Acupuncture approaches health from a whole person perspective. Highly qualified and experienced practitioners look to re-balance the body from within as an alternatives to pharmaceuticals and other mechanistic medicine approaches. Rather than looking at the specific symptom or complaint, an acupuncturist will look at all the person's symptoms and how they point to a pattern of dysfunction. This pattern is the diagnosis in Chinese Medicine and is considered the root cause of the symptoms.  

What Is Acupuncture?

Acupuncture originates from the Far East where it has been practiced for thousands of years. It is one aspect of Traditional Chinese Medicine that has been researched, tested and developed over hundreds of years to become the refined and effective treatment that it is today.  Acupuncture is now recognized by clinicians and scientists as a valid and important part of medicine for all kinds of symptoms and conditions.  It's been shown to help mood and hormonal imbalances; chronic conditions such as asthma and arthritis; pain management; acute illness such as colds and flu as well as assisting in overcoming addictions such as smoking.

For an unbiased perspective on what acupuncture is effective for check out the link or this one.

Benefits of acupuncture

How Does Acupuncture Work?

Acupuncture works by inserting sterile needles in precise areas that correspond to specific patterns of energy your acupuncturist is targeting.  Your treatment starts with taking a full case history of your symptoms, your lifestyle and previous illnesses. From this your acupuncturist will identify areas suggestive of energy or Qi (pronounced Chi) imbalances.  You see, just beneath the surface of your skin your Qi , flows to keep your body functions working as they should.  When you have symptoms and health problems it is from an imbalance, deficiency, or excess of different types of this energy.

The aim of acupuncture is to unblock these channels to allow the energy to flow freely and appropriately.  Free flowing energy will enable your body to heal and rebalance itself, naturally.

What About Pain From Acupuncture?

Patients should not be worried about feeling any pain during an acupuncture treatment.  As the needle is inserted, you may feel a small, brief pinprick. You can also experience a tingle around the needle or a gentle tug or dull ache.  Both of these sensations are normal and although a little unfamiliar, are not painful. Many patients become very relaxed while the needles are in place, and even fall asleep. This calm sensation often lasts for hours or days after the treatment is complete, depending on the treatment goal.

As long as acupuncture is performed by a trained and experienced professional, the pain will be negligible.

Check out this video that shows how simple and painless it is. 

Acupuncture is a much more gentle and less harmful form of treatment than many western medicine pharmaceutical approaches. 

Acupuncture should always be performed by a trained professional. At Southwest Integrative Medicine Clinic, we have spent more than 1500 hours training intensively to ensure the acupuncture treatments is effective and causes minimal pain.

To learn more bout how acupuncture might help you click on the link below to come to our you Phoenix acupuncture clinic for a consultation.