What types of treatment or service are available?

Daniel offers herbal consultations, acupuncture, acupressure-kiatsu (pressing with energy), life-coaching, lifestyle and health guidance and instruction, dietary instruction, and energy healing (qi gong). Additionally, and more rare to come across, Daniel is also skilled at dream interpretation, handwriting analysis, and art analysis. By the last two he has made astonishingly accurate assessments of people he has never met (as attested later by the person, or those who know them). 

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About acupuncture visits 

During an initial visit, there will be extensive dialogue, an assessment of your pulse and tongue, and acupuncture treatment. Initial visits will typically last an hour and half. Follow-up visits consist of brief dialogue and acupuncture treatment. The entire process takes about one hour (but can be shortened if time is an issue). 

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What is a 'course of treatment?' 

A course of treatment is how long it will take to get you symptom free. This ranges from one treatment (miracles - not uncommon) to half a dozen or a dozen treatments (both more common). The more serious the disease, the longer you've had it, and the more it comes from your heritage, the longer it will take to resolve (generally speaking). This rough time frame does not include 'consolidation of treatment' which could take months or years, but consists primarily of dietary, lifestyle, attitude and other changes on your part. 

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What is an herb consultation like? 

An herb consultation with Daniel consists of extensive dialogue, typically for one hour. More complex cases and longer personal histories should schedule for more than one hour. It also involves Daniel assessing (not judging!) your manner of speech, appearance and behavior. For distance consults, if phone is used instead of Skype, the diagnosis will be more precise if Daniel is provided with some recent pictures (face, body and extended tongue). When possible, Skype is easier. 

 

How are the herbs administered? 

There are a wide variety of ways to distribute and consume herbs. In all cases of herbal medicine, the correct species, the state and quality of the substance, and careful dosing are highly relevant factors. Daniel monitors this so you don't have to. 

     There are two forms that are by far the most effective. In both cases, the whole raw herbs are directly encountered. In the first cases, raw herbs are cooked into a soup (汤 tāng). This process is similar to making a chicken stock or vegetable stock. The second version is whole raw herbs ground into a fine powder. This powder (粉 fěn) is then directly consumed, mixed with liquid. For raw herbs, Daniel uses Mayway (herb supplier) or Kamwo (herb pharmacy and importer). 

     A relatively modern method of administration is herbal granules. These granules are made by cooking raw herbs and then dehydrating the liquid to form a powder. When necessary, an excipient such as potato starch is used as a binder. Granules, more so than directly using raw herbs, have many more variables, and therefore many more chances for something to 'go wrong.' As with pharmaceutical drugs, where the brand-name is often far superior to no-name brands, though they claim to contain identical ingredients, herbal granules are not all alike. Not by a long shot. With granules, it becomes even more necessary to use only the most trusted superior companies. In most cases, Daniel uses KPC granules. Occasionally, he will use Mayway granules or Kamwo granules. 

     The least effective method is what are called 'patent pills.' These are what are sold at grocery stores throughout East Asia, and they are not to be considered serious medicine. They will, however, often easily enough deal with something like a common cold. Single herbs, typically powdered, range drastically in their strength, purity and related functionality. On occasion, Daniel will prescribe a single herb or two in this form. 

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How much do the herbs cost? 

The FDA (of the United States) continues to classify herbs as "food supplements." In many ways, this is a reasonable choice. The motivation behind the classification is to protect the wealth and profits of the trillion dollar pharmaceutical industry - but that's a story for another time. ​For our purposes, it's good to think of herbs as both food and supplements. They can be nourishing to our body's, like food. They can also provide things that regular food simply cannot, thereby like supplements. Both food and supplements vary enormously in price, based on quality, quantity needed, and type of substance. This is likewise true of Chinese and Western herbs. The more you are willing to spend on your health, the more quickly you will see results, generally speaking. That said, Daniel has sufficient skill and knowledge to tailor care to virtually any budget, so that herbal medicine may be as inexpensive as $40 a month. For the most pleasant means of consumption, raw herb decoction, the cost is between $50 and $250 a month. Through the principle of supply and demand, organic nutritionally-dense foods, high-quality supplements, and top-shelf herbs do cost money. An old adage says, 'You get what you pay for.' 

 
For a better future for all of us, please write your congressman and senator, and health insurance agency, and demand coverage for herbs and alternative medicine treatments (such as much of the world already has in place). 

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Will the herbs taste bad?

Daniel makes a consistent effort to balance the flavors of each formula. Formulas are created and adjusted specifically for each patient and their unique needs. There are circumstances however, such as needing to 'thin the blood,' or 'clear heat,' where less pleasant tasting herbs must be used. Daniel himself has tasted every herb in common usage, and being inclined to sweet and pleasant flavors himself, he is always conscious of the flavor of each formula! There are safe and easy ways to make the herbs more palatable. The first is to add a sweetener, such as organic honey, dark maple syrup, or organic barley malt. In addition, or alternatively, adding a drop of (organic) peppermint oil will mask virtually all unpleasant flavors. 
     All this said, most formulas flavor can be described as neutral. Nothing to you would drink for pleasure, but in no way offensive either. In general, it is good to remember that the herbs are serious medicine, not a refined-sugar dessert. Most patients have no difficulty whatsoever with the flavor, or any aspect of taking the herbs. In any case where difficulties are encountered, Daniel has the skills to help you through it and return the process to a painless one! 

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How long will I need to take herbs? 

Herbs are a variant of food. We can benefit from taking herbs essentially all the days of our lives. How long you will need to take herbs to treat your illness is highly variable, based on the nature of the ailment, the duration of your time with such problems, and your success with making the necessary lifestyle and dietary changes. Visit "Your Health" to read more about your general prognosis. For a more specific prognosis, only starting into treatment, and seeing how quickly changes take place, will give the answer.  

 

I've heard that herbs are dangerous. Just how dangerous are they? 

In 25 years of prescribing herbal formulas (yes, the herbs are from China), to many tens of thousands of patients, not one has been injured, nor one hospitalized, nor one suffered death from the herbs. It follows that one must ask in comparison, is there a single pharmaceutical that can claim such a record? 

     Can herbs harm or even kill? Absolutely. When do they effect harm? Many of the herbs can cause damage (though generally mild) in the hands of unskilled persons (e.g. grocery store employees, arm-chair herbalists, Western scientists altering and concentrating herbs contrary to nature, under-trained medical practitioners of every kind, and so forth). So yes, herbs - being vaguely like drugs - can cause injury. Much more often than not, what the wrong herbs do in the hands of insufficiently trained persons is simply and sadly very little.

     The experience of the wrong herbs doing very little or nothing is tremendously destructive to the reputation of herbal medicine. "The authorities said they had conducted tests on top-selling store brands of herbal supplements at four national retailers - GNC, Target, Walgreens and Walmart - and found that four out of five of the products did not contain any of the herbs on their labels." (quoted from: https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/new-york-attorney-general-targets-supplements-at-major-retailers/) Due to this and other factors, very few Westerners have ever had the chance to experience real herbal medicine to treat their ailments. Taking (random) single herbs to treat your conditions can be helpful, but it will almost never be curative. Nor will it be anywhere near as rapid or effective as a personal formula. In Chinese herbal medicine, if at all possible, we go for the absolute cure. 

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Must I make lifestyle and/or dietary changes to get well? 

In general, the lifestyle and diet that you've enjoyed for such a long time is a large part of why you have the problems you now have. This is probably not news to you. So, in general, yes you will have to make dietary and/or lifestyle changes. However, they will typically not be too drastic or very difficult, and they will often be things you've already wanted to change (such as too much sugar consumption). Daniel is here to be your advocate, your health-mentor, and your supportive guide on the road to health! Also, the right herbs, and regular acupuncture, make such changes pleasant and easy. 

  

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