What to Expect

What is acupuncture?

Acupuncture itself is a very old form of what may be termed ‘physical’ medicine. It is a hands-on approach of interacting and providing input to the body through the stimulation of specific, anatomical areas called acupuncture points. These acupuncture points have multiple ‘functional’ effects within the human body – simply put, they tell the body to do something e.g. relieve the inflammation causing the pain, lower the blood pressure, increase digestive movement, etc. The use of specially designed filiform (hair-thin, flexible, solid, sterile stainless steel) needles is the safest and most common method of achieving this goal. A very gentle technique of needle insertion is adjusted to accommodate the comfort of the patient. Yet, we do want you to feel something! And, the treatment itself often has a very sedating and relaxing effect as you rest quietly for 30 minutes or so.

While acupuncture is best known for its ability to treat pain, in the hands of a highly trained acupuncturist, it has much broader applications. Because acupuncture helps the body to more effectively heal itself, it can also be effective for a very wide range of medical problems. The human body constantly struggles to maintain balance (homeostasis) and instantly reacts to any disruption of its delicate balancing act. However, for a variety of reasons, sometimes the body is unable to restore balance and pain and/or illness is the result. Acupuncture helps the body to better focus its healing efforts and gain control over the problem. This is why acupuncture can help so many disorders from internal problems such as hormone imbalances or disorders of the organs or glands, to such varied problems as anxiety disorders, chronic fatigue, weak immune systems, infections, and even neurological problems.

How does it work?

Watch: How does acupuncture work?

This is what we call ‘the million-dollar-question,’ a loaded question if there ever was one. This is what every patient wants to know and what every scientific study is attempting to discover. And, while there is an answer, we believe a better and more approachable question to ask yourself is this: ‘Will Acupuncture Work for Me?’ That’s why you’re here after all, right?

The simplified answer to how acupuncture works is that it acts as a ‘counter-irritant’ to the body. It engages the self-healing, homeostatic systems that regulate every aspect of our internal environment. In short, it stimulates the body to do what it was designed to do, to help itself. If this explanation is satisfactory to you, great! If you require more information, please continue reading.

Despite its extensive history as a medical system and the literally tens of thousands of studies that have been conducted on acupuncture since the 1950’s, the question of how acupuncture works remains an elusive one. This fact does not sit well with some Western medical practitioners and researchers who have a very strong interest in The Why, in the cause and the effect, in the action and reaction, in how acupuncture treatment fits into their model of medicine of how the body works. And, herein, lies a fundamental problem – a belief that somehow one model of medicine has a unique handle on the truth, a belief that the body only operates ‘materially’ in a chemical, physical, and very tangible way that can be measured and controlled. We must accept that there are still many inherent mysteries of how the body, the nervous system, and how life itself works and operates within our universe. We have a current framework of understanding that will continually be revised as we learn more.

There is indeed an incredible contemporary interest in Acupuncture Medicine that continues to grow. It is fed by patients who want safe, effective and more natural treatment options that also make them feel good about themselves and their health; unless medically necessary, we don’t think most people want to subscribe themselves to medical treatments that cause toxic side effects. It seems that there is a new research study or blurb on acupuncture at least a few times every week – acupuncture works for this, it doesn’t work for that, it’s all placebo effect, etc. Designing and evaluating research studies on acupuncture is a difficult task for two reasons:

Acupuncture treatment is not standardized. Each treatment is adjusted to your needs as a patient. Two people with back pain in the same location may receive different treatments based on the underlying cause of the pain and any other accompanying symptoms or health problems.
While specific treatment effects may be observed and measured, it is often difficult to determine the exact mechanism of a treatment response because there are multiple mechanisms of action.

As a result, most studies on acupuncture contain at least one primary flaw design, a way in which the study does not coincide with the real-world practice of acupuncture. Fortunately, in addition to randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies, we can also rely upon both peer reviewed research of clinical trials as well as industry consensus evidence. All that jargon means that we utilize practicing acupuncturists to evaluate acupuncture on its merits as an ‘evidence-based medicine’ that has been accumulated and established over a couple millennial period of history.

What does it feel like?

Patients who have received vaccinations, blood draws or injections from hypodermic needles are sometimes fearful that acupuncture treatments will be as painful. But, this is generally not the case. While hypodermic needles are large, hollow, rigid and have a cutting edge that often result in an uncomfortable, if not painful, experience, acupuncture needles are small, thin (not much thicker than a human hair), flexible and are designed to produce little or no trauma to the skin and muscle tissues.

Your skin will be cleaned with alcohol. You will feel a small, plastic tube placed against your skin, then a gentle tap, and the needle is already in! The depth may be adjusted. Depending on the acupuncture point that is being stimulated, you may feel a dull ache, heaviness, a warm tingling, or even slight electrical impulses or waves that seem to travel up or down the body. These are considered normal responses and indicate that the point is being activated appropriately. The treatment is adjusted according to your comfort level, so please communicate with us. Most sensations will subside quickly, and you may even forget that the needles are there. Many people can fully relax, zone in-zone out, and even fall asleep during the treatment.

How long before I feel results of acupuncture?

Acupuncture is a therapy that goes like this: receive a treatment, let the body respond to it, repeat the treatment. Pain and some other symptoms may respond immediately to a treatment, but this does not mean that the problem is completely resolved. It takes time for healing to occur, for inflammation to subside, for muscles and tissues to unwind, for hormone levels to return to a balanced state, for digestion to improve, for the nervous system to be regulated. We are looking to build up a cumulative and sustained effect in your body from a series of acupuncture treatments. There are not quick fixes or easy cures in medicine. Consider this: you are usually required to take a prescription drug every day for it to continue working – this is not a cure, it is a method of managing a chronic problem. Acupuncture can also be a method of managing a chronic problem, one that resonates with many people because of the many benefits that they receive from it.

Please know that acupuncture can be a process. It is very rare that a problem can be resolved in one treatment. Your acupuncturist has suggested a course of treatment; this suggestion is based on our experience with treating your particular condition. We hope that you can come in often enough to achieve the full benefits of acupuncture. Please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions about your treatment plan.

General Treatment Frequency Guidelines

If your pain is a 10 out of 10, or you are at the end of your rope, come in daily until we see some changes. This is especially true for acute conditions and/or recent injuries.
If your pain is a 5 out of 10 or over, preferably two to three times a week.
If your pain is a 4 or less, come in once or twice a week.
Chronic issues that are not severe, once a week for 6-8 weeks and then we will re-evaluate.
If you are coming in for IVF or IUI, we hope that you can come in several months before the procedure to prepare your body for a successful pregnancy. On the day of your procedure, our protocol is to treat you at least 12-24 hours before the transfer or insemination.
For cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, we recommend receiving acupuncture the day before your chemo to offset its side effects. Beyond that, individual treatment recommendations will be made for patients dealing with other cancer related symptoms.
Really long-term chronic issues, once a week for ten weeks or twice a week for 5 weeks, then we re-evaluate your progress.
Menstrual cycle related issues: weekly or twice a week until you have a cycle that is OK, then every other week until 2 OK cycles, then once a month in the week before the problem week.
Chronic stress: once a week until the stress subsides – meaning the evil boss quits, the sick kids get better, or you find different ways to cope.
Most other issues: weekly until 50% improvement, and then every other week until resolution.
Chronic conditions with very poor prognosis, we recommend weekly indefinitely. Treatment will most likely focus on symptom control and overall support.