Zelena Medicine

02/12/2026

Chronic pain is rarely just “local.”
Back pain, neck pain, knee pain, and other persistent aches don’t only live in one joint or muscle. Over time, pain can echo through multiple systems of the body:

▸ the nervous system, amplifying sensitivity and stress response
▸ fascia and connective tissue, creating tension patterns far from the original site
▸ sleep, mood, and energy, making recovery harder
▸ daily movement, confidence, and quality of life

At Zelena Medicine, chronic pain care addresses these layers together ☺︎ Treatment focuses not only on where pain shows up, but on how the body has adapted around it over time.
Using acupuncture and holistic medicine, we work to:

☑︎ calm overactive pain signaling
☑︎ improve circulation and tissue repair
☑︎ support nervous system regulation
☑︎ help the body move, rest, and recover more easily

For patients, this often looks like:

• less reactivity in the body
• deeper and more restorative sleep
• easier movement throughout the day
• a growing sense that pain is no longer running the show

If you’re living with ongoing back pain, neck pain, knee pain, or other chronic pain that hasn’t fully resolved, thoughtful, whole-person care can make a meaningful difference.

02/04/2026

Care for the physical and emotional aftermath of illness, medical treatment, or long-term stress: from cancer recovery to peripheral neuropathy and pelvic floor disorders. Zelena Medicine offers holistic medicine and acupuncture in the Roaring Fork Valley of Colorado.

zelenamedicine.com

01/15/2026

Peripheral neuropathy can quietly reshape the way you live your life.

I'd love to help you feel better without adding more prescriptions to your daily routine.

Make an appointment and find out if treatment is right for you. Let's connect: https://zelenamedicine.com/holistic-medicine-for-neuropathy-in-basalt-co

01/09/2026

I am honored to have been interviewed for a favorite local newspaper, The Sopris Sun. In the article, I speak about how being a cancer survivor informs my approach to holistic medicine, blending acupuncture and integrative care with deep attention to the nervous system, lived experience, and long-term healing.
Read more here:
https://soprissun.com/zelena-medicine-plays-its-part-in-patients-healing-plans/

Martina Skenderova, better known by her peers and patients as Mishe, has been working in the realm of holistic wellness since 2007, obtaining her

12/20/2025

Peripheral neuropathy, damage to the peripheral nerves, wether it's from chemotherapy, diabetes, or chronic illness can make even simple daily activities such as buttoning a shirt, playing an instrument, or taking a walk become a source of frustration and pain. Medications offer limited symptom control with lasting side effects. Treatments at Zelena Medicine in Basalt, CO can actually stimulate the body's nerve repair mechanisms, improve nerve function, and allow people to reclaim their ability to do the activities they need and love to feel happy and fulfilled.
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Discover how acupuncture for peripheral neuropathy can enhance nerve conduction, promote nerve repair, and lead to significant symptom reduction, improving your overall quality of life. Explore effective acupuncture peripheral neuropathy treatment options today.

12/03/2025

All the pieces are starting to come together in the new office. It gives me so much delight to see this work by local artist Kelly Peters first thing as I walk through the office door. It’s not just about treatments and modalities, set and setting matter for healing too. Much gratitude to Art by Kelly Peters for bringing a bit of the mountains indoors to welcome people into Zelena Medicine.

11/03/2025

What does holistic medicine actually mean?
It’s not a rejection of science or western medicine: it’s a broader view of health that considers body, mind, and circumstance together.
I wrote about how this approach can support those living with chronic pain, rebuilding after cancer, or feeling the long reach of stress.

Read more here:

What is holistic medicine? Learn more and find integrative treatment services here. Explore modern acupuncture, botanical medicine, manual therapy, and whole-person care for optimal health in the Roaring Fork Valley, CO.

10/08/2025

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
My feed is full of pink ribbons and words of battle and honestly, it’s exhausting sometimes. I can’t help but wonder how many people feel alienated by the constant talk of “fighting.”

In 1971, President Nixon declared a “war on cancer.” The funding that followed was vital, but the language of battle has quietly shaped how we think about cancer ever since, how we talk to patients, how we relate to our own diagnosis, and even how we love each other through the disease.

But healing isn’t a war.
And illness isn’t an enemy.

Words matter.
“Waging war” evokes obliteration and suffering more than it evokes healing or recovery. No one says they’re battling lupus or fighting alopecia. I’ve never heard from a rheumatoid arthritis warrior. Yet in cancer care, those metaphors persist—sometimes leaving people in constant fight-or-flight, steeped in fear and isolation, carrying the quiet implication that if their disease doesn’t go into remission, or returns, they’ve somehow lost... failed.

Maybe we need a new language for healing- one rooted in connection, not combat; presence, not performance.

Because the body doesn’t need to be conquered.
It needs to be cared for.

https://zelenamedicine.com/how-can-acupuncture-help-during-cancer-treatment

09/27/2025

How can acupuncture help during cancer treatment? Learn more here >>>
https://zelenamedicine.com/how-can-acupuncture-help-during-cancer-treatment

Acupuncture is an integral part of holistic cancer support. How can acupuncture help during cancer treatment? It offers relief beyond medication for a number of side effects associated with chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery.

09/24/2025

>> You’ve heard you “should feel lucky to be alive”

>> You’re expected to just "get back to your old life”

But, even after treatment ends, you’re struggling with some of the physical and emotional effects. Maybe nothing feels the same, and you are a bit unmoored and alone in the struggle, because everyone seems to think all is fine now.

The truth is, instead of struggling in silence, guilt tripping yourself for not feeling better, or trying to get “back” to the old ways, you can step into a new chapter in life, one that improves on what didn’t work before; one that is more aligned and connected to the things and people that matter most to you; one that is more vibrant courageous, and joyful.
https://zelenamedicine.com/holistic-medicine-acupuncture-for-cancer-support

09/19/2025

Hi All,
I’m working on opening my private practice in the next few months, and I would so love your support! Playing the social media game is not in my wheelhouse, but with your help, I can more easily reach those who could really use my knowledge and skill. Please follow this page, maybe “like” a few of the posts sometime.

You may already know I’ve spent the last year in the hands of a cancer diagnosis. It’s been harder than I expected, but I’m feeling even more resolute on using my personal and professional experience in oncology acupuncture and holistic medicine to support people who are facing that diagnosis.

My final ask: If you have experienced benefit from my work, please consider leaving a quick google review here:
https://search.google.com/local/writereview?placeid=ChIJwW2d7pOViSYR_65sq-Y2Oqk&source=g.page.m.ia._&laa=nmx-review-solicitation-ia2

or here:

https://g.page/r/Cf-ubKvmNjqpEAE/review