Acupuncture
What is it?
Acupuncture has been around for hundreds, possibly thousands of years and has its roots firmly planted in traditional Chinese medicine.
Although often viewed as a form of alternative medicine, acupuncture is practised in many GP practices, pain clinics, and hospices.
The widely practised treatment uses thin, stainless steel needles inserted into the skin to treat pain and for preventative and therapeutic purposes. Although, acupuncture is increasingly used for overall wellness and stress management.
Traditional Chinese medicine describes acupuncture as a practice to balance the flow of energy.
This energy, life force, or chi, flows through lines along the body (meridians), and acupuncture practitioners believe that this energy flow can be re-balanced by inserting needles into specific points along the meridians. More modern practitioners believe that the needles stimulate nerves, muscles and connective tissue, thereby boosting the body's natural painkillers.
Research has shown that acupuncture is effective for treating chronic musculoskeletal, headache, and osteoarthritis pain.
How does it work?
According to Traditional Chinese medicine (TMC),
Our life force energy, or Qi (pronounced "chi"), is composed of both yin and yang, complementary extremes.
Illness is believed to be the consequence of an imbalance of these two forces, and acupuncture works to restore the harmonious balance of a patient's Qi.
A practitioner will insert needles into any of (roughly) 361 acupuncture points throughout the body to restore the flow of energy and encourage wellbeing.
Many people find acupuncture helps manage various painful conditions, from menstrual cramps and osteoarthritis to headaches and fibromyalgia.
A study of acupuncture's effect on chronic pain found that,
"Acupuncture has a clinically relevant effect on chronic pain that persists over time, and that referral for acupuncture treatment is a reasonable option for chronic pain patients."
An acupuncture session could take anything from twenty to sixty minutes.
During that time, the practitioner may look into your symptoms, lifestyle, medical history, areas of pain, the colour of your tongue and face and the quality of your pulse. They might also explain the general treatment plan, where the needles will be inserted, and whether you need to remove any clothing.
The needles are inserted with the patient lying or sitting on a treatment table.
The process is pretty relaxing as the (single-use) needles are gently inserted to various depths and left in the skin. Some of them can hurt though! A typical treatment might use five to twenty needles, and the practitioner might apply electrical pulses or heat or gently move or twist the needles to aid the process. Roughly ten to fifteen minutes later, the practitioner will remove the needles.
Some acupuncturists are traditional in their approach, whereas others use a more Western approach or a blend of the two. It's worth asking some questions before booking a treatment to learn what methods are available.
Commonly, a practitioner would suggest one or two treatments per week and up to six to eight in total, although this would depend on the patient's needs.
How you feel after acupuncture can vary. Some people feel energised, others feel relaxed, and others don't feel much at all.
Is this for you?
As Acupuncture is known to treat a wide variety of symptoms it could be that for your condition it could help alleviate pain.
However, the use of acupuncture is not always based on rigorous scientific evidence, there are still steps necessary to establish the exact benefit and impact of Acupuncture.
There is a lot of anecdotal evidence and often insurances do (up to a point) recognize Acupuncture as a suitable (thus accepted) way of treating specific conditions.
As with some of the other treatments described in this blog it is key to understand what benefits you could expect from Acupuncture and how these match with your current health needs.
Number one: do your research. Understand the practice, talk to people who have already tried this treatment and find out who could deliver the highest quality care in your area.
Secondly, make sure to prepare yourself as well as you can: be clear upfront about your complaints, make sure you write down its intricacies and what a good outcome of the treatment would be for you. What would 20% improvement look like? And 50%?
Another important step is to make sure that you’re able to track your progress in some way, so you’re not spending money left, right and center without any idea of impact. How can you measure the result of the Acupuncture sessions in relation to the pain that you have?
If you have any of the complaints listed for which Acupuncture may be an effective treatment and you’re (financially) ok with it not having the impact you hope, Acupuncture could be a next step for you.
What is my experience?
As much as I love Acupuncture it has never really helped me with my chronic pain.
It has helped me with almost every other ailment that I had. Allergies, fatigue, eczema, anxiety, all have improved (or disappeared) within weeks of starting the treatments and altering my habits accordingly.
Obviously this is of great help for someone with Fibromyalgia. It helped me having to fight less battles at the same time, and therefore ‘save’ my energy. It has done a lot for how I feel overall.
I think most interesting to discuss here is that through the knowledge of the Acupuncture doctor I discovered that I have very specific allergies and am very sensitive of specific products. In my case, dairy, nuts, licorice, and palm oil are things I respond very bad too, and I had no idea. I spent a lifetime as a Dutch child eating kilo’s of licorice and peanut butter whilst drinking gallons of milk, and my immune system was rubbish. I was either sick, tired, or incredibly stuffy for years and years, without any idea why. I’ve seen so many doctors and did all the regular allergy tests (dogs, cats, mites) but taking measures there never seemed to work. Since I stopped eating all of these products I haven’t missed a day, and my sinuses have been happier than ever.
As well, for me, my anxiety and stress levels have gone down a lot. That for me could just as much have to do with the fact that my doctor made me change my life rigorously. as she was someone who could finally make me see that I was trying to do the impossible and breaking down my body in the process.
In summary I would therefore say that if you struggle with your immune system, or have a specific complaint that is listed on the ‘areas of treatment’ of acupuncture, then I would definitely recommend to try it out.
How can I try this?
If you’re interested in this treatment, and you have no one in your network that can recommend you someone, Google is your best friend. With the above key-words and desired area you should get quite a lot of result. Please check out my article on How to book a treatment for the first time here.
Disclaimer:
This blog provides general information and discussion about health, treatments and related subjects. I try to shine light on a vast and often ambiguous arena by sharing my own experiences. The words and other content provided in this blog, as well as any linked materials, are not intended and should not be construed as medical advice. I’m not a medical expert. If the reader or any other person has a medical concern, he or she should consult with an appropriately-licensed physician or other health care worker.