What is acupuncture?
Acupuncture is one of the major components of the system of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). In the TCM system of medicine, the body is seen as a delicate balance of two opposing and inseparable forces: yin and yang. Yin represents cold, slow, or passive aspects of the person, while yang represents hot, excited, or active aspects. Among the major assumptions in TCM are that health is achieved by maintaining the body in a "balanced state" (homeostasis) and that disease is due to an internal imbalance of yin and yang. This imbalance leads to blockage in the flow of qi (vital energy), along pathways known as meridians. It is believed that there are 12 main meridians and 8 secondary meridians and that there are more than 2,000 acupuncture points on the human body that connect with them.
What does it feel like?
Acupuncture needles are metallic, sterile, and hair-thin. People experience acupuncture differently, but most feel no or minimal pain as the needles are inserted. Most people realize after the first needle is inserted that there is really nothing to it. Some people are energized by an acupuncture treatment, while others feel deeply relaxed.
Is there any bleeding?
Most of the time there is no bleeding. Occasionally there may be a small drop, however, the needles are too fine to damage the tissue enough to create bleeding. The careful placement of the needles helps to minimize this risk.
How many treatments does it take to feel better?
Generally a course of treatments is 6-12 sessions, either weekly or 2-3 times a week depending on the severity. The amount of time it takes to begin to alleviate the symptoms and to encourage the body stay in-balance will often depend on how long a person has been experiencing the problem. Generally speaking, the longer someone has been suffering from any condition, the longer it will take to bring the body back to homeostasis. However, it may take only one to two sessions to begin to feel the benefits of a treatment, and begin feeling better. Diet, lifestyle, mental and spiritual health as well as patient compliance all play a role in the healing process.
It is important to understand that acupuncture treatments are cumulative. This means that after your first treatment, you may feel some relief, but your body may go back a day or two after the treatment to feeling the same as it did before. Each treatment, the results should "hold" longer and longer, until we have been able to get the message to your system that it is best to be balanced, in homeostasis, and symptom-free. Because your body has been used to being out of balance and in a "rut," so to speak, it requires giving it repeated messages to move out of the rut it has been used to operating in, and into a place of balanced health. If the rut is deep, it will take longer and more treatments before your body is able to hold onto this new message and pattern.
Does my insurance cover acupuncture?
Most major insurance carriers in Washington State have acupuncture benefits. Each plan is different, however most plans cover a minimum of 12 treatments per calendar year. Please check with your plan to find our your benefits. Our office bills your insurance for your treatment. Your co-pay, if any, will be paid the time of service. Some plans will require a referral for acupuncture services. Insurance plans that accept acupuncture include but are not limited to Premera, Uniform, Lifewise, Aetna, Asuris, Firstchoice and others.
What conditions can acupuncture treat?
You will probably be surprised to find out the wide variety of conditions that acupuncture can treat. Though the most common reason in the Western world to visit an acupuncturist is for pain relief, there are hundreds of conditions that a qualified Acupuncturist can treat effectively. The World Health Organization lists 40 conditions, which may effectively be treated by Chinese medical methods. These include:
Infections: Colds and Flu, Bronchitis, Hepatitis
Internal: Hypoglycemia, Asthma, High Blood Pressure, Ulcers, Colitis, Indigestion, Hemorrhoids, Diarrhea, Constipation, Diabetes
Ears, Eyes, Nose, Throat: Deafness, Ringing in Ears, Earaches, Poor Eyesight, Dizziness, Sinus Infection, Sore Throat, Hay Fever
Dermatological: Eczema, Acne, Herpes
Musculo-Skeletal & Neurological: Arthritis, Neuralgia, Sciatica, Back Pain, Bursitis, Tendonitis, Stiff Neck, Bell's Palsy, Trigeminal Neuralgia, Headache, Stroke, Cerebral Palsy, Polio, Sprains
Genito-Urinary & Reproductive: Impotence, Infertility, Pre-Menstrual Syndrome, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, Vaginitis, Irregular Period, Cramps, Morning Sickness
Mental-Emotional: Anxiety, Stress, Depression, Insomnia
Terms & Definitions
TCM: Traditional Chinese Medicine is a complete medical system that was documented in China by the 3rd century B.C. TCM is grounded in the belief that the root cause of illnesses, not their symptoms, must be treated. In modern-day terms, TCM is holistic in its approach; it views a person in their entirety —body, mind, spirit, and emotions—as part of a whole rather than loosely connected pieces to be treated individually.
Among the components of TCM are acupuncture, herbal and nutritional therapy, physical exercises, meditation, and massage.
The Theory of Yin-Yang: The Yin Yang theory holds that all phenomena consist of two opposite aspects, yin and yang, which are variously defined as: up and down, left and right, light and dark, hot and cold, stillness and movement, substance and function, etc. The movements and changes of yin and yang give impetus to the development of everything or in the words of the Suwen, "Yin and yang are the law of Heaven and Earth, the outline of everything, the parents of change, the origin of birth and destruction...."
Yin and yang represent two opposite aspects of every object and its implicit conflict and interdependence. Generally, anything that is moving, ascending, bright, progressing, hyperactive, including functional disease of the body, pertains to yang. The characteristics of stillness, descending, darkness, degeneration, hypoactivity, including organic disease, pertain to yin.
The nature of yin and yang is relative. According to Yin-Yang theory, everything in the universe can be divided into the two opposite but complementary aspects of yin and yang and so on ad infinitum. For example, day is yang and night is yin, but morning is understood as being yang within yang, afternoon is yin within yang, evening before midnight is yin within yin and the time after midnight is yang within yin. As the Suwen states, "Yin and yang could amount to ten in number, be extended to one hundred, to one thousand, to ten thousand and ever to the infinite."
Source: TCM Basics
Qi: Pronounced "chee," it is the vital, life-energy that animates the body. Qi flows throughout the body in the meridians and protects it from illness, pain and disease.
Meridians: Pathways throughout the body that are like rivers. Instead of water, these rivers flow with the energy of qi. And like a river flows to provide nourishment and life-giving water to animals, plants and people, so does the meridian flow to provide nourishment for our bodies, bringing life-giving qi to every organ, gland, muscle, tissue and cell of our body. Each meridian flows to a specific organ in our bodies.