Well, near Austin anyway.
Friday, Saturday and Sunday (February 26 – 28) the Herbalogic team will be at the Southwest Symposium 2010 in Austin. If you’re around, be sure to stop at our booth for fun and games. I’ll leave the details a surprise, but I will say this much- more cowbell!!
This is a testimonial from a mom, Christine Braile, who in the interest of full disclosure is my sister-in-law:
“As a busy mom of 3 kids under 8 years old, being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis [RA] was devastating. Suddenly I could no longer run after my 2 year old, play a game on the floor with my twins, or even stand long enough to make dinner without tremendous pain. Just waking up in the morning was painful enough to make me not want to go to sleep at night. Then Jeanine suggested I try the Peak Power formula for its immune-modulating properties. Seeking to avoid the powerful and dangerous prescription drugs usually given for RA, I started taking Peak Power in May. By late June I noticed an easier time walking, less stiffness and pain in the morning, and my fatigue had lessened. I have continued taking Peak Power as part of my alternaitve treatment plan and it has helped tremendously. The two times I’ve stopped taking Peak Power for a week or so to see if it was still helping really proved to me that it was indeed a crucial part of my path to wellness. All my symptoms began to return, and only dissipated when I resumed taking the formula. I am immensely fortunate to have been introduced to it.”
To be fair, when I recommended she try Peak Power, I didn’t suggest it with the expectation that it would solve her RA symptoms. What I saw was a really worn out mom showing severe fatigue, and that is what Peak Power is meant to help. It does contain a large dose of astragalas root, which is a fabulous immune modulator. I expect the astralagas root is the reason her RA symptoms have improved. Also of note, Christine told me in a phone conversation that her RA antibody count has dropped way down, such that it doesn’t show up in her blood work anymore. That doesn’t mean she is cured, it means that she’s improved. One of those happy, unintended consequences.
Who is this?
I know, to you folks who live in New England, or Minnesota this is not a big deal, but here in Austin, we don’t often see snow.
This picture comes from my personal herb garden (oregano, lavender, sage- pretty run of the mill stuff) My mother got me this garden statue a few years ago. I know he’s supposed to be somebody culturally iconic, but I don’t know who. If you know, let me know.
My husband sent me a link to this science blog with a review on a patent dispute between Pfizer, makers of Viagra, and Eli Lilly & Co., makers of Cialis. And though I am not entirely clear on the legal details, somehow the Chinese herb, Yin Yang Huo, aka Horny Goat Weed, has entered into the patent dispute.
But what I particularly want to highlight about this author’s review of Viagra versus Yin Yang Huo is his comment:
“Horny goat weed extract must be used at unbelievably high concentrations – far more than can be achieved in the bloodstream – to cause only 1/10th the effectiveness of sildenafil [active ingredient in Viagra] in a rabbit penile blood vessel model.”
And I would like to suggest that maybe that’s not a bad thing. (more…)
This testimonial came to me from the very lovely and talented Aurelia Rocha. She writes:
“My life, career, and my work is the Arts. As such, I have many demands placed upon me to teach, to research, to perform, and to keep my personal studio afloat. When you work in the Arts, you wear many hats. So I was very excited when Jeanine began her line of herbs. From what she had told me the different formulas could be used for a variety of situations and ailments and all of them were safe to use everyday with little or no side effects. So the first thing I tried was Decompress. While I did not notice any sudden changes, I did begin to notice that all of life’s little mishaps were easier to cope with. I was able to continue my day, craziness and all, with my sanity intact. Over time I tried several of the other formulas as well. Deep Sleeper I have found is excellent for performance anxiety, and does not disconnect me from the music, which is a common problem with taking beta-blockers. Other formulas that I have tried include, Easy Breather, which I found works well, even during cotton ginning time, and Back in Action which is a big help after a long run in the summer heat of west Texas. I would highly recommend trying some of these formulas out, and
she uses Deep Sleeper to calm performance anxiety
you may find that they work better than you may have expected.
Tonight on KVUE news, Quita Culpepper reported Austin named best city to start small business
This has certainly been our experience! Besides being full of people hip to herbs, we have had so much help from experienced business people who help us because like us, they love Austin and they love small businesses with big plans. Thanks to everyone that has helped us out.
And speaking of the very talented Quita Culpepper, I am so excited that she has taken a sample of our products and has agreed to try them for a possible segment of Does it Work Wednesday? I can’t wait to find out her reaction!
Periodically, I like to refocus. Particularly, I want to take a few keystrokes to refocus on why we, the Herbalogic team, are in the herb business. Our mission statement is a simple one:
Third Coast Herb Company, Inc. will bridge the cultural gap between traditional Chinese herbal therapy and American healthcare consumers.
Periodically I will be writing about my experiences with Chinese culture as it contrasts with American culture to try to highlight some of those cultural differences. In 2005, I was in China for 7 weeks studying acupuncture on a school sponsored trip. People frequently ask what the most culturally different thing I witnessed while there was, and David Jones, our fearless Director of Production, really deserves the credit for coming up with what I consider to be the perfect answer.
Our school group was returning from an outing to the local herb market, all piled into a van, when we got into a fender-bender with a taxicab. Our driver jumped out and began yelling at the other driver. The other driver quickly jumped out of his car and began yelling back. All of this shouting was animated by wild arm waving and periodic gestures toward the damaged vehicles. After about 10 minutes of this, our driver reached into his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and handed the taxi driver a stack of money. The cab driver similarly pulled out his wallet, and handed our driver change. Then both drivers returned to their vehicles and continued on their respective journeys. The 10 minute argument had been to establish fault and haggle over the price of the accident.
No exchange of insurance information, no police, no lawyers, no threats of lawsuits. It’s too crowded in China for all that nonsense.
early morning traffic in Chengdu, China 2005
This theme carries over into business conduct in China too. In the absence insurance, police, lawyers and lawsuits, businesses know the only thing they have backing them up is the quality of their reputation. Some companies produce goods quickly and cheaply, and their reputation reflects that. Other companies produce goods with care and at higher prices, and their reputation reflects that. At Herbalogic, we strive to emulate the later.
I heard a story from a colleague friend of mine.
A woman was having regular acupuncture/ Chinese herb treatment from my friend. After being treated for about 6 months, the woman moved out of state. But on her referral, her sister started seeing the same acupuncturist. At the end of her first visit, she told my friend, “By the way, I don’t know what you did for my sister, but on behalf of my family and myself, I want to say thank you. She’s not a bitch anymore.”
I laughed and asked what he had done to effect such a profound change that her family noticed. He answered with one word, “Decompress.”