indigoacupuncture@megamad.work, Author at Indigo Healing Acupuncture

Child piggybacking with mother and family dinner table in background.

“I need to talk to my husband…”

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on March 1, 2021. Posted in About Us, Family, Fatigue, Life, Marriage, Motherhood, Parenting, Stress, Worry. Leave a Comment

Dear Mama Sitting In Front of Me,

I see you.

I know you’re exhausted.

I know it took every ounce of willpower for you to get out of bed this morning.

I know how much your jaw hurt when you tried to smile at your kids because you spent another restless night grinding away your worry.

I know about the resentment you feel when your husband announces he’s going to disappear for 6 hours on a Saturday to hang out with the guys and relieve stress.

I know about the never-ending to do list that you mentally track. How every time you check a box you feel a twinge of hope you’re getting closer to a chance to rest.

I see the toll carrying such a heavy load is taking on your body and spirit.

I see the pain pounding away at your happiness and a cloud covering your heart.

I understand that it seems impossible to take time for yourself.

It breaks my heart to hear you don’t have the time to do what you need to do.

It maddens me to hear it’s up to your husband to decide if you’re worthy of feeling better.

It saddens me that your kids will not get a chance to know who you are without pain.

I want to to tell you all these things, but I see you.

I see you holding back the tears because you already know.

You already know you need help.

You already know you deserve a better life.

You already know your kids deserve the best you.

You already know you should be making your own decision.

You already know you shouldn’t need to expend precious energy to convince him.

You already know you don’t need to ask permission to do what’s best for you.

If only you could see what I see.

You are worth it.

With love,

Dr. Michelle

Everglow Esthetics Is Now At Indigo Healing Acupuncture

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on February 6, 2021. Posted in News, Tools, Weekends, Wellness. Leave a Comment

Indigo Healing Acupuncture is excited to announce our new partnership with Everglow Esthetics, owned and founded by licensed esthetician Samantha Brooks, an Austin native with over 20 years of experience in skin care. She offers organic facials, waxing, brow/lash services and clinical-based treatments to help resolve acne, dryness, aging and more! Samantha uses products from Eminence Organic Skin Care.

Everglow Esthetics is now located within Indigo Healing Acupuncture. All services require an appointment. To book, schedule online, text or call 512-461-4821.

5 Ways to Build Your Resilience in 2021

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on January 11, 2021. Posted in Anxiety, Balance, Gratitude, Tools, Wellness. Leave a Comment

If there’s anything 2020 taught us, it was how to quickly adapt and persevere. As the world seemed to close down, we stayed home striving to find the perfect balance between earning an income, teaching our children, caring for our loved ones at a distance, and trying to make the best out of an avalanche of less-than-desirable and some downright impossible situations.

What badge of honor did we earn for muddling through 2020? A super sparkly, glittery one hinting at a well-deserved reprieve in 2021. Now that we’re all here, this year is already demanding resilience, a capacity to recover quickly from difficulties.

Here are 5 ways to build your resilience in 2021:

Plan Ahead

Upon waking in the morning, before you turn on the news or check your phone or turn on your computer, find a small notebook or a scrap of paper and write down your order for the day as if it already happened. “I nailed the presentation.” “I scored the winning goal.” “I received a $25,000 raise.” “I made a difference in his life.” “I am the best mother.” Anything. Order it up in writing first thing in the morning and see how much better your day goes!

Control How You React

Actively look for opportunities in your life to feel how your reactions affect others. There is no one on this planet who has control over their life; the only thing you CAN control is how you react to life. If someone cuts you off in traffic, count to 5 and choose how to react (as opposed to setting an angry vibe by yelling and freaking out your kids). Life doesn’t always have to be hard, but it will undoubtedly throw challenging curveballs. Take notice and realize that it’s up to you to frame each challenge as an opportunity to learn from and grow.

Identify What Matters To You

At the end of each day, write down 5 things (big or small) that you were proud of or thankful for. Enjoyed that hot cup of coffee? Write it down. Found $5 in a pocket? Write it down! Squeezed in a revitalizing 20 minute workout? Write it down! Finished work on time? Write it down! Got a legit hug from your feisty teenager? Write it down!

After a few days, you’ll start seeing patterns and themes of what is truly important to you.

Invest In Yourself

Take care of your body, mind, and spirit. You only get one body in this lifetime and maintenance is required, just like the sweet ride parked in your garage. Acupuncture is an amazing holistic experience that allows your body to heal, your mind to rest, and your spirit to lift. The best part is all you have to do is show up and lie down in a comfortable room for a few minutes. Easy!

Look for Grace

Who do you need to forgive today? Yourself? Your husband? Your wife? Your child? No one is perfect. No one sees the world like you do. Extend grace and forgiveness. Holding onto anger or resentment towards someone or something only hurts you. You deserve better.

2 adults and one child lying in a grassy field and smiling

Why We Could Be Your Last Resort for Relief

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on July 11, 2020. Posted in About Us, Acupuncture, Appointments. Leave a Comment

We treat patients suffering from long-term pain and illness. 99% of our patients come to us as a last resort after trying physical therapy, injections, prescription medications, painkillers, injections and/or surgery without relief.

We offer clinically-proven treatments that have been time-tested over 2,500 years. Every treatment is customized to give you exactly what you need. The most common side-effects are better sleep and increased mental clarity.

Give us a call at 512-686-0777 to get started!

We’re A Red Backpack Fund Grant Recipient!

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on June 13, 2020. Posted in Clinic, News. Leave a Comment

Indigo Healing Acupuncture Selected by GlobalGiving As Red Backpack Fund Recipient, Receives $5,000 Grant From The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation To Combat COVID-19 Crisis

June 12, 2020 — GlobalGiving announced today that Indigo Healing Acupuncture has been selected to receive a $5,000 COVID-19 relief and recovery grant from The Red Backpack Fund, an opportunity for small businesses and nonprofits made possible by The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation.

“My hope is that this gift will help alleviate some of the pressures caused by this horrible pandemic. Twenty years ago, I started Spanx with $5,000 in savings, and I see this as a time to pay it forward. Small business is the backbone of our culture. I know what it’s like to be a small business owner, and I want to provide some relief to these entrepreneurs during this time,” said Spanx Founder Sara Blakely.

The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation donated $5 million to support female entrepreneurs in the wake of COVID-19 and teamed up with GlobalGiving to establish The Red Backpack Fund.

Thousands of business owners and nonprofit founders from across the United States and its territories applied to receive a grant from The Red Backpack Fund to combat economic hardship caused by COVID-19. Indigo Healing Acupuncture was selected for the grant based on its outstanding application, its urgent need for COVID-19 relief, and its demonstrated capacity to overcome COVID-19 setbacks.

GlobalGiving, a 501(c)(3) organization with nearly two decades of grantmaking experience, will award grants to at least 1,000 women entrepreneurs from now through September 2020 through The Red Backpack Fund. GlobalGiving has assembled a 100% women-led team to lead the grantee selection process. The team includes grant specialists, social workers, female entrepreneurs, analysts, and monitoring and evaluation experts.

“We’re proud to announce the grantees of The Red Backpack Fund. They have successfully undergone GlobalGiving’s rigorous vetting process, and we believe this grant will help them continue to thrive, despite the shifting economic circumstances brought on by this crisis,” said GlobalGiving CEO Alix Guerrier. “The world needs more women-led organizations who are a key force in overcoming COVID-19 and establishing a better normal.”

Learn more about The Red Backpack Fund at www.globalgiving.org/redbackpackfund.

About Indigo Healing Acupuncture
Indigo Healing Acupuncture provides clinically-proven solutions for chronic pain/disease, headaches and infertility. Dr. Michelle Wendt, L.Ac, DACM is a Dripping Springs healthcare provider offering effective and comprehensive solutions to adults and children. Her treatment strategies naturally encourage homeostasis in the nervous system, cardiovascular system, endocrine system, and immune system leading to long-term relief.

About The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation
Since its inception in 2006, the Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation has donated millions to charities around the world, focusing on charities that empower underserved women and girls. In 2013, Sara Blakely became the first self-made, female billionaire to sign the Giving Pledge, created by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett, promising to give at least half her wealth to charity. In 2020, Sara and the Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation launched the Red Backpack Fund in partnership with GlobalGiving. Back by Sara Blakely, the $5 million fund supports the recovery and revitalization of female-owned businesses in the U.S. impacted by the coronavirus crisis. While many of the world’s resources are being depleted, one is waiting to be unleashed: Women. The Spanx by Sara Blakely Foundation is on a mission to support women and help them SOAR through education, entrepreneurship and the arts. Learn more at www.spanxfoundation.com.

About GlobalGiving
GlobalGiving is a 501(c)(3) registered nonprofit that makes it safe and easy to support important causes around the world. When a crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic strikes, GlobalGiving quickly delivers funds to vetted organizations that are best-suited to lead immediate and long-term relief and recovery. As part of its mission to accelerate community-led change, GlobalGiving provides tools, training, and support to help nonprofits, donors, and companies increase their impact and make the world a better place. Learn more at www.globalgiving.org.

Indigo Healing Acupuncture Stands Against Racism

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on June 7, 2020. Posted in Clinic, Community, News. Leave a Comment

This week has brought a wave of heavy hearts to the clinic. In this time of overwhelming transformation, our clinic is a place of security, healing and serenity. We do not tolerate any racist beliefs, attitudes, or behavior from our staff or our patients. We support the Black Lives Matter movement. We are a safe space for the people of Dripping Springs and beyond.

“Speaking out against white supremacy and race-based violence does not make you
anti-white, anti-police, right or left.
It makes you pro justice.
Pro black life.
Pro accountability.
And pro racial equality.
Caring about the life of another isn’t political.
It’s human.”
– Shannon Griffin

We Are Open and Here to Help You Feel Better!

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on May 16, 2020. Posted in Appointments, Recovery. Leave a Comment

We have relaunched in-clinic services for Dripping Springs! Give us a call at (512) 686-0777 to schedule an appointment.

For May 2020, we are open 4 days a week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday.

Here’s what to expect as we operate in the new normal:

Our clinic will continue to practice rigorous standard sanitary protocols.
All patients will be treated in private rooms and separated by a minimum of 6ft in common areas.
Appointment availability will be reduced to accommodate physical distancing.
All staff will be screened prior to each shift for subjective and objective markers of COVID-19.
All staff will be wearing masks while working with patients.

During this time, we ask that you assist us by adhering to the following safety measures:

Please wear a mask when in public spaces, including our clinic. We’ll ask you to wear your mask during your treatment. If you do not have a mask, let us know and we will give one to you as supplies last.
We will check your body temperature via forehead scan before you enter the clinic.
We will apply hand sanitizer to your hands as soon as you arrive at the clinic.
Please call to cancel your appointment if you are feeling unwell with symptoms such as cough, fever, rash, shortness of breath, loss of smell and/or taste, if you have traveled recently, or if you have been in contact with someone who has COVID-19 symptoms or has tested positive for COVID-19.
If you are able to come to your appointment by yourself, please do so; if a medically-necessary caregiver is required to accompany you, we may ask him/her to wait outside or in the car during your treatment due to clinic capacity levels.
Children (under the age of 18) are only permitted in the clinic with a pediatric appointment.

To ensure the safety of our clinic for all patients, we reserve the right to re-schedule or cancel your appointment if we feel it is not safe to provide a treatment.

Please give us a call if you have any questions about our new clinic policies. We look forward to seeing you!

The Magic of this Pandemic

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on April 14, 2020. Posted in Clinic, Emotions, Family, Gratitude, Grief, Recovery, Relationships, Stress, Wellness, Worry. Leave a Comment

“There is no magic cure, no making it all go away forever. There are only small steps upward; an easier day, an unexpected laugh, a mirror that doesn’t matter anymore.”
- Laurie Halse Anderson

The entire modern world is at a standstill.

Streets are empty.
Playgrounds are eerily quiet.
Music venues are silent.
Sport fields are barren.
Going out in public is a risky adventure.

Birds chirp.
Deer roam.
Alarm clocks are unset.
Dogs enjoy company all day.
Neighbors help neighbors.

Hitting a collective pause button has never happened in our lifetimes. It was inconceivable.

So much was lost when we hit the pause button. Big games, weddings, birthday parties, family vacations, grand openings, anniversary celebrations, graduations, baby showers and countless other special occasions.

When external activities disappear from our calendars, what’s left? What are the side-effects of this crisis?

Long phone calls talking about nothing & everything.
Sunsets glowing over families at a dinner table filled with odds & ends.
Forgetting what day of the week it is.
Discovering new hobbies.
Finding solace in music.
Rekindling old pastimes.
Neighborhood walks.
Growing food.
Supporting a struggling small business with an order.
Watching old TV shows.
Stargazing.

In the midst of a pandemic that has disrupted our daily lives, this is where the magic resides.

We can choose to focus on the moments that matter.

We can embrace the surprising side-effects of our lives on hold. We can graciously accept that aspects of our former lives will undergo a transformation beyond our control. We can linger in the unknowing of when our new normal might begin. This pandemic will pass. We will all have new beginnings. There is no going back.

Embrace the magic because we’ll never have this time again.

This Pandemic is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on April 2, 2020. Posted in Anxiety. Leave a Comment

In a TedTalk this morning, author Elizabeth Gilbert urged us to pace ourselves, because this pandemic is a marathon, not a sprint. What else is like a marathon?

✅ Maintaining a long-term relationship
✅ Raising a family
✅ Building a business
✅ Earning a degree
✅ Writing a bookEvery human on Earth is a participant in this marathon. We are more connected and dependent on each other now than ever before. It’s already clear this pandemic is not going to last weeks. At best, it’s going to last months. And it is going to fundamentally change every aspect of our lives as we live in the new normal.

Some families will grow closer and some families will self-destruct. Some businesses will stay afloat, while others sink. On a personal level, we can gradually adapt to today or exhaust ourselves trying to live in yesterday.Today’s TedTalk was full of strategies to pace ourselves through this experience. The truth is we won’t be able to emotionally/financially/energetically/physically help each other if we prematurely exhaust all of our resources with 25 miles to go in a 26.2 mile trek.

Slow down. Practice self-compassion today so you can adapt and be stronger tomorrow.

The Toughest Decision in the History of Indigo Healing Acupuncture

Written by indigoacupuncture@megamad.work on March 21, 2020. Posted in Clinic. Leave a Comment

COVID-19. A mysterious, yet deadly respiratory virus. This thing that has brought our so-called modern world to a halt. The invisible enemy that cancelled over 200 appointments when my clinic abruptly closed. The virus that…

prevented performing acupuncture for the mom with daily debilitating migraines.
prevented continuing care for an 80-year-old grandmother with severe back pain.
halted the progress we’d made in treating a 6-year-old with ADHD.

Threats of the virus shuttered dozens of small businesses across town. At least half of my friends and fellow business-owners are out of work (for who knows how long).

As I saw the COVID-19 storm approaching, I said to myself, “I’m not closing until I’m forced to. My community needs me.”

Well, as it turned out, the Government did not force us to close down the clinic on Monday. As the Doctor, I had to make that heartbreaking decision. I spent the previous weekend up all day/night, weighing the evidence, wondering if I could beat the odds of contagion with constant sanitizing and preventative measures. I would wash my hands 1,000 times a day if I needed to. I even hatched a plan to perform drive-through acupuncture in the fresh air of our parking lot.

However, by lunchtime on Monday, I reached a breaking point in my thought process. I realized the most beneficial action I could take for my community was to shut down the clinic. Be socially-responsible. Stay at home and practice social distancing. Isolate myself and my family. Flatten the curve as the popular hashtag says. An altruistic maneuver for sure. I didn’t come to this decision without tears. I spent hours imagining how I would feel if I was unknowingly an asymptomatic vector for COVID-19. How would I feel if I unknowingly transferred it to one of my immune-compromised patients? How would I feel if my favorite 80-something-year-old patient ended up in the emergency room without an available ventilator? How I would I feel if I brought it home to my family? The thought of all those scenarios was too much to bear. I made the call to cancel everything. To pull the plug. To temporarily close the business I’ve put my whole heart into and worked tirelessly to build. To discontinue providing the magic healing power of acupuncture to patients I adore and love as much as my own family.

My heart goes out to my fellow business owners also in the position of having to decide for themselves. I pray you’ll find the path that is right for you.

To our patients, we will be back when this all ends. I promise.

512-686-0777

Author: indigoacupuncture@megamad.work