What acupuncture + a carb-free diet does for you

Fair warning: I do talk about needles in this post because I talk in detail about acupuncture. If you don’t love needles, maybe skip this one.

For the last 3 weeks, I’ve been going through an acupuncture program that includes acupuncture 3 times a week and following a carb-free, sugar-free, processed-food free, and low-fat diet. I was first recommended this program from a family friend—“It helped my acne a lot plus it’s great weight-loss system.” The skin comment was what drew me in (but I’d be lying if I said the weight-loss aspect didn’t perk my ears!)

I’ve been struggling with adult acne for just about 2.5 years now. Initially I thought that it was just my hormonal changes that was causing the flare ups so I got off birth control (I was on an IUD at the time) and gave my body time to stabilize. After about a year, it was clear that while yes, the acne did seem related to hormonal imbalance, my body should have stabilized from the birth control changes by then. Around the same time, I also started to question my relationship with stress and anxiety. That’s when things started to click into place.

I noticed that my acne worsened during tougher moments in my life. The reason I believed they are still hormone-related is because stress actually has a direct impact on our hormonal system, particularly in women. When we experience stress, our body releases cortisol, which can disrupt the delicate balance of other hormones like estrogen and progesterone. This can then lead to sebum production inflammation, and ultimately, acne breakouts.

The acupuncture program

Choosing acupuncture was a bit of an impulsive reach but I have seen a lot of improvements in other areas of my life when I’ve done acupuncture in the past so I decided why not—what do I have to lose?

So for 3 weeks straight, I drove an hour each way to acupuncture on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. My main goal was to do a body-reset through eating clean and the acupuncture course. The tiny needles were placed on my face, legs, arms, feet, hands, and stomach. Some were for calming, some were for regulating, and others I’m honestly not sure (I didn’t ask about every placement). After the needles are placed, you’re required to lay still and rest for about 45 minutes. The longer you’re able to rest, the more time your body has to respond to the treatment.

The needles need time to work their magic in stimulating the pressure points and promoting circulation. In response, your body is also releasing endorphins, regulating hormones, and promoting healing. This rest period is crucial because it allows your nervous system to settle into a parasympathetic state (rest and digest mode) where the body can focus on healing and rebalancing. I often fell asleep during this time (which is actually beneficial?) so it was like taking time away to go and have a little nap.

The diet

My diet consisted of

• no carbs,
• no sugars,
• some meats (only skinless, boneless chicken/duck or lean pork),
• only green vegetables (no other veggies allowed),
• no fruits except guava, lemon, tomato, and grapefruit,
• only raw herbs and spices, garlic, green onion, salt, and olive oil as seasoning,
• and I must eat 3 eggs and 2 tomatoes every day.

My skin in December + January

Oof, it feels incredibly vulnerable to share these pictures but for the sake of science (or physical medicine I guess in this case) here’s what my skin looked like at it’s worst. A lot of the flare ups were in reaction to my RTT (really traumatic thing) that I had going on at the end of December. Plus the added stress of having to bounce back and get back to work.

How it went

Week 1

The doctor warned me that week one would be the hardest. You body will need time to adjust to the new diet. As someone who’s regular diet consisted heavily of noodles, rice, pastas, and breads, I definitely felt the change.Thankfully, one of my childhood comfort foods is actually a Chinese dish consisting of just tomato, egg, garlic, and green onion (番茄鸡蛋) so I ended up eating that every day to fulfill the “must-haves” in my diet.

In my skin, I didn’t notice much change. I was still having flare ups along my jawline (where the majority of my acne likes to live) but they were starting to seem less inflamed and severe. In my body, I did notice that I no longer experienced any bloating through the day, even while in my luteal and menstruation phase. I had more energy throughout the day and no carbs, especially during the midpoint of my day, removed any mid-day slumps I used to have from carb-crash outs.

During the first week week alone, I lost just under 5 pounds. My weight did fluctuate a little after the second session because of my period but the doctor mentioned that it was normal.

Week 2

In week 2, my hunger subsided a lot as my body adapted to the lack of carbs and fatty meats. In both the initial week and this one, I would have either chicken and veggie soup (must be made with chicken breast and water—no broth can be used) that I loaded up with dry herbs or a baked pork tenderloin (also seasoned with herbs). I noticed that my energy was consistent across both weeks and my skin was looking a lot less angry. I still definitely had a few new spots here and there but it was clear that the flare ups subsided substantially. By the end of week two I had lost about 7 pounds in total.

Week 3

During the last week, I actually found the diet to be a bit tougher again. Maybe because I knew the end was in sight and I started thinking about all the delicious things I could eat when it ended. I gave it some thought and considered the effort this program took, the benefits I was seeing, as well as my eating habits as a whole and made some decisions about how I would like to eat once my diet was done (read below).

Besides my energy consistently being excellent and my body getting leaner, I realized that this program has also brought along a ton of great lifestyle habits as well. I was cooking every day, I was eating fresh foods and knew exactly what I was putting into my body. I no longer craved snacks throughout the day. And the best part: my mood and mental clarity had improved. Sure I’d still have hunger pangs here and there, but by not loading my body with random foods I was having more “feel good” days overall.

This feeling also came from being proud of myself and the increased trust I was building with myself by seeing this program through. I’m sure it wasn’t just the diet that changed this because acupuncture is known to help with mood regulation and mental clarity in several ways.

The needles stimulate specific points that can help balance neurotransmitters and hormones in the body. When these tiny needles are inserted, they trigger the release of endorphins (our body's natural feel-good chemicals) and can help reduce cortisol (our stress hormone) levels. The treatment also promotes better blood circulation to the brain, which can enhance mental clarity and cognitive function.

By the end of week 3, I had lost 10 pounds.

Overall thoughts

Although the sessions were tedious to get to and took up a lot of time in my week (1 hour per session, 3 times a week), it actually ended up being a much needed reset to my schedule. Having to attend these sessions proved to me that I could actually be away from work for nearly 3 whole days each week and still be productive, efficient, and complete all my projects. (I usually would just plan vlog filming days on these days and not do any computer work.)

I already mentioned the lifestyle changes: cooking more, getting creative by doing more with less ingredients, and just overall learning to listen to my body—but the most important aspect I got clarity on was my eating habit as a whole.

Learning that I can be full without carbs and that I can be satisfied and happy with my food despite the lack of sauces and sugars was a bit of a wake up call. It was proof that raw, whole foods can actually be used in a cornucopia of ways and you can make delicious (and nutritious) meals even when working with so little.

So although I spent a decent bit of time saving restaurants and bakeries I wanted to try after my diet ended, here’s what I’ve actually decided I’ll do moving forward:

• Eat less carbs overall—I’ll mainly be limiting carb intake to breakfast and lunch, and try to eat super low-carb or go carb-less for dinner
• Try to make everything on my own—this diet has reignited my passion for cooking so whenever I can, I’m going to avoid processed versions of foods. (I’ve even been baking my own bread and pita and I’ll be trying avoid canned, boxed, and other packaged goods when cooking)
• Maintain a healthy, whole foods diet—I’ve been saving so many recipes to try and have realized how many nutrition-rich foods I have yet to try
• Don’t allow food to stress me out—the main reason I even had to do this diet was because my cortisol levels have messed up my body. Food is still (and probably always will be) one of my love languages so why stress about it?
• Portion control—knowing that I can eat a substantially smaller amount than I used to and still feel energized and full has really changed the game for me

My skin

Although my skin is not perfect, I also didn’t expect that it would be after 3 short weeks. I have seen significantly less flare ups and overall my skin has been a lot healthier since 3 weeks ago. There’s still stress and anxiety that I have to work through as well as balancing other healthy habits such as keeping a consistent sleep schedule and moving my body more that I know will result in clearer skin in the long-run.

Much of what you do in acupuncture is training your body to regulate more normally and relearn how to heal itself. Acupuncture (like many other forms of physical medicine) requires more than just the sessions to be done. It requires you to actively make lifestyle and diet changes to support the goal you have in mind. Yes the diet and acupuncture helped tremendously, but what made this program so successful for me is that I went in with a specific goal in mind—doing a body and lifestyle reset—which allowed me to adapt other aspects of my life to support that objective.

I reinforced movement in my morning routine. I started meditating regularly again. I (nearly) forced myself to follow-through with maintaining other healthy habits throughout my weeks because I knew that there were changes I needed to make in my lifestyle for this to garner positive and long-lasting results.

Even though I don’t (yet) have clear skin, I absolutely count this as a win because for the first time in a long time I feel a lot more in control of my life and that I’m truly headed in the right direction when it comes to taking proper care of my body.

If you’re interested in this program (and live in Vancouver) my acupuncturist is Ti Hu Clinic on W Broadway. I couldn’t recommend them enough.