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What is Acupuncture?
What is Acupuncture?
"Acupuncture is the insertion of needles into the skin where the therapeutic effect is expected to come primarily from the act of inserting, manipulating and/or retaining the needles in specific locations. " - Clean Needle Technique Manual 7th Edition
"Acupuncture is the insertion of needles into the skin where the therapeutic effect is expected to come primarily from the act of inserting, manipulating and/or retaining the needles in specific locations. " - Clean Needle Technique Manual 7th Edition
Acupuncture is a powerful therapy that is used to elevate the quality of life in patients worldwide. By inserting needles into the skin and muscle tissue, acupuncture can modulate signaling in the body via the nerves, lymphatic system and a variety of other sensors and receptors that can change the way your body heals itself.
Electrostimulation Acupuncture
Electrostimulation Acupuncture
Electrostimulation is used with acupuncture to stimulate certain points at a fixed interval to help increase the therapeutic value of the treatment. Often referred to as e-stim, it is a modern alternative to some techniques that require practitioners to manually stimulate the points. By using an e-stim machine, acupuncturists can now standardize, adjust and customize the intensity and frequency of needle stimulation to fit a patient's personal needs.
Electrodes are connected to inserted acupuncture needles and the strength of the stimulation is slowly increased until the patient feels a slight movement of the needles. No need to be alarmed! As with our needling, the intensity and frequency can always be adjusted to a level the patient is comfortable with.
Acupuncture and Qi
Acupuncture and Qi
The focus of acupuncture, and all of TCM, is to treat the patient by influencing their "Qi". Though there is no easy translation for "Qi" to those who are unfamiliar, it's used described to be the physical and functional properties of an person, body part, object or even an idea. For example, the physical and functional forms of the stomach is referred to in TCM terms as stomach Qi. Healthy stomach Qi will result in the happy ripening and digesting of food in the physical stomach organ and that Qi will properly descend food downward. Pathology of the stomach Qi may manifest as a symptom such as bloating, and may be described, in TCM terms, as the collection of pathological Qi in the abdomen, impeding in the free movement of healthy stomach Qi.
In TCM theory, Qi travels through complicated pathways called channels or meridians. Through recent understandings, many of these channels have been found to act similarly to that of nervous, cardiovascular, hormonal and lymphatic pathways and may run alongside these physical structures. Along the channels in which Qi passes through are places on the body that can affect how a person's Qi functions; these places are the points chosen by acupuncturist to treat pathologies. Acupuncturists provide their treatment by guiding Qi to the proper places in the body and advocating for ways patients can retain free and unimpeded flow of Qi.
Modern Eastern Medicine and Science
Modern Eastern Medicine and Science
Though many mechanisms of action still remain elusive to the scientific research community, an irrefutable amount of studies point to the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating many symptoms, syndromes and conditions. The World Health Organization (WHO) and National Institute of Health (NIH) both publish numerous studies showing the scientific evidence that TCM is a safe and effective form of treatment.
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