Over
5000 years old, acupuncture has treated billions of patients
suffering from numerous afflictions. Safe, effective, and
with no medical side effects, many people are turning to
acupuncture as an alternative or compliment to Western medicine.
Covered by many health insurance plans and practiced in
many hospitals, alternative medicine is gaining increasing
popularity in the West.
Acupuncture works on the principal of subtle energy manipulation
in the body. This subtle energy is called chi. Chi
travels through a healthy body via channels called meridians.
When the chi is blocked, it does not travel through the
proper meridians, and this gives way to ailments. By stimulating
the proper points using acupuncture, the chi can be re-directed
to flow properly. While acupuncture does not deny a mind-body
connection, successful use in veterinary medicine proves
that there is more to this ancient art than a purely psychosomatic
effect (physical response of a mental stimulus).
So what is a treatment like? After your consultation, your
acupuncturist will map out a treatment plan. Treatments
generally last from 45 minuets to an hour. The factory sterilized,
disposable needles are no thicker than a thread. Most of
the time, patients can hardly feel the needles. Remember,
needles used at hospitals for injections are much, much
larger and inserted deeper into the body than in acupuncture.
Acupuncture needles are much finer, barley inserted into
the skin, and rarely even draw blood. Needles are disposed
of in a bio-hazard container after each use.