| |
|
| |
Frequently Asked Questions |
- What is Acupuncture?
- Why Use Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine?
- Does Acupuncture Hurt?
- I Want to Try Acupuncture, Should I Choose a Licensed Acupuncturist, M.D., D.O., D.C., or N.D.?
- How Frequently Do I Need to Come to Benefit from Treatment?
- What Problems Can Acupuncture Help?
- Does Acupuncture Have Any Side Effects?
- What is Chinese Herbal Medicine or Oriental Herbal Medicine?
- What is the Advantage of of Chinese Medicine Over Western Medicine?
- What are the Different Levels of Acupuncturists?
- Do You Need an Average Acupuncturist, an Experienced Acupuncture Specialist, or a Top Acupuncture Expert?
- How Do I Know Whether an Acupuncturist is a Top Expert of Not?
- I Have Tried Almost All Conventional Medical Therapies, Can I Still Benefit from Acupuncture?
- I Have a Bulging Disc, Disc Herniation, or Bone Spur, Can Acupuncture Still Help?
- How Does Acupuncture Work for Weight Loss?
- How Does Acupuncture Work for Smoking Cessation?
- Does Acupuncture Work for Menopause?
- My Knee Cartilage is Thin or There is None Left. Can Acupuncture Still Help?
- I Have Tried All Kinds of Pain Medication, But None Helped. Can Acupuncture Still Help?
- I Have A Condition, Which Has Been Diagnosed as “Incurable” by Medical Doctors? Can Acupuncture Still Help?
Acupuncture is an ancient technique in which a skilled practitioner inserts hair-thin needles into specific points on the body to prevent or treat illness. Practiced for more than 2,500 years in China, where it originated, acupuncture is part of the holistic system of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). This highly effective system of medical care is based on natural laws, which govern the movement of vital life-giving energy, both in nature and in the body. It views health as a constantly changing flow of energy, or qi (pronounced "chee"). When the energy flow is disrupted due to diet, medications, stress, or other medical conditions, pain or illness can result. To address the underlying cause of a condition, these symptoms are viewed in relationship to the totality of the person. The aim of acupuncture is to balance the energy, keep the normal flow of energy unblocked, and maintain or restore health to the body and mind. The gentle insertion of hair-thin needles at specific points along the channels of qi helps restore harmony. In the presence of this subtle yet profound intervention, symptoms often resolve, and patients frequently feel renewed.
Although Western science has not proven nor accepted the notion of qi, a large body of evidence indicates that acupuncture leads to real physiological changes in the body. Numerous studies have shown, for example, that inserting needles into the skin stimulates nerves in the underlying muscles. This stimulation, researchers feel, sends impulses up the spinal cord to a relatively primitive part of the brain known as the limbic system, as well as to the midbrain and the pituitary gland. Somehow that signaling leads to the release of endorphins and monoamines, chemicals that block pain signals in the spinal chord and brain.
In one study, researchers using brain scans discovered that acupuncture could alter blood circulation within the brain, increasing the blood flow to the thalamus, the area of the brain that relays pain and other sensory messages. Hundreds of studies are now ongoing in the United States and elsewhere seeking to prove the usefulness of acupuncture for various ailments.
As the body of research regarding its benefits grows, acupuncture is being widely recognized by and integrated into the mainstream healthcare system. Acupuncture has become one of the newest healthcare professions in the United States.
Back to Top
The most important reason to choose acupuncture and Oriental medicine is to treat the underlying causes of an illness while controlling or alleviating its symptoms, to increase the ability to function, and to attempt to bring the entire body back into balance. Because acupuncture heals the whole body, it is “holistic.” In Oriental medicine, usually herbal products and acupuncture needles are used in combination. Compared with conventional medicine, acupuncture is natural and safe. It can treat many conditions other medical therapies may not be able to help. It is effective not only in treatment of disease, but also in maintaining good health and preventing illness.
Chinese medicine (including acupuncture) has been around for 3-5 thousand years. The NIH and FDA acknowledge Chinese medicine to belong to whole medical systems. Chinese medicine is an individual scientific system similar to conventional medicine (western medicine), involving a complete system of theory and practice, rather than simply a complementary or alternative choice to conventional medicine.Read more.
The existence of Western medicine (conventional medicine) and Eastern medicine (Chinese medicine) is not a coincidence. It is just like eastern world and western world, capitalism and socialism, or man and woman, representing how the world is made of; always two aspects, according to the Chinese philosophical concept Yin and Yang.
Western (conventional) medicine has been developed primarily based or mechanics and laboratory experiment, while Chinese medicine has been developed primarily by long time clinical practice on the human body. This is similar to how a kid masters a game through trial and error – practice. Kids do not know how a game is made and programmed, until they try it multiple times, learning its strategies and tricks.
Many people describe Western medicine as science and Chinese medicine as art. Both medicines use a different approach to understand human body. There is nothing wrong with it. They are just different. Human body is very complicated. Either medicine can solely explain human body completely. We do need to use different approaches to get to understand it. One supplements to the other. We need to have both. It is just like we have to have both man and woman.
If you are thinking of trying Chinese medicine and acupuncture, you need first change your mindset. Be open minded. You might not know how acupuncture and Chinese medicine exactly work. This is ok. You need to think positively and have faith on Chinese medicine and your acupuncturist. We have to believe in the fact that more and more are trying Chinese medicine and more and more people get help from Chinese medicine everyday, becoming strong believers of the this wonderful medicine.
Western medicine has made great contributions in diagnosis, disease, and urgent care. But in terms of treatment, since it relyes on chemical drugs, and drugs are not natural, it is not as effective. They are made to address the symptoms, not actually for the whole welfare of your body. You have to take them for a very long time, and many drugs are new, resulting in many unknown side effects. People often even get addicted.
Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture are all natural and have been used on the human body for thousands of years. They are much safer. In addition, Chinese medicine addresses the overall balance of human body and focuses of treating the cause of diseases or illness. It has an advantage in treating illness over Western medicine.
If you get a medical problem, you should definitely try Chinese medicine and acupuncture.
Back to Top
Acupuncture needles, unlike hypodermics, are ultra-fine and flexible, thereby permitting a nearly painless insertion. Acupuncturists attain a high level of skill in gently placing these tiny needles, and often the insertion is barely perceptible. You may feel a vague numbness, heaviness or slight tingling. After treatment some people are energized, while others feel very relaxed. Some points are more sensitive than others. Some patients are more sensitive than others.
Fear of acupuncture is mostly psychological. Through our many years of personal experience, we’ve discovered that 99% of our patients feel just fine with acupuncture needles. For those patients who are really afraid of needles, we usually just try one needle to see how the patient feels. Most of these patients are usually very surprised to find out that they are actually OK with needles.
If you find that you are a patient who is truly afraid of needles, don’t worry. We have many other procedures, or modalities, to use in acupuncture treatment, like cupping or acupressure. These modalities work as well as needles for most kinds of illnesses. We may also recommend that you take herbal products. So, your treatment can be needle-free.
Back to Top
Patients should absolutely be under the care of a licensed acupuncturist. Some states allow some other medical professionals to practice acupuncture. This includes M.D.s, D.O.s (osteopathic physicians), D.C.s (chiropractic physicians), and N.D.s (naturopathic physicians), who have received some two hundred hours of special training in acupuncture.
Some health insurance plans only reimburse acupuncture service if it is performed by an M.D. There is speculation that insurance companies want to keep patients from accessing acupuncture to keep increasing their expenses for the cost of painkillers and other costly medications.
Acupuncture is not just a medical procedure. It is a unique, complete medical system. An acupuncture treatment is guided by Oriental medical and acupuncture theories. In China, it is considered as a specialty and requires 8-11 years of extensive training to be an acupuncture specialist. Only those who took the time to learn and practice it consistently may become an acupuncture expert or a master of acupuncture.
While acupuncture is something a medical professional with some anatomy training may be able to do, and it might be safe enough for that practitioner to perform, it does not mean that the treatment is going to be effective. Safety and effectiveness are two totally different things. The law that allows these medical professionals to practice acupuncture is merely from the consideration of safety rather than effectiveness of healing patients’ problems.
Back to Top
Acupuncture works by treating the underlying causes of disease, not merely the symptoms, in order to produce lasting results. The number of treatments depends on the severity and nature of the complaint and on the individual patient. Two or three treatments may be enough for an acute condition. A series of five to fifteen treatments may be needed to resolve chronic conditions. Some degenerative or recurring conditions may require ongoing treatment. It also depends on the individual acupuncturist’s experience. The more experience the acupuncturist has, the fewer the acupuncture sessions that are needed. Please feel free to call us to discuss your concerns and a possible plan of treatment.
Back to Top
Acupuncture is the oldest continuously practiced medical system in the world and is used by one-third of the world's population as a primary healthcare system. It is likely that more people have been treated by Chinese medicine throughout history than by any other formalized system of medicine.
Because of its relatively low cost and its noninvasive nature, acupuncture has become a highly popular form of complementary healthcare in the United States.
Traditionally, acupuncture has been used to treat a wide range of disorders, but its primary use in the United States has been to relieve chronic pain – caused by such ailments as arthritis, headaches, PMS, and back pain – and to assist withdrawal from addictions such as drug and alcohol dependency. Today, both conventional and alternative practitioners are exploring more innovative applications for acupuncture, including its use as an analgesic to reduce pain during surgery.
In 1997, an advisory panel for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) evaluated hundreds of acupuncture studies and concluded that the therapy is an effective treatment for postoperative pain after dental surgery and for nausea induced by chemotherapy, pregnancy (morning sickness), and anesthesia. The NIH panel also called acupuncture a useful adjunct and acceptable treatment for a variety of conditions, including fibromyalgia, stroke rehabilitation, asthma, headache, and carpal tunnel syndrome.
To know the commonly seen problems we treat in our clinic please check the Conditions page.
Back to Top
Fainting upon insertion of the needles is the most common of acupuncture’s few side effects. If you have had such difficulty with shots or blood drawing, try to come to your first acupuncture treatment as relaxed as possible and ask your practitioner to do a light treatment the first time.
Hepatitis B and other contagious diseases can be transmitted from needles that aren't sterilized properly. We use DISPOSABLE NEEDLES ONLY, which we discard after each treatment. Anyone with a compromised immune system needs to be especially careful that the acupuncturist is using disposable needles, as we do.
Stimulating certain acupuncture points, particularly those on the lower abdomen and low back, can trigger uterine contractions and could induce premature labor and possibly miscarriage. On the other hand, experienced acupuncturists can be very helpful during pregnancy when the mother is trying to avoid taking unnecessary drugs. Be sure to tell the acupuncturist if you are pregnant or think you may be. Using acupuncture to treat morning sickness or other illnesses during pregnancy should be undertaken with consultation between your obstetrician and your acupuncture practitioner.
People on anticoagulant drugs may bleed easily even when thin acupuncture needles are inserted. Consult your physician before having acupuncture if you are on such medication.
Electrical stimulation of acupuncture needles could cause problems for people with pacemakers, as could magnets, which are sometimes used to stimulate acupoints.
Back to Top
Chinese herbal medicine is a traditional medicine that is based on ancient Chinese philosophy. For more than 4,000 years, in the process of defending against diseases for thousands of years, herbal medicine has been developed and systemized based upon theoretical principles as a means of both prevention and treatment of illness and disease.
The restoration of harmony is integral to Chinese herbal medicine. Harmonious balance is expressed in terms of the two complementary forces: yin and yang; and the five elements: fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. The five elements are of particular importance to Chinese herbalists; they give rise to the five tastes by which all medicinal plants are evaluated. Fire gives rise to bitterness, earth to sweetness, metal to acridity, water to saltiness, and wood to sourness. Each taste is said to have a particular medicinal action; bitter-tasting herbs drain and dry; sweet herbs tonify and may reduce pain; acrid herbs disperse; and salty herbs nourish the kidneys; sour herbs nourish the yin and astringe, preventing unwanted loss of body fluids or qi. Herbs that have none of these tastes are described as bland, a quality that indicates that the plant may have a diuretic effect. The taste of a plant can also indicate the organ to which it has a natural affinity. Besides defining particular herbal tastes, the Chinese ascribe different temperatures to herbs: hot, warm, neutral, cool, and cold. Each individual herb has different properties, such as taste and temperature, and enters different organs in the body. When the herbs are combined, through mutual harmony, the treatment effect is increased and the side effects reduced. A usual prescription or formula can consist of multiple herbs. The herbs may be in granules, powder, pills, capsules, tinctures, or bags to be boiled as tea. Most herb formulas consist of a mix of herbs and treat a wide variety of symptoms, while stimulating the body’s natural healing process.
Back to Top
 |
9. What is the Advantage of of Chinese Medicine Over Western Medicine? |
Chinese medicine (including acupuncture) has been around for 3-5 thousand years. The NIH and FDA acknowledge Chinese medicine belong to whole medical systems. Chinese medicine is an individual scientific system similar to conventional medicine (western medicine), involving a complete system of theory and practice, rather than simply a complementary or alternative choice to conventional medicine.Read more.
Each of the two medical systems uses a different approach to understand human body. Since human body is not completely known and diseases are very complicated, we need to use both of these approaches to understand human body and treat medical problems.
Overall, Chinese medicine has an advantage in treating pain and chronic problems, maintaining good health and preventing illness over western medicine. If you have pain or a chronic medical problem, you should definitely try Chinese medicine and acupuncture.
|
Comparison of Chinese Medicine with Western Medicine |
Items |
Chinese Medicine
(Natural Medicine) |
Western Medicine
(Conventional Medicine) |
Foundation |
Biological reflexology, non-linear math, quantum physics and chaos math. |
Classical physics-mechanistic and linear math. |
Development |
3-5 thousand yrs clinical practice on the human body. |
Primary laboratory experiment. |
Diagnosis |
Take the body as a whole.
Direct analysis of functional status and find the cause – the imbalance in body. |
Local disease theory.
Reply on analysis of lab tests and physical exam. |
Treatment Goal |
Correct the imbalance and bring the entire body back into balance.
Focus on treating the underlying cause of illness.
Treat the person. |
Focus on treating local problem.
Focus on treating the symptoms of illness.
Treat the disease. |
Treatment Process |
Symptoms are relieved progressively, but significantly shorter duration of illness. |
To reduce symptoms quickly, but the course is lengthy, or many illness will be cured. |
Treatment Procedures |
Noninvasive. |
Invasive-surgery. |
Treatment Material |
Derived from natural substances. |
Mostly synthetic chemicals, lots of side-effects. |
Treatment Result |
Underlying imbalance is corrected and so
the cure rate is high, and relapse rate is low.
Long-term treatment is not necessary. |
Symptoms are usually masked and the real cause is not fixed, and so the cure rate is low, recurrence rate is high.
Long-term or life-time medication is very common. |
Safety |
Herbs are used for 3-5 thousand yrs, negative effect is known. Minimum or no side-effects. No worry of addiction. |
Most have a negative effect and many drugs are new and side-effect is unknown. plus addiction. |
Back to Top
Generally speaking, there are three different levels of acupuncturists in the United States. The different levels depend on training, degree earned, and practice experience.
An average acupuncturist is generally someone who graduated from a 3-5 year acupuncture program and has 1-5 years of clinical experience. This designation applies to about 70% of acupuncturists.
An experienced acupuncture specialist is generally someone with 5-8 years of acupuncture training and with 6-15 years of clinical experience. This applies to about 22% of acupuncturists.
An acupuncture expert/master is someone with a doctoral degree in Oriental medicine or acupuncture, with 9-11 years of training in Oriental medicine or acupuncture, and with more than 15 years of clinical experience. This can also be someone who does not earn a doctoral degree but has more than 30 years of clinical experience. They are the top acupuncturists. We are among the some 2% of all acupuncturists who are in this category.
Back to Top
In general, the more experienced the acupuncturist, the better. This medicine is very broad, and diseases are very complicated. It takes time for an acupuncturist to gain skills and experience.
If you injured yourself recently and it caused low back pain, an average acupuncturist maybe OK to help you. If you have chronic low back pain due to lumbar vertebral degeneration, you might need to see an experienced acupuncture specialist. But if you have low back pain due to disc herniation or bulging disc, or fracture of the lumbar vertebra or another very hard-to-treat or “incurable” condition, you might need to see an acupuncture expert/master. Keep in mind the level of training and experience can make a big difference.
Seeing a top, experienced acupuncturist does not mean that it is much more expensive. It might actually save you money. You may have to pay a little more per visit, but because top acupuncturists have far more knowledge and experience, they might fix your problem much sooner. So, it not only saves you an overall service fee, but it also saves you from your suffering more quickly.
Back to Top
To determine this, you need to find out the answers to the following questions:
- Does he/she hold a doctoral degree: Ph.D., OMD, DOM, DAOM?
- Is the Ph.D. or other doctoral degree in Oriental medicine/acupuncture, or another profession?
- Is the Ph.D. or other doctoral degree in Oriental medicine/acupuncture or in another profession?
- How many years of training went into earning the Ph.D. or other doctoral degree?
- Was he/she trained in China or elsewhere?
- How many years of clinical experience in Oriental medicine and acupuncture does this person have?
- Has he/she ever practiced in a hospital?
- How many years of teaching experience in an Oriental medical school does this person have?
- How many publications in Oriental medicine and acupuncture has he/she published and/or contributed to?
Back to Top
Yes. Many of our patients have tried everything else before they try acupuncture. They seek acupuncture as their last hope. But, even so, acupuncture still helped many of them.
We believe it should be the opposite. Patients should try acupuncture first. Because, for many patients with pain, if they had tried acupuncture immediately, the pain would have been taken care of at the beginning. They would suffer from the pain for a shorter period and could have saved money, too. Many of our patients consider us their family doctors. Every time they have a problem, they see us first. And we take care of them very quickly.
Back to Top
Acupuncture cannot treat a bulging disc, disc herniation, or bone spur itself. But these conditions can cause the swelling of ligaments, tendons around the vertebrae, and can cause pressure of the nerve root, resulting in pain, muscle spasm, and weakness of the limbs. Acupuncture may relieve the swelling and release the pressure on the nerves to a degree, and so the patient may feel relief from the pain and other symptoms.
For many of these patients, the conditions may not be really serious. However, your brain remembers the pain to prevent you from causing your spine further injury. Many times, your spine is not bad, but your brain still remembers the pain. Acupuncture is one way to refresh your memory, so you don’t feel the pain anymore.
Back to Top
We use acupuncture and herbal products to aid weight loss with very good results. These treatments can help you increase your metabolism, regulate your endocrine system, reduce your appetite, and have smooth bowel movements. All these work together to help you lose weight.
Back to Top
Acupuncture can stimulate the brain to release endorphins and other chemicals that block the craving in the brain for cigarettes. Usually, after several acupuncture sessions, most people can quit smoking.
Back to Top
Yes, acupuncture can regulate and balance hormone levels and significantly relieve such symptoms as hot flashes, sweating, heart palpitations, and insomnia.
Back to Top
Yes, with acupuncture, we have helped many patients with this problem. After treatment, their mobility of the knee joint is increased or even restored to normal. For some patients, knee replacement is postponed and/or avoided.
Back to Top
Pain medications do not cure the pain. They hide or mask it. This is why most patients with chronic pain have to take pain medications forever. Prolonged taking of these medications can cause many side effects, which can make people’s lives miserable.
Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine are different. They address the pain’s cause. In acupuncture, for many patients, since the cause of the pain is identified and eliminated, the pain can be gone permanently. We have cured pain for many patients and changed their lives.
Back to Top
Acupuncture can help many conditions that have been diagnosed as “incurable.” This is because Chinese medicine views the human body and treatment approach differently from Western medicine. So far, no one individual medical system understands the human body completely. Each system may have its different understanding and knowledge of the human body. It is like when you stand still, Western medicine stands in front of you, so it has better knowledge about the front aspect of your body. Chinese medicine stands behind you, and so it has a better understanding of the backside of your body.
So, as Chinese medicine and acupuncture practitioners, we sometimes see things about patients’ conditions Western medical doctors do not see and, for the same reason, we may help conditions Western medical doctors may not be able to help. This is why many conditions Western medical doctors believe are incurable may be curable with Chinese medicine and acupuncture. People usually call this as miracle. Miracles do happen in our practice. So, don’t be surprised if you experience such a miracle firsthand! |
|
|
