When you come in for acupuncture with a cold, I evaluate the signs of your oncoming cold and develop a strategy to beat it quickly. For example, sweating is important: if you are not sweating at all, our goal will be to open your pores. If you do sweat, we will want to open your pores a bit, but we'll also want to warm and stimulate your immune system into action.Action: Warm fluids and a hot bath or shower. Do not wait! Warm your upper back and neck until they are pink, but without blistering or burning. Juice some fresh ginger and throw it in the bath, or rub slices on your neck and upper back in the shower.
With herbs, it's wise to always have some Yin Qiao San (classically a powder, it also comes in tablets) on hand, as well as some fresh ginger. If you have mostly chills with a little sweating, ginger and cinnamon are a good combination for a quick tea.
Keep applying these remedies until you feel better. If you can make an appointment for acupuncture, a mild treatment followed by some cupping will open your pores, stimulating your immune system to work at its finest. Your acupuncturist may recommend (especially if it's me) taking a full dose of herbs every 2 hours until you see improvement.After all, it will be your system that wins in the end, but the victory will be sooner and more complete if you give your body the resources.
