Top 5 Reasons to get Acupuncture in 2018 ? ? ?

Acupuncture is an ancient modality that is used for healing or assisting with the healing process of almost any condition.  Because acupuncture works to align the bodies natural healing mechanisms, it works holistically, often targeting many organs and organ systems at once.  By assisting and directing the flow of “chi” (energy) through the body, balance in the body can be re-established.

But the question remains, “That’s all fine and good, but what is acupuncture REALLY good at treating.”  We hear this all the time from curious patients and medical practitioners alike.

The truth is, acupuncture is not one size fits all… How successful a practitioner is in treating a specific condition is based on training, intuition, and reading the patient.  In some sense, acupuncture, and healing itself can be considered an art form.  The acupuncture points that are chosen during a session are unique per person and sometimes even per visit.  These points are based on physical, emotional, and even spiritual condition of the person seeking treatment.

Traditional Chinese medicine holds that there are as many as 2,000 acupuncture points on the human body, which are connected by 20 pathways (12 main, 8 secondary) called meridians.  There are many, many points on the body, and collections of points which when put together, create a symphony of healing.

The following are the Top 10 Reasons People Seek Acupuncture:

1. Stress – Stress is the #1 reason why people come in for acupuncture treatments. People are constantly on the go, and putting pressure on themselves.  Our lives are sped up, we are working harder and faster.  We rarely put ourselves on the calendar.  In addition to acupuncture, many people require education on self-care, and how to not absorb other people’s negative energy.
2. Back Pain – Back pain, neck pain, hip pain, shoulder pain, joint pain, and carpal tunnel syndrome. Our backs carry so much weight.  Not only do we literally physically carry a lot of weight in terms of material items like purses, backpacks, laptops, luggage, etc. we carry a lot of unnecessary weight on our bodies.  Extra weight combined with lack of flexibility due to sedentary lifestyles creates a lot of extra strain on our backs.
3. Neck Pain – The neck holds so much of our tension.  Often stress manifests as neck and shoulder pain, especially in women.  This is the classic place where we hold our stress. Almost as if we are holding our breath and forgetting to exhale! Louise Hays, author of the book, “You Can Heal Your Life”, explores the ways our bodies express our thought patterns through physical ailments. She attributes neck problems to refusing to see other sides of a question. Louise then offers a new thought pattern of, “It is with flexibility and ease that I see all sides of an issue. There are endless ways to do things and see things. I am safe.”
4. Hip Pain – Often an extension of back pain, particularly the lower back, hip pain can cause patients great distress.   Often we see that sciatica is involved, with particular stress in the glutes. For the same reason that we see many people for back pain, we see people for hip pain–extra weight, sedentary lifestyle, and just lack of mobility in that area.
5. Anxiety and Depression – We see many patients looking to reduce or eliminate medication for anxiety or depression.  These people are searching for a natural alternative to offer them relief from oftentimes chronic mental health conditions.  Many of these conditions are linked to the spirit and the heart.   Acupuncture has some incredible points to address the spirit and heart. The Heart, in Chinese Medicine, holds the Shen, or Spirit. When our Spirit feels disturbed, the Heart becomes restless. With acupuncture, we help the heart to heal, and patients to reconnect with their heart.  Anxiety and depression are scary.  Sometimes our bodies forget that homeostasis is even possible.  With acupuncture, we offer a gentle reminder that homeostasis is actually our natural state.