Acupuncture

Medical Science Accepts That Acupuncture Works...But HOW?

Introducing an acupuncture needle into one of the body's acupuncture points (or treating that point with a Helium-Neon laser) has a profound effect on both the body and the mind.

Experiments with acupuncture show that treatment is followed by changes in the levels of key hormones in the body such as corticosteroids, human growth hormones, oestrogens and progesterones.

Acupuncture affects the immune system, causing positive changes in the antibody levels and in white cell numbers. Effects on the nervous system and on chemicals which influence the nervous system have also been identified. Endorphin levels rise immediately for example.

Acupuncture treatment has many effects on the body. It positively influences the voluntary muscles, removing spasms in the head, neck and shoulders, easing tension. It also has an effect on involuntary muscles in arteries increasing muscle tone, and has powerful anti-inflammatory properties.

And of course, Acupuncture is well known for its anaesthetic qualities. I have seen major operations performed only with acupuncture anaesthesia where the patient has been conscious throughout. An additional benefit is that patients do not bleed nearly as heavily as with conventional anaesthesia.

Acupuncture also controls the overall function of tissues. Patients experience a sense of calmness, sleep better, and have an improved sense of general well-being. Put simply, acupuncture, used properly, is a powerful tool.

Most patients will notice an improvement within 4-5 hours of treatment. In less sensitive people this may not happen for several days. Typically improvement will last for a short time after the first couple of sessions, and this will generally become more drawn out as treatment progresses.

Aggravation of symptoms may sometimes occur. This simply means that - for some patients (and these are very much in the minority) - your symptoms may get worse before they get better. This is nothing to worry about. It is a positive sign and improvement will always follow.

Illnesses of short duration typically take less treatments to address. Longer term problems and rebalancing tend to take longer. We usually cease treatment when symptoms subside or when an identified imbalance remedies itself. This is why we often hold your wrists during, before or after treatment. Traditional Chinese Zhang-Fu diagnosis enables us to assess the relative energy levels in each of the acupuncture channels to assess progress.

We only use single-use, sterile, stainless steel, silver handled, disposable needles in this practice. These are incinerated after use. We also use the Helium Neon laser in some of our treatments.

Laser treatment involves applying a small beam of concentrated light, to various acupuncture points on the skin. The process is painless and harmless. The light falls within the visible range of sunlight. It is a simple and painless way of stimulating the body to heal damaged or inflamed tissue quickly.

We use laser for small children, and for sensitive areas of the body such as around the eyes, in preference to needles. If you have a phobia about needles then naturally we can use laser. We do find that needles will typically produce a faster response.

When we treat you, we will usually stimulate certain needles - in China this is classically done by plunging the needle in and out or by twisting back and forth. We use an electrical stimulator - a much more comfortable and less traumatic option, and something the Chinese have recently copied from us!

We also sometimes (especially for neck, back and shoulder problems) introduce homoeopathic remedies at the acupuncture points during treatment. This is called homoeopuncture, and especially effective.

Acupuncture typically works best in conjunction with herbal and homoeopathic medicine.

 

If you would like more information about any of the above please contact us.