If you have had little or no exposure to Acupuncture, it can be a little intimidating. I hope this will help. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call me.

What Can Traditional Chinese Medicine Do for Me?

Acupuncture is generally known as a good solution for chronic (ongoing) pain management. This is a well documented, and generally accepted use of acupuncture. But there are a number of conditions that acupuncture is effective for that are not so well known. Here are a few:

Women's issues - Issues associated with menopause are commonly treated with acupuncture. Pain and irritability issues associated with a woman's monthly cycle may be effectively addressed with acupuncture and Chinese herbs.

Immune enhancement - Acupuncture and Chinese herbs can be used to treat colds and flus, and can help increase immunity so you don't get so many colds.

Wellness - Acupuncture  and herbs can help you maintain your body at peak health, and improve your resistance to the various bugs being passed around.

Facial Rejuvenation - Specifically to help you look and feel younger, acupuncture is surprisingly effective at reducing wrinkles and other signs of aging. Not as fast as botox, but has benefits beyond mere appearance.

Aging - As we are all aware, the aging process is ongoing but acupuncture can help maintain your health, and can be targeted to specific issues you may have as you get older.

In 1997 the National Institute of Health summarized some other areas where Acupuncture has been studied: "there is clear evidence that needle acupuncture is efficacious for adult postoperative and chemotherapy nausea and vomiting and probably for the nausea of pregnancy... There is reasonable evidence of efficacy for postoperative dental pain... reasonable studies (although sometimes only single studies) showing relief of pain with acupuncture on diverse pain conditions such as menstrual cramps, tennis elbow, and fibromyalgia..." However, "acupuncture does not demonstrate efficacy for cessation of smoking and may not be efficacious for some other conditions."

The items listed above are the issues we all face as human beings. Some of us may have additional issues caused by accident or illness. Almost every treatment for car accidents, surgery, illness, etc provided by your local doctor can be enhanced by the application of acupuncture.

Does it hurt?

Acupuncture is a whole new world to some folks. They don't know what to expect because they are unfamiliar with the practice of acupuncture. But you need not worry about pain, this is a process that is not painful.

The needles we use are very fine. When inserted into your skin, we just tap them quickly and most people feel nothing at all or at most a slight sting. This is a good thing, of course, because we may put many needles in you. Even for something like a simple headache, we will use several on your head, several on each hand, and maybe one or two on the back of your neck.

It is important to note that the practice of Acupuncture, like many wellness disciplines, is all about working as a partner with your practitioner to improve your health. This is particularly true as it relates to pain you may feel during the acupuncture treatment. If it hurts, it isn't quite right. You need to speak up and let the practitioner know. The needle can be repositioned so it doesn't hurt, although you may occasionally feel an ache at the site of the needle.

It is possible for you to cause a painful acupuncture experience. You should not move when being treated. The needles may go far enough into your body that when you move a muscle the needle will move and cause pain.

Overall, the experience should not cause you any more pain than a massage. In the long run, of course, the use of acupuncture has well documented benefits for your overall health and well being.

Is it Effective?

It is clear that after thousands of years of practice, that Acupuncture is effective. But this question kind of misses the point. After all, the only thing that matters is if it is effective for you.

Acupuncture is like growing a garden. It is a process where you work with the elements you have, and help them. You water during the dry spells, you pull the weeds out, you apply a little compost. You do these as part of an ongoing effort to help your garden grow. Acupuncture is part of an overall attitude toward your life and your health. You are trying to do what you need to; trying to eat right, exercise as much as you can, getting enough sleep. Despite your efforts to live a healthy life issues crop up outside the normal, and acupuncture can help your body deal with these issues.

In 1997, the National Institute of Health issued a consensus statement on acupuncture that concluded that "there is sufficient evidence of acupuncture's value to expand its use into conventional medicine and to encourage further studies of its physiology and clinical value." The NIH statement noted that "the data in support of acupuncture are as strong as those for many accepted Western medical therapies", and added that "the incidence of adverse effects is substantially lower than that of many drugs or other accepted medical procedures used for the same condition."

Almost no one suggests that acupuncture should completely replace Western medicine. The benefits of drugs and surgery are undeniable. But in cases where you don't believe action that drastic is necessary, or where you want additional help through a problem, acupuncture is safe, reliable, and effective.

Looking Good!

Acupuncture is a part of your medical care designed to enhance your health and well being. It can help relieve ongoing health issues, but can also have a beneficial effect on how you look.

A subset of acupuncture is designed specifically to help you look better, and is called Facial Rejuvenation. As you might guess, this is a series of treatments that involve no drugs or surgery.

It does take some time, bf you want a healthy procedure that works with your body to make you look better, this is for you. The treatment consists of 10-12 acupuncture treatments, each takes an hour to an hour and a half. Additional electrical stimulation in minute amounts is added to some of the needles. You will start to see noticeable changes in your skin and the contours of your face after five or six of the treatments.

So, if you are considering botox or cosmetic surgery, you would be well advised to consider acupuncture as a safer and overall more healthful approach to looking younger. And with acupuncture you will probably feel better too!