Where do you go when you have a medical question? Do you get online and check Web MD or Shirley’s Wellness Café? Do you go to see your family physician, a local vitamin retailer, or call your grandmother? The answer depends on who you trust. Who has the most knowledge and the best reputation for providing relevant information that will lead to wellness?
Last week a good friend of mine was very sick. She was coughing so badly she thought that she had a few cracked ribs. Because I always control my symptoms with over-the-counter medications, I couldn’t understand why she was deliberately prolonging her own suffering by not taking some kind of medicine.
Then she told me she was going to see her acupuncturist for treatment. I was really surprised. How is that going to help her cough? How can sticking little needles in her skin going get rid of a chest cold? I thought it sounded strange but I decided to wait and see.
The next day when we talked, she told me that she was feeling much better. She had gone to the acupuncturist and, after her treatment she had gone home with a special preparation of natural herbs. After she saw her chiropractor and had her ribs eased back into place she was getting back to normal.
I guess there can be more than one right answer?
Her experience reminded me of one time years ago when I went to the doctor to be treated for a sinus infection. I had waited through the customary three days of suffering after my over-the-counter antihistamine and decongestant stopped working. I knew from experience that this was the point at which I needed an antibiotic. Why else would I go to the doctor?
The family practice resident who was available that day told me that it would be very helpful to use a nettie pot to flush out my sinuses. I scowled as I thought: “Look lady, I don’t want to hear about this. I know what I need, now give it to me!” I did get my antibiotic that day, but I have since learned to love the practice of rinsing my sinuses with saline. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to take any antibiotics.
Maybe you too have been skeptical about this ‘go natural’ trend. We’ve all had years of indoctrination teaching us that the medical community knows best and we shouldn’t question their authority. Why should we venture beyond what we know and trust?
Fortunately, there are some special healthcare providers, like the doctors at Southwest Integrative Medicine, who keep you from having to choose sides. They bring together the benefits of traditional medicine and naturopathic medicine.
A holistic practitioner will ask about all aspects of your life and surprise you with their ability to prove that there are connections between what seem to be unrelated health issues. This is the beauty of integrative medicine.
Another benefit of adopting a more natural approach to health and wellness is avoiding adverse side effects. We have all heard: “Don’t worry, this nausea, headache, and body aches usually only last through the first week; after that you’ll be fine. Just hang on.” Who wants to have to tolerate feeling worse in order to get better?
Most naturopathic remedies work by stimulating your body’s built-in healing mechanisms. It may take longer than swallowing a pill, but it also lasts longer and will likely prevent a recurrence.
At Southwest Integrative Medicine, acupuncture treatments, nutritional therapies, hormone balancing, herbal remedies, and many other naturopathic treatments are blended with traditional medical therapies to help you achieve and sustain optimal health and wellness.
Acupuncture for tennis elbow is a common use of acupuncture because it is effective and non-invasive. In fact acupuncture should be the first line of treatment for many inflamed tendons. Tennis elbow or lateral epicondylitis occurs when the tendons on the outside of the lower part of the arm get strained. Typically this is an overuse injury and can occur from any activity that causes repetitive movements involving those tendons. Some of these include climbing, other racket sports, waiting tables, gripping motions, other manual labor activities. 
This kind of injury can also occur from an abrupt jarring motion involving those tendons. The tendons involved are from the muscles in the extensors of the wrist known as extensor carpi ulnaris, extensor carpi radialis brevis, extensor digitorum, extensor digiti minimi. Acupuncture for tennis elbow works to heal these tendends via several mechanisms.
Symptoms of Tennis Elbow
When you have tennis elbow you may notice several symptoms varying from tenderness along lateral aspect of elbow (to touch or with movement), pain with gripping motions, morning stiffness, pouring something our of a pitcher, etc. These motions and movements all involve the muscles that extend the wrist. All these muscle converge to insert into the arm at the lateral aspect of the elbow. With acupuncture for tennis elbow we can calm down the inflammation and stimulate a healing process directly at the site of pain. There is no conventional medical treatment that can do this.
Why Acupuncture for Tennis Elbow is Superior Treatment
Conventional treatment for tennis elbow are RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation), ibuprofen (or other NSAIDS), and in some cases a steroid injections. With the exception of RICE these treatments don't stimulate the healing process and do have side effects. ibuprofen can be taken in modest doses without much issue for most but longterm use is know to damage the stomach and kidneys. Therefore short term doses will likely cause damage too. While it will relive the pain, a steroid injection will cause significantly more damage to the tendons, making them weaker. You see the inflammation that is taking place when you have an injury serves a purpose to repair the damaged tissue. When we shut this off with a steroid the repair process also shuts off. The pain goes away and the tendons never get that full recovery. This is not the case with acupuncture for tennis elbow.
The goal of treatment with acupuncture for tennis elbow and other sports-related conditions, is to reduce this inflammation but also stimulate repair of the damaged tissue. Through this process pain relief occurs quickly. The combination of increased blood flow, release of hormones, endorphins, and immune modulating factors acupuncture gets those suffering from tennis elbow back to their sport of choice quickly.
Where in Phoenix Can I get Acupuncture for Tennis Elbow
Southwest Integrative Medicine has phoenix acupuncture service specifically for tennis elbow and other sports related injuries. "It's not just about relieving the pain, it's about getting the body back to where it can perform at its peak," says phoenix acupucnturist Dr Robin Terranella. "Anyone can give RICE and ibuprofen and get pain relief but that is not going to get the best results for those tendons in the long term." Through inserting hair-thin needles in and around areas of pain that follow the acupuncture meridians in the elbow, there is an increase of energy flow through that area. This energy, known as Qi, is the central focus for acupuncture. By inserting these needles locally, your Phoenix acupuncturist will also stimulate blood flow to the area. Increased blood flow will bring nutrients to nourish the area and take away waste. The treatment will stimulate your body's natural healing and repairing mechanisms in and around the tendons of the elbow. This acupuncture treatment will also give a generalized and localized analgesic effect, similar to that of lidocaine or other local anesthetics.
To learn more about this and other phoenix acupuncture services, click on the link below for a free acupuncture consultation.
Acupuncture and Infertility : Qi is the Key to Creating Life
It has long been known that stress, among other factors, can 
decrease a couple's ability to conceive. Anecdotal evidence of babies conceived on vacations can attest to that fact. However, recent scientific research is proving how acupuncture for infertility works to balance a woman's physical and emotional well being so that the miracle of life can unfold.
Acupuncture for Infertility Increases Conception Rates
One of the most exciting things about acupuncture and infertility is that it works with western medicine to improve fertility from the inside out. In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a widely accepted practice for assisting women in becoming pregnant. However, stress and depression are common side effects in women participating in IVF treatments. The medications and procedures required to stimulate and collect viable eggs, and then transfer viable embryos, can cause physical and emotional discomfort.
Recent studies in Germany, Denmark, Canada and the United States have demonstrated a significant increase in conception rates for women who used acupuncture for infertility, preceding and throughout their IVF treatments. Impressive statistics include:
- Germany: Women using acupuncture and IVF had a 42.5% conception rate, compared with the 26.3% conception rate for women who did not.
- Denmark: A study concluded that acupuncture for infertility on the day of embryo transfer increased pregnancy rates - 39% versus 26%.
- Germany: Of 225 women, 116 received luteal phase acupuncture (after the ovulation phase) while 109 received placebo acupuncture. The women who received luteal acupuncture had conception rates of 33.6% while the placebo group had conception rates of 15.3%.
- British Columbia: Acupuncture increased IVF live birth rates from 10-15%.
- Ectopic pregnancies were reduced in IVF cases with the addition of acupuncture.
These studies demonstrate the significant relationship between acupuncture and infertility. But how exactly does it work?
What is the Relationship Between Acupuncture and Infertility?
In a culture where the majority of individuals live in a constant state of stress, due to overwork, chronic fatigue, and/or poor diet and lifestyle choices, many women are struggling to get pregnant. Acupuncture promotes holistic health - in body, mind, and spirit - which can facilitate successful conception. Some of the benefits of acupuncture for infertility include:
- Relaxation
- Return to healthy sleep patterns
- Reduced inflammation
- Peace of mind
- Increased circulation, especially to the ovaries and uterus
- Healthy hormonal balance
Once a woman's body are receiving a healthy blood supply, balanced hormones, and no longer experiencing the harmful side effects of stress or an unhealthy lifestyle, successful conception is much more likely to occur.
To get more information on acupuncture and infertility or for a free consult with an acupuncture doctor at out phoenix acupuncture clinic, click on the link below.
Acupuncture is a fairly new practice in western medicine. Whether or not you've sought acupuncture for pain relief or stress management, you probably know someone who has. There are three common types of acupuncture: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), 5 Element Acupuncture, and Japanese Acupuncture (or meridian therapy). While they're all rooted in the ancient practices of Chinese medicine, each one has it's own branch on the healing tree.
As Phoenix Acupuncture doctors, we would like to briefly explain these three common healing 
methods so you have an idea of what system might work best for you. It is important to note that each acupuncturist will have his/her own take so there can be slight variances even within each style.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
Phoenix acupuncture doctors use TCM as one system for managing clients' health. TCM is an ancient system of medicine, that takes the laws of nature and applies them to the human body. It is believed to have been practiced in China a long as two thousand years ago. This system is based on the fundamental principle of Qi, or life energy, and the importance of balance and flow throughout the body. When Qi is blocked anywhere along the meridians, the body will express symptoms. The main job of the TCM practitioner is to find the disharmony in the body, and use acupuncture or chinese herbs to harmonize the body. Therefore, illness, is considered to be a manifestation of disharmony. TCM also works to balance the Yin and Yang, as well as the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water), within the body. Historically, practitioners used their understanding of nature and applied that to the human body. The acupuncturist looks at the major organ systems in the body, such as, spleen, lung, liver, and heart, and looks for any imbalance in these organ systems according to the principals of qi, yin, yang, or the elements. So, from the interview, presenting symptoms, and tongue and pulse diagnosis, the practitioner comes up with a traditional chinese medicine diagnosis that then determines the acupuncture points to be used, to treat that diagnosis or underlying pattern of dysfunction.
5 Element Acupuncture
This style of acupuncture was developed by J.R. Worsley in the mid 20th century and focuses on the connection between the mind, body, and spirit. Phoenix acupuncture doctors using this method will be more likely to address the psycho-spiritual connections that exists between balanced health and unbalanced disease. It is believed, that by balances the psycho-spiritual dimension in the person, the whole body will shift to a better state of balance. It is also noted that the core reason for taking this approach is that as industry and technology has made things much easier on the physical body, the spiritual and mental aspects of our daily lives have become more difficult. It is from this premise that 5 Element Acupuncture focuses on the spiritual and mental aspects of one's being. It is not that the physical aspects are not important but more that mental and emotional issues are that source of many physical ailments compared to 100-200 years ago.
As an example we know that stress plays a large role in digestion, neck and back pain, headaches, TMJ, poor sleep, poor eating, etc. Arizona 5 Element Acupuncture doctors address the underlying stress, and use acupuncture as part of a healing therapy for releasing that stress thus promoting balance for both your body and your spirit. They do this by using a system of restoring balance to the five elements within by determining the causative factor.
This principle of causative factor, or CF, is another that sets classical five element acupuncture apart from others systems of acupuncture. The CF is thought to be the root factor of a persons dis-ease and illness, and may stem from childhood or emotional experiences. The CF correlates to a particular element in nature (wood, fire, earth, metal, water), for example wood, and the practitioner selects points that will correspond with wood and the elements affected by wood. Through determining the major elemental imbalance the practitioner works to restore balance. Determining a CF takes a highly skilled practitioner with special training in classical five element acupuncture. These practitioner's are trained in asking thorough questions, careful listening, notice particular smells or colors, and especially assessing the pulses to determine the elemental imbalance.
Japanese Acupuncture
This system focuses more traditionally on the physical body. Needle insertions are often shallower than in TCM and 5 Element. Japanese style acupuncture doctors will try to use the least number of insertions/stimulation for the most powerful effect. They will isolate specific acupuncture points that will be be more potent than others and places more emphasis on these points for your treatment. This approach is used in 5 element too but not to the same degree.
The Japanese Acupuncturist uses moxa, cupping, and blood letting, but just like their needling technique, they do these modalities with absolute precision and minimalist intention. For example, a TCM acupuncture may use moxa the size of ping pong ball, where the Japanese practitioner will use an amount about the size of a sesame. (Moxa refers to the herb mugwort that is dried up and fluffed. The acupuncturist can then burn a small amount to driving heat into the body thereby stimulating and soothe the flow of qi.)
It is thought that the Japanese style of acupuncture reflects Japanese culture with it's tradition of minimalism (Zen Buddhism) and elegance. If you have never seen a Japanese Tea ceremony, check it out on You Tube, and you will see exactly what we mean by minimalism and elegance.
These three acupuncture styles all view the human body as a holistic entity and acknowledge that the body is a vessel for Qi, or life energy. Uncomfortable symptoms and diseases are manifestations of imbalance, and/or disharmony. Once balance is restored, the body can usually heal itself.
Important Note: 5 Element and Japanese Acupuncture styles are specialized techniques that require additional training. Make sure that your acupuncture doctor is properly trained in these methods before you seek treatment.
Ask your acupuncture Phoenix doctor about how one, or more, of these acupuncture styles can benefit you or click on the link below for a free consultation with one of our Phoenix acupucntre doctors.
Back pain can be a debilitating condition. Both acute and chronic back pain account for some of the most common reasons people seek medical care. Acupuncture for back pain is receiving lots of attention because of its well documented effectiveness. This article will focus on acupuncture for back pain and how it works.
Acupuncture for back pain: the treatment
Acupuncture and Chinese medicine look at back pain and pain in general from a different perspective than western medicine. We cannot deny the benefits and advances of western medical science but such analytical views can cloud other obvious treatment options. As an example let look a some common known statistics about back pain. Did you know that approximately 50% of people with back pain have no anatomical changes on MRI? Conversely about 50% with no back pain have many abnormalities on their MRI. Such narrow anatomical viewpoints to back pain create blinders to other obvious treatment options available, like acupuncture for back pain.
Acupuncture is recognized by western science as an effective treatment option for many conditions, including back pain. However it has not yet made it into the core of western medicine.
Phoenix acupuncture for back pain: How it works.
From a scientific perspective acupuncture for back pain works by: increasing local blood flow to the area, release of endogenous opiates (endorphins), and activation of healing and repair mechanisms in the collagen and connective tissue. However acupuncture for back pain works beyond the parameters of these western medicine view points too.
There is a subtle energy pulsing through your body and it takes on many different properties and functions. This energy is called Qi. With back pain the particular Qi disturbance is usually in the Kidney or Bladder Qi. In the case of acute pain, the role of acupuncture for back pain is simply to move or increase flow of the stagnant bladder Qi. In chronic back pain your phoenix acupuncture doctor will also seek to build the deficient Kidney Qi.
Acupuncture for back pain: low risk, high benefit
If you've tried other treatments for back pain, whether conventional or alternative, acupuncture might be a great option for you. Acupuncture for back pain has a distinct benefit of having very little side effects and outstanding benefits. Outside of physical therapy conventional back pain treatments are often risky. For example, pain medications can leave many people dependent and in some cases with more generalized pain than before. Steroid injections (also known as epidurals) can leave the connective tissue more week and instable than before you started. Of coarse, epidurals and pain medications have their place but neither have the risk reward ratio of acupuncture.
Acupuncture for back pain is virtually risk-free with the potential of decreasing your back pain significantly after only one to three treatments. With that being said acupuncture for back pain should be looked at in a more global sense where the treatments are done on a weekly basis for several weeks. For instance, in China a minimum acupuncture treatment schedule for a single condition is 10 treatments.
If you would like to find out more on acupuncture for back pain and our phoenix acupuncture clinic, click on the link below for a free consult with one of our acupuncture phoenix doctors.
Everything in life has rhythm; seasons change and the sun rises and sets each day. The human body is no exception. From the heart beat, to the breath, to mealtimes and bed times, there's an ebb and flow of energy. This tendency towards rhythmic patterns maintains balance. Holistic health practitioners have maintained this healthy balance for thousands of years using
acupuncture for stress relief.
When natural rhythms become disrupted, and the body moves at an unhealthy tempo, things shift out of balance. The body becomes
stressed and
qi - or natural energy flow - can be hindered or blocked completely. Toxins accumulate and the body becomes depleted.
Chronic stress allows discomfort and disease to manifest. Receiving acupuncture for stress realigns unhealthy patterns and resets the body's
qi to its natural rhythm.
Long-term Affects of Chronic StressHumans evolved to follow Earth's rhythms. As technology has advanced, so have inventions that work to counter natural lifestyle patterns. Lights, computers, phone rings, deadlines - these things remove humans from their natural rhythm and cause the body to exist in a state of stress.
An animal's response to stress is referred to as the "fight-or-flight response". When activated, adrenaline is released, the heart rate accelerates, blood vessels constrict, digestion is inhibited, and so on. Long-term affects of a constant state of "fight-or-flight" are linked to a series of symptoms, all of which respond positively to acupuncture:
- headaches/migraines
- neck/shoulder pain
- hypertension
- ulcers
- general fatigue
- depression
- poor sleep
- anxiety
- cancer
Acupuncture For Stress ReliefAcupuncture for stress works with the body's
qi to balance energy flow. It unblocks areas in the body where energy is accumulating, which helps the lymph system detoxify, and restores a healthy biochemical balance. Modern studies can now demonstrate concrete examples of acupuncture for stress and its positive affects. For instance, acupuncture has been proven to release endorphins, a natural pain reliever, increase blood flow, and increase hormones. Once the body has balanced naturally, it can begin working synergistically in a health promoting pattern.
In one study, acupuncture doctors used auricular acupuncture on mothers whose children were undergoing surgery. Auricular acupuncture uses needles inserted around the ear. Not only was the stress noticeably relieved in all 43 of the women who received treatment, but their children demonstrated lower stress levels as well. This study exemplifies how energy - both positive and negative - are often unwittingly transmitted from one being to another.
Individuals who receive acupuncture for stress relief, are making a choice to relieve patterns of stress not only for themselves, but also for those closest to them. Stress can have a big impact on those around you. When you are the one stressed, you might not even recognize the impact on them. Taking care of yourself and your mood is one of the best things you can do for you and them.
If you want to learn more about acupuncture for stress relief or other treatments from naturopathic physicians, click on the link below or visit our acupuncture phoenix for a free consultation on stress relief treatments.
At our Southwest Integrative Medicine clinic, we are the providers of
acupuncture Arizona residents in the Phoenix and Scottsdale region turn to when they need the healing benefits of acupuncture. Despite its growing use throughout the U.S., acupuncture is still poorly understood in this country. In our practice, we receive lots of curious questions about this centuries-old, time-proven method to relieve suffering caused by almost any health problem—the common cold, flu, acupuncture for chronic fatigue, acupuncture for chronic pain, asthma, arthritis, poor digestion, insomnia, depression, chemotherapy-related nausea, to name just a few. To help spread awareness of acupuncture’s important role in health, we would like to share our answers to the questions about acupuncture Arizona patients considering the treatment most often ask us.
Q: What exactly is acupuncture?
A: The stimulation of specific points on the body— through the insertion of thin, painless needles. This process removes any blockages in the flow of qi, (the vital life force that travels in the body through pathways called meridians), build the energy in specific meridians, or sedate the energy in other meridians.
The above in conjunction with moxabustion and cupping provides relief for a variety of health conditions.
Q: Is acupuncture safe?
A: Absolutely. And we’re not just saying that because we are acupuncture providers. According to no-less-an-authority than the FDA, acupuncture is safe when performed with sterile needles by experienced practitioners.
Q: What is holistic healing?
A: In Western medicine, there is unfortunately a tendency to separate the mind, body, and spirit. With traditional Chinese medicine, mind, body, and spirit are one and interdependent on one another. The disease process manifest itself in the Qi of the body in specific patterns. These Qi patterns can be the result of mental, emotion, or spiritual dysfunction. Reading these in the Qi, allows the acupuncturists to determine your treatment.
In addition to acupuncture holistic healing involves diet changes, herbal remedies, mind/body, and mind/spirit therapies.
Q: How do I know who’s qualified as an acupuncturist?
A:In most states including Arizona acupuncture practitioners must meet licensing requirements that include completion of accredited education, a clean needle technique course, and certification by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine.
These licensing requirements may be a little different based on the degree the practioner already has. For instance, NMDs, MDs, Dos, and DCs, have to receive less training requirements than a lay person wanting to start acupuncture. Arizona acupuncture license requirements are less stringent than some other states. If your Arizona acupuncturists has a License of Acupuncture or acupuncture degree, they have received a higher level of acupuncture training.
Q: Will acupuncture treatment replace my regular doctor?
A: It could but in most cases it will not. Pharmaceutical treatment is often overused, but it has many viable uses that acupuncture cannot treat. Also, many conditions call for surgery or other specific medical procedures. Integrative medicine works in conjunction with your other medical care and not in place of it. It seeks to find the most effective least invasive treatment options for any health condition.
If you are seeing your acupuncturist and the treatment resolves the issue, you may not longer need to see your traditional physician. However, you will probably need them at some point down the road.
Q: How long does acupuncture take to start working?
A: It varies between conditions, but many people begin experiencing improvements immediately after their first acupuncture treatment. We often tell patients that they should begin to feel some benefits as soon as their third treatment. It can take much longer than that however. When
Dr Christy Cline studied acupuncture in China she says, "they do a minimum of 10 treatments for each condition treated."
Follow-up treatments can be a few times a year or as frequent as bi-weekly, depending on the individual situation. Initially the treatments are more frequent and then spread out to quarterly or monthly.
If you have any more questions about Acupuncture Arizona treatments or finding the right acupuncture doctor, we can help. Click on the link below for a free consultation in our acupuncture phoenix clinic.
Chronic fatigue syndrome is a debilitating malady that affects more than one million Americans. Yet, sadly, the time-proven success of acupuncture for chronic fatigue treatment is often ignored by Western medicine. Fortunately, some medical professionals in the West do understand the vital role of acupuncture for chronic fatigue treatment, and sufferers can find expert acupuncturists to help them overcome the problem.
TIRED ALL THE TIME?
Everyone gets fatigued—sometimes for days at a time. But chronic fatigue sufferers experience much worse:
- fatigue that never goes away
- extreme fatigue after light activity
- sleep that doesn’t feel refreshing
- recurring colds and flu-like symptoms
- a constant “drugged” feeling, including memory and concentration loss.
Acupuncture for chronic fatigue: TREATING QI DEFICIENCY
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, chronic fatigue syndrome is attributed to a deficiency of qi, which is the life force of the mind and body within everyone. This force can be weakened if a person’s mental and physical balance is off—frequently leading to chronic fatigue. Western treatment of chronic fatigue recognizes the role of the mind in this syndrome, and mental health therapy is commonly used. Unfortunately, this treatment often fails to appreciate the full nature of the relationship between mind and body. Common Western pharmacological “solutions” such as stimulants, anti-depressants, and anti-anxiety drugs focus too much on the mind and merely mask the syndrome rather than cure it. Even worse, these medications can lead to further problems. Some stimulants used such as Provigil and Nuvigil, for example, actually can cause long-term harm to the body’s qi, especially the kidney qi. Chinese medicine, on the other hand, recognizes that replenishing and tonifying the qi with the help of acupuncture is the key to long term recovery.
Acupuncture for chronic fatigue: HOW IT WORKS
Treating chronic fatigue syndrome involves determining the level of qi in various meridians of a persons’ body. With chronic fatigue, the deficiency is usually in the spleen or kidney meridians, but it can also be in the lung or liver meridians. Principal acupuncture points include Hua Tuo Jia Ji(M-BW-35), a group of 34 points located along the spinal column, BL 18 (Gan Shu), BL 20 (Pi Shu), BL 23 (Sheen Shu), and SP 6 (San Yin Jiao).
Acupuncture for chronic fatigue: KEY POINT
Acupuncture for chronic fatigue works to increase a person’s vitality by clearing obstructions to energy flow and building the spleen and kidney qi. This process enhances the body’s natural healing capability. Considering limited efficacy of the Western treatment approaches for chronic fatigue, sufferers should not hesitate to explore the benefits of acupuncture for chronic fatigue.
If you have questions about acupuncture for chonic fatigue or would like more information on our acupuncture phoenix clinic, click on the link below for a free consultation.
Chinese medicine has been successfully using acupuncture for headaches for thousands of years but its use in Western countries has yet to be fully accepted. Regardless of how common you have them, headaches are certainly a common malady. Because of their common place many different cultures have developed treatment protocols for headaches. Until recently acupuncture for headaches was the preferred treatment method in China and is now gaining popularity in Western countries.
Western influence has brought prescription medications to China but acupuncture is still commonly used there for headaches. Acupuncture for headaches has an advantage by providing significant analgesia without the side effects of their prescription drug counterpart. Instead, acupuncture is usually combined with natural Chinese herbal medicine to provide a more comprehensive and long lasting effect on the headache. Together this treatment program relieves the underlying problems and not just the symptoms.
How Acupuncture for Headaches Works
The concept of Qi (pronounced Chi) is the foundation of Chinese medicine. Its fundamental premise is that life energy flows through the body in channels known as meridians. This energy flow regulates all bodily functions. An imbalance in this energy flow manifests itself as illness or symptom.
For good health, it is essential that these meridians remain unblocked and balanced. Many external factors can block these meridians at specific points causing an overabundance of Qi in one area and a deficiency in another. In acupuncture therapy, extremely fine needles are inserted into various meridians to stimulate or move the Qi. The result is the acupuncturists eliminates the blockage or deficiency allowing the free and balanced flow of Qi. For headache treatment the acupuncturists focuses on mvement of QI, often along the gall bladder meridian.
Acupuncture Treatment
The actual acupuncture for headaches treatment is intended to produce a stress reducing and calming effect. The first step is inserting needles into an acupuncture points. This procedure is not at all painful although a slight pressure is sometimes felt by the patient. More usually, you will feel various sensations of warmth, numbness or heaviness at the point of insertion. This first step is known as obtaining the Qi as the acupuncturists finds the correctly placement of the needle. Additional needles are inserted at strategic points across the body in a similar fashion. Once insertion of the needles is complete, the patient is left alone to relax and recuperate. Many patients fall asleep at this stage of the procedure.
A typical acupuncture for headaches session will last 40 - 60 minutes and be administered once or twice per week. As in all medical treatments, efficacy varies. Symptoms are sometimes relieved after one treatment with more stubborn headache patterns requiring weeks or months of treatment.
Because of its great efficacy and minimum side effects, the use of acupuncture for headaches is gaining wide interest in the West. The treatment is recognized as fast acting, safe, effective, and long lasting.
If you would like more information on acupuncture for headaches or our acupuncture phoenix clinic, click on the link below for a free consultation.
Acupuncture for sinusitis is an effective an useful integrative treatment that should not be overlooked. Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years in Eastern medicine to treat sinusitis. In Western medicine, however, the benefits of acupuncture for sinusitis are largely ignored, and antibiotics are often the treatment of choices in chronic cases. When antibiotics and other medications aren’t relieving the problem, the next step is usually surgery, without ever trying the time-proven treatment of acupuncture.
This overlooking of acupuncture for sinusitis treatment is unfortunate because it provides an effective alternative to antibiotics and other medication, which are costly, can be abused, and often result in negative side effects.
SINUNITIS: A REAL PAIN IN THE HEAD
At some point in their life, almost everybody contracts sinusitis—an inflammation of the paranasal sinuses caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa, or environmental conditions. 
The symptoms are familiar—mucus-clogged sinuses, headaches, facial aches, labored breathing, and coughing.
Acute sinusitis is typically caused by viruses and usually runs its course in 7 to 10 days, but acupuncture can clear sinuses, relieve pain, and speed recovery quicker than 7 to 10 days.
In cases when the condition just won’t go away, acupuncture for sinusitis is an effective stand alone alternative or complement to traditional Western treatment. Acupuncture can be used as part of a holistic medicine approach that includes herbal therapy, diet, and necessary medications and manual treatments. These more holistic health approaches can be invaluable in helping chronic sinusitis sufferers recover without undergoing surgery.
SINUSITIS PATTERNS AND TREATMENTS
When using acupuncture for sinusitis, an acupuncture professional will diagnose the sinusitis pattern and then select acupuncture points accordingly.
Recognized Chinese medicine patterns are below for reference:
- lung heat
- lung/spleen damp heat
- lung/spleen dampness
- deficient lung
- large intestine channel disturbance
- qi stagnation.
Commonly used points in acupuncture for sinusitis include:
- Xin-Hui (GV 22) - top of head
- Shang Xing (GV 23) - near forehead
- He Liao (LI 19) - near sinuses
- Ying Xiang (LI 20) - near sinuses
- Lie Que (LU -7)- near wrist
This list of relevant points is by no means exhaustive. An acupuncture phoenix professional will combine the use of these points and others to treat specific patterns and symptoms that are individualized to you.
KEY POINT
Acupuncture for sinusitis is an effective alternative and complement to traditional antibiotic therapy and to surgery. When effective treatments like acupuncture are ignored, patients are exposed to the unneeded dangers of antibiotics and other invasive procedures. If you suffer from seasonal or chronic sinusitis, consider acupuncture for sinusitis to support your current treatment.
To learn more about our acupuncture phoenix clinic and our treatments, click on the link below for a free consult.
