some kinds of cancer, the allopathic medical world has a HARD time explaining non-stop or extra periods. Believe it or not, an acupuncturist with training in Chinese Herbal Medicine can usually nip this in the bud pretty quickly.

This medicine is so dang cool. It's amazing how much it can do!

Why on earth did a women's health, functional medicine acupuncture clinic add facials to their service menu?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Because we care about our patient concerns, and our patients care about their skin.

Because we specialize in women's health, and doing so made it suuuuper clear how rough our beauty care is on our hormone health.

Because beauty comes from the inside. In every way.

We pride ourselves on the fact that all our skin care services are not just "not bad," but are in fact GOOD for you. Plus we have the awesome advantage of being able to pair your skin care goals with internal support- everything from nutritional advice to custom herbal skin care and advanced hormone testing.

Research shows that coffee can actually be good for you! For example, coffee can reduce your risk of developing Type 2 Diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Buuuuut, slow your roll off to Starbies, friends. This research didn't study the Grande Pumpkin Spice Latte. If it did, it might not have been quite so favorable.

Check out our tips for how to get the most out of your morning cup of Joe!

We are often asked why we don't accept insurance. It wasn't an easy call to go with an all cash practice. There was debate. And doubt. But we stand firm where we are.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Why?

Because we work for YOU.

Unfortunately what we have learned from insurance is that we don't like folks who know nothing about what we do telling us what to do for the patient they have never met.

In order to chase your goals, we often think outside the box.

12 acupuncture appointments allocated in one year might not even get your cycle regular, let alone help you conceive. Hormones take a long time to reprogram.

Just because you TSH is normal, doesn't mean your autoantibody count is.

Giving you testosterone if your testosterone is low is NOT the right answer if your estrogen is high. But these tests need to be drawn a certain time of your cycle (something we see constantly done incorrectly!).

Modern medicine, while amaaaazing in some ways, sometimes struggles with chronic concerns or those particularly responsive to lifestyle modification, such as PCOS.

I'd like to see the look on an insurance biller's face when he reads that we KNOCKED OUT a year long stint of reoccurring yeast infections with only a few yoni steams!

These are just a few quick examples. We could keep going but it might snowball out of control :-)

We wish we could all just help people endlessly, and we wish insurance worked that way. But right now, it just doesn't. But we promise to check in during your care and make sure being here is worth your time and money. The last thing we want is to create more stress!

A patient recently asked that we bring our quotes back to our Instagram. We like them to be a nice humorous dose of reality.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​We're BACK, baby. And ready to bring you some fun IG content! Feel free to drop any suggestions you might have in the comments, and be sure to follow along. If for no reason other than our silly quotes!