Articles from Dr. Peter Borten

(Originally published in About Face Magazine, issue 08) When a patient comes in to see me, I get a brief opportunity to facilitate a shift toward the positive. I might overhaul their diet, give them exercises, insert acupuncture needles, or prescribe some medicine. It’s clear…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) Traveling, whether by plane, train, car, bus, or unicycle, is often hard on the body. There are many things you can do to make traveling a less painful experience. It does require some work, but…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) Acceptance is an essential prerequisite to letting something go.  Although it’s natural to fight the things we dislike, when the struggle is within us, it only strengthens our relationship with the thing we dislike.  Perhaps…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) Our food choices often play a major part in the development of chronic pain. All of the ways our diet affects our internal chemistry is too big a topic for this forum, but there are…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) The increase in Americans’ use of oral pharmaceutical drugs over the past several decades is nothing short of mind-blowing. I always ask my patients what drugs they’re taking – if any – and I routinely…

Bad posture has many forms. It’s not just the slouching that mothers like to point out. There are all sorts of ways in which our positioning can produce significant stress on our muscles and joints (and even our internal organs). Curcumin has been shown to…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) If you suffer from neck pain, there’s a good chance it’s nothing serious, and even something you can get over rather quickly. The muscles that run along the back of the neck join at their…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) In the practice of Chinese Medicine, heat is nearly always considered preferable to cold for the treatment of pain. A fundamental principle of this medical system is that all pain is caused by stagnation –…

(Originally published as an eight part series of articles for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) Part One Of the various approaches I recommend for pain relief, visualization and other mental techniques are the most interesting to me. Our mind has the power to stop the worst…

(Originally published as an article for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) It sort of feels risky to me, given how many yoga teachers I know, to say anything negative about stretching.  Luckily, most of them are pacifists, so I don’t think they’ll beat me up.  So…

From a Chinese Medical perspective, all pain is caused by same basic mechanism: stagnation. Blood, lymph, energy, food, or other substances are inhibited from their usual flow, and this feels uncomfortable – whether it’s the result of a crushing your finger with a hammer, cramming…

(Originally published as a three part series of articles for Imbue Pain Relief Patch) Part One As early as I can remember doing weight bearing exercise, I nearly always emphasized the “pushing” or contractive part of the movement. If I was doing a push-up, my…

In high school and college, I spent hours every day playing my guitars and writing songs. Music was the main outlet I had for the angst and depression I felt in my late teens and early twenties. In grad school, I began to emerge from…

(Originally published as a newsletter for The Dragontree Holistic Day Spa) I was recently at a workshop to study a particular style of Chinese pulse diagnosis with an expert in San Francisco. This form was brought to the U.S. by a doctor named John Shen,…

(Originally published as a newsletter for The Dragontree Holistic Day Spa) Part of The DragonTree’s mission statement is, “To seed our community with centered, peaceful, and healthy people.”  We can only do so much to assist our clients during their visits here, so homework is…

As the big ball of fire we call the Sun makes its most prominent appearance this time of year, it’s a nice chance to explore the many literal and symbolic ways fire shows up in our lives. Fire was once a god of great esteem…

(Originally published as a newsletter for The Dragontree Holistic Day Spa) This spring I would like to encourage you to get in touch with the essence of the wood element.  Early Daoist and Five Element Acupuncture philosophies see the world as a blend of five…