Thrive Services

Acupuncture

What is Acupuncture?

Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese method used to treat illness, relieve pain, prevent disease and improve well-being. It encourages the body to promote natural healing and improve function by facilitating the natural balance of the body and correcting the root cause of sickness. An acupuncturist inserts very thin (sterile and single-use, disposable) steel needles into the patient’s skin at several of the more than 500 acupuncture points to stimulate Qi. The idea is that by stimulating Qi and helping it to move more freely, acupuncture can help the body function at its best. Acupuncture works on the entire body, including the musculoskeletal, endocrine, reproductive, digestive, nervous and circulatory systems.

The World Health Organization (W.H.O) recommends more than 40 types of diseases or conditions for acupuncture treatment. Some of the conditions Acupuncture can treat are:

• Low back pain • Neck pain • Sciatica • Tennis elbow • Knee pain • Frozen Shoulder • Sprains/ strains • Facial pain • TMJ • Headache • Dental pain • Acute and chronic gastritis • Acute epigastralgia • Peptic ulcer • Rheumatoid arthritis • Induction of labor • Breech birth presentation • Morning sickness • Primary dysmenorrhea • Nausea and vomiting • Postoperative pain • Stroke • Essential hypertension • Primary hypotension • Radiation/chemo reactions • Allergic rhinitis • Hay fever

One of the main concerns about acupuncture is the fear that it will hurt. The truth is that the needles are so tiny that they don’t feel like needles used for blood tests or injections. Some people can barely feel the acupuncture needles at all. However, the needles can cause some discomfort or sensitivity, especially in more sensitive areas of the body. More commonly, though, people describe a mild tingling sensation when the needle is inserted to the appropriate depth.

Your acupuncture session is aimed at returning your body to a state of balance by removing stagnations and blockages. The moment that an acupuncturist corrects your blockages, countless bodily functions and activities are affected; the flow of blood begins to improve, and your body begins to renew and rebuild itself.

The Most Important Benefits

Often the benefits of acupuncture are found beyond levels of consciousness. It is when the blood flows to the heart, lungs, joints, sexual organs, skin, eyes, ears, and the brain that the true benefits of acupuncture are experienced. The true benefits of acupuncture care are the preventative benefits: better night’s sleep, more energy, and better whole-body functioning.

You can benefit from healthy blood flow no matter what disease or condition you have. Much like proper nutrition, free flow of circulation is extremely important for your overall healing.

Naheed Atcha, R. Ac.