Understanding Acupuncture Treatment

Understanding Acupuncture

You’ve more than likely heard of acupuncture, but you might not have a thorough understanding of just what it is. If you’re experiencing pain or discomfort, you might want to try professional medical acupuncture, but you’ll want to check with your medical doctor beforehand to see if they think it’s a good idea.

The Origins of Acupuncture

Acupuncture was first conceived in China and is roughly 3,000 years old. The system of medicine is rooted in principles of homeostasis and is a way to treat physical pain and its symptoms. Acupuncture is most often labeled as a complementary health approach, which means that it can be used in combination with other medicines and medical procedures.
The way acupuncture works is that specific acupuncture points are stimulated in order to bring balance to the body’s natural flow of energy through channels called meridians. So far, scientific investigation has yet to find physiological or histological similarities with acupuncture points, qi, meridians and other concepts found in traditional Chinese medicine. It’s not unusual for modern day practitioners of acupuncture to not follow the traditional Chinese methodology.

How Acupuncture Can Help You

During acupuncture, small needles are placed in your neck, back and arms. The goal is to help cure and prevent disorders and diseases. The contemporary Western approach has found that acupuncture needles can induce changes in the body’s biochemical structure and that they can actually release endorphins in your body that can help contribute to pain relief.
Acupuncture has been proven to help with:

Pain treatment
Vomiting
Nausea
Childbirth
Fertility

Training and Safety Concerns

If you ever do decide to try acupuncture, make sure that it’s performed by someone who has received proper training. The therapist should have knowledge of neuro-physiology and anatomy. They should also have received their education from a nationally recognized and accredited institution.

Since acupuncture needles actually penetrate the skin, it’s considered to be an invasive procedure and isn’t without its risks. As long as you make sure that you’re treated by a trained and experienced practitioner, chances are slim that you’ll actually become injured. Acupuncture needles are required by law to be sterile, used only one time and disposed of after they’ve been used. In other parts of the world acupuncture needles can be reused as long as they’ve been re-sterilized. If the needle does happen to be contaminated, the risk of infection increases. Always look into the procedures and types of needles that will be used before your acupuncture treatment.
Try acupuncture for yourself if you’re ever experiencing any pain or discomfort. It could be just the thing you need to get some much needed relief.

About Thomas Hein

Thomas Hein is a registered physiotherapist and the clinical director at Physioactive Orthopaedic and Sports Injury Inc. He is also a clinical complex case consultant at the Canadian Centre for Integrative Medicine. Thomas has been helping clients recovery and perform optimally since graduating from Queen’s University with his Physical Therapy degree in 1995.Thomas has been committed to postgraduate education becoming a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Manipulative Therapy in 2001 and teaching within the Orthopaedic Division on Canadian Physiotherapy Association. With his quest to understand the whole body Thomas began taking postgraduate courses in Acupuncture and traditional chinese medicine. In 2002, Thomas continued his quest to understand movement, and the interactions of the nervous system and how the body works together as a unit. He completed his Osteopathy diploma at the Canadian College of Osteopathy won the Sutherland Award for the best thesis in his graduating year. Thomas uses his expert knowledge in human movement and normal human development to optimize the recovery of all patients. He enjoys the rewards of achieving success where other practitioners have failed. He approaches his chronic pain patients the same way he approaches his professional and Olympic athletes.

Understanding Acupuncture

About Thomas Hein

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