Acupuncture Frequently Asked Questions

What is Acupuncture? How Does It Work?

Acupuncture has had clinical success in the East for over two thousand years. It gradually made its way into Western medicine just in the past 50 to 60 years. It is simple and it works very well with minimal or no side effects. Acupuncture treats a wide variety of physical and emotional pain. Acupuncture is a medical modality that involves using tiny needles which stimulate the nervous system to vasodilate blood vessels and increase blood flow. Increased profusion provides the body with sufficient nutrients for injured areas and promotes healing. Blood carries within it, many valuable resources including oxygen, white blood cells, red blood cells, antioxidants, and the ability to remove toxicity and waste products from the injured tissues. Acupuncture needles also have a direct impact on our nervous system, by signaling the brain to produce opiates such as Enkephalin and others to help the body to keep the pain away. Injured tissues that cause pain and discomfort will start to heal and renew.

Is Acupuncture Painful? Are You Afraid of Needles?

Acupuncture needles are very small. The gauge of an Acupuncture needle is about the width of a human hair. Through my clinical experience, I have seen very few people who are very sensitive to needles. There are many techniques that we can use to distract the patients from feeling the discomfort of the needle. No worries! For the most part, it feels like a pinprick or an ant bite. So, if what is keeping you away from getting Acupuncture is the fear of the needle, do not worry, many practitioners are well aware of it, and we have many tools to keep you from feeling uncomfortable.

Does Acupuncture Have Any Side Effects? How Do I Feel During The Acupuncture Session?

No, there are no major side effects in Acupuncture. The most common issue that I have seen is bruising; which will go away on its own after a few days. We also have an herbal tincture that can help to prevent bruising. There are some typical sensations that you might feel at the site of the needle such as a sensation of burning, low-grade throbbing, itchy feeling, a sensation of numbness, and the feeling of a quick pulsate of sensation that runs through a part of the body, mostly in the hands and the legs. These sensations are the positive effect of the needles. They are the signs that the body is responding to the treatment.

What Do I Do During The Session? How long is An Acupuncture Session?

Each acupuncture session lasts anywhere from 25-45 mins. Staying relaxed is very important during the time of treatment. Oxygen is vital to bodily functions and the healing process. It is important to take deep slow breaths during your treatment- not just getting the body to relax, but also to allow the lungs to be filled with oxygen. So, during the session, I always tell my patients to breathe deeply and slowly for as long as possible to help oxygen flow into their blood more efficiently.

What Are The Feelings That I Expect to Have After The Treatment?

Patients, typically, feel more relaxed and have less bodily pain after the Acupuncture session. Occasionally, the patient might experience their bodily pain intensify after the treatment due to overly profusion of blood flow to the injured tissue, and that experience of intensified pain is a normal process because the brain is now registering more surface area of injured tissue. As the body goes through its repair and healing processes, the pain could be felt for up to a few hours and then subsides, substantially, afterward.

How Many Sessions Do I Need to Help Resolve My Problem?

The frequency and the length of acupuncture treatments vary from person to person depending on the state of their physiology and the intensity and complexity of their problems. To fairly assess the course of treatment and the frequency of the visits, our clinic needs to take a thorough medical history from the patient, and a follow-up assessment is done to see and measure the physiological changes after the initial two or three treatments. After understanding medical history and response to a couple of treatments we will have a sufficient idea of how to offer the best treatment plan for our patient.

Will My Problem Go Away Completely?

Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine help the body heal itself. Problems should go away completely if the patient provides a sufficient length of treatment time to allow their body to attain optimal health and balance. However, patients need to realize that what they do outside of the clinic and what they eat will ultimately have a huge effect on their physical health and emotional wellbeing. As a clinician, I greatly emphasize the need to live a healthy lifestyle and to eat healthy, nutritious food to keep the body in good health and balance after their time at the clinic.

Why Your Blood And Your Circulation Is Important to Your Physiology?

Life is in the blood. Blood flow is very important to bodily function. Cellular functions require a constant supply of O2 and nutrients, blood is the only venue the body uses for transporting oxygen and nutrients to all of the cells in your body. Poor circulation will compromise the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the tissue, thus, compromising physiological function. In addition, the removal of waste products from tissue is also being done by general circulation. If these waste products are not being removed properly, our body will mount an inflammatory response against those toxic wastes. This inflammatory response will express itself into poor health. Some of the general symptoms that you might experience due to poor circulation include poor memory, easily stressed, moodiness, feeling grumpy and groggy, impatience, a general feeling of fatigue and malaise, a lack of drive, low libido, numbness and tingling in the extremities, insomnia, indigestion, easily winded, poor wound healing, and easily catching a cold, etc.

How Important Are The Blood Vessels For Circulation And My Health?

Blood nurtures the body. Sufficient blood flow is very important for overall physiological function. The integrity of blood vessels is important because when blockages occur within blood vessels, it leads to insufficient blood flow causing cellular malfunction or cell death. Health complications occur depending on the area of the blockage. For instance, if a blockage occurs within the blood vessels that supply the heart, symptoms may include heart attack, heart murmur, heart palpitation, chest pain, and tightness, feeling fatigued, easily winded, shortness of breath, emotional sensitivity, anxiety, depression, poor memory, insomnia, and physical pain. Thus, the integrity of the blood vessels is important for cellular function and your overall health because life is in the blood.

Why is Your Heart Important to General Circulation and Your Health?

Sufficient blood circulation is crucial to physiological function, organ function, and the function of the tissue. The human heart is the only engine that keeps the circulation moving. The strength and the rate of heartbeats are important to promote sufficient blood flow throughout the body. If the heart is not beating properly or lacks sufficient strength, the body will start to develop complications such as edema in the lower extremities, feeling physical and mental fatigue, joint pain and other physical pain, poor memory, anxiety, depression, insomnia, over thinking, worry, easily winded and shortness of breath, chest pain and tightness, low blood pressure or high blood pressure. A healthy heart is a premise for good health. It is crucial to have a healthy heart and a healthy life because life is in the blood.

What Is the Role of The Liver In General Circulation?

The liver is a vital organ that keeps toxic and chemical waste from building up in the blood. These toxic and chemical wastes, if not being removed properly, will leach into the tissues causing inflammation. General symptoms associated with improper function of the liver include: depression, anxiety, moodiness, grogginess, easily stressed, insomnia, low energy, mental fatigue, delirium, bodily aches and pain, acid reflux, heartburn, IBS, poor digestion, high blood pressure, ringing in the ears, and blurry vision. Proper liver function is important in keeping the blood clean because life is in the blood.