A little more about Christina…

Hello community!

I hope this finds you relatively well. What a wild time to be alive!

2024 will be a year of integrating the accumulated learning, refining and practicing that took place over previous year. Having completed the Balance System Acupuncture certification in November 2023 with the esteemed Dr Sonia Tan, I continue building on my training and evolution as a Balance practitioner and Community Acupuncturist. I have been putting my newly refreshed knowledge of the Balance System to good use by relieving the pain and suffering of others and regularly emptying my cup as a lifelong learner.

As with every year, the intention is to continue to build on existing community and professional relationships as well as exploring new alliances. We are all blessed with our respective gifts, we fill one another’s gaps and we are stronger together. Being Owner/Operator of a grassroots, community-focused business, our wealth is our community relationships.

Exiting 2023 with growing socio-economic inequality and political unrest, more than ever, Heart & Hands as a social enterprise is committed to sustaining our community members so they may continue to work, care and fight for a freer, equitable and humane world for all.

“Things are not getting worse, they are getting uncovered. We must hold each other tight and continue to pull back the veil.”
~Adrienne Mari Brown

And with the Year of the Wood Dragon on the horizon, as a Wood-y constitution, my challenge is to ride the dynamic, propulsive, visionary energy of the Wood element, while ensuring I remain grounded and balanced by connecting with aspects of my Earth element. With curiosity, self-compassion and tempered determination, 2024, here I come…

~Christina Chan, R.Ac.

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Here are some seasonally relevant questions to get to know me better!

What are your favourite winter time activities?

Unfortunately, I experienced another health set back at the end of the summer and heading into the fall 10-15 lbs lighter, my body has struggled in the colder weather :(

I have been relegated indoors to catch up on reading, studying, writing, music and podcasts. Also more domestic pursuits like knitting, kimchi-making and concocting large batches of soup. As my good friend, Anna (of Green Muse Herbs) says, “My body is not a temple. It is a thermos. For soup.”

Otherwise, my evenings are for resting, Epsom salt baths, stretching and K-Dramas ;)

What are your strategies staying warm and cozy?

I cannot survive winter without the following:

1. Wool
2. Down
3. Holofill booties
4. Moxa, heating pad, hot water bottle
5. Soup, soup, soup…chai tea…and repeat

What is your favourite soup?

I currently have on heavy rotation, chicken + century egg congee, ox tail, borscht, broccoli-leek-mushroom, Thai green curry and I recently discovered this delicious Greek, lemon-y, egg-y, chicken soup called, avgolemono. I recommend zesting the lemon as well and adding the fragrant rind to the soup at the end for extra flavor and pungency that aids in digestion and smooths stagnation!

What remedies and/or strategies do you use when you are feeling under the weather?

The moment I feel a tickle in my throat, I gargle with warm salt water with 1-2 drops of Thieves Oil. I ramp up my Vit C, D and zinc, sometimes add a few drops of cedar (thuja plicata) tincture to my tea. I’ve also more recently have been trying Betadine throat spray, which has been clinically shown to lower the chances of viral infection.

If I’m feeling that upper back ache of an early viral infection, I’ll take a bath and I sometimes like to add fresh slices of ginger for extra warmth to open my pores. If needed, I will apply thorough gua sha to the back of my neck and upper back and will diligently cover my Wind Gates (back of neck and head) with a scarf and toque to prevent any further pathogenic invasion.

What are strategies you use to combat the winter blues?

Last winter, I finally got to experience the slog that is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and dragged myself through a few weeks feeling extremely lethargic, low/negative mood and struggling to focus, so I finally broke down and found a used SAD light box. I put additional attention on my nutrition, more bone broths, more protein and good fats. I was disciplined about regular moxibustion sessions several times a week to reinforce my Wei qi strong and to replenish my qi-blood-yang stores. I also doubled my Vit D consumption over the winter and tried to get sun exposure whenever the cloud cover cleared.

Otherwise, I just succumb to the need to nest, especially since early January was just intolerably cold for me. I put on extra layers and focus on keeping my feet warm. I also cleared my schedule of evening obligations so I could just stay home and avoid any unnecessary exposure to cold, damp and wind.

Luckily the SADs didn’t return to visit me this current winter, for which I am grateful to not have to deal with both struggling to stay warm and feeling like a deflated balloon.

What conditions to you feel especially proficient at treating and/or find the most rewarding?

Honestly, providing acupuncture for newbies is pretty satisfying for me :) My goal is provide a positive first time experience, empowering clients in developing a more embodied relationship with themselves and dispel any myths and xenophobia about TCM. I love wooing people into realizing how amazing Community Acupuncture is!

Since starting the wild ride of pandemic practicing, there has been a distinct and marked rise in folks struggling with nervous system regulation, which is no surprize considering the state of the world :( I find it particularly rewarding to not only provide clients the opportunity to move out of fight, flight or freeze, but also to support and (re)build a more flexible nervous system. THEN, they can develop the ability to move back towards a regulated state with greater ease, but also to building tolerance to mental-emotional discomfort. Broadening your neurological bandwidth leads to greater self-awareness and reflection and ultimately, the opportunity to live life more fully.

The other “condition” that I’ve developed a knack for from the past 14 years of community practice is all things maternity. It was a gradual and organic process of learning as I went whenever someone pregnant came to visit, training with the fantastic Debra Betts as well as auditing a doula training.

I want to shift attitudes around preventative care and improving quality of life before, during and after pregnancy. It is possible to minimize many of the unpleasant symptoms that accompany the process of gestating a brand new life and that it is unnecessary to suffer through your pregnancy or become completely depleted after giving birth. I want to provide drug-free, natural, traditional health care to individuals throughout + following this amazing physical, emotional and spiritual transition <3

What are some benefits of Community Acupuncture during the colder and darker months?

In case you may have forgotten that we are animals too and winter is for hibernating.

Community Acupuncture offers an intentional space to retreat into. It’s warm, peaceful and nest-like so you can carve out an hour of your week to “hibernate”, restore and rebuild. And with the heavy, internal and Yin nature of the season, this is also the opportunity for introspection and emotional processing. Anything from the SADs and low immunity to poor circulation and achy bodies due to cold-damp weather, Community Acupuncture helps to stoke the internal fire so that you emerge from winter (Water season) replenished and ready for the vibrant, action-packed energy of spring (Wood season).

Take good care of that winter body :)

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