As some of you may know already, I spent the majority of the spring and summer learning about acupuncture. Some of the most common things that I’ve been asked about acupuncture is what is it, what does it treat, and does it hurt? Acupuncture originated in the Chinese culture, and has been practiced for thousands of years now and just recently the rest of the world has really taken an interest in the subject on our hunt for great alternative medicine. Acupuncture has a strong philosophy, we are all full of an energy called Qi that allows for normal bodily functions. When Qi is not balanced correctly, that's when we develop symptoms of pain or sickness. Traditionally speaking, we needle in meridians which are channels where the Qi flows. By balancing Qi, we as doctors are able to help with symptoms our patients are experiencing. Needle placement is dependent on the situation, and communication between doctor and patient is going to be the key to success. The possibilities of treatment with acupuncture are endless. Here at Whole Life Chiropractic, we needle for a lot of different things but most commonly we treat symptoms of anxiety, stress, depression, muscle and joint pain, allergies, and digestive disorders. Whatever it may be, we can put a plan together, and start treatment. Treatment frequency can vary, based on the symptoms you are experiencing. In the past for me, needles have always kind of freaked me out. So taking acupuncture was really stepping out of my comfort zone. The first few times needling myself was the equivalent of trying to rip a bandage off, it was tough to do. After realizing that I didn’t feel the needle at all, I was fine. Trust me, I know when you think of needles you always picture being at your primary doctor’s office and they shove that huge needle into your arm and it hurts. That's because a lot of injections and vaccinations go into muscle. With acupuncture, the needles are only inserted into the first layer of the skin, and doesn’t pierce any muscle underneath. Acupuncture needles are about 12 times smaller than a general hypodermic needle, and as thin as a piece of hair! So when someone asks me if acupuncture hurts, I’ll be honest with them and tell them that for the most part, you don’t feel the needle at all. There are some areas that are more sensitive than others, but any pain felt is more like a small pinch, and the feeling does not last long at all. If you are interested in learning more about acupuncture, please give our office a call. |
by Dr. Corey
