What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is the insertion of extremely thin, solid needles through the skin into the body at anatomically specific points. Acupuncture needles are sterile and single-use. Depending on a person’s injury or illness, acupuncture points are located on the extremities, abdomen, chest, back, neck, or head.
In the last 50 years, acupuncture has become one of the most utilized alternatives to standard medical care. Although acupuncture has recently gained popularity in the West, it’s been a reliable medical treatment for about 3,000 years. Chinese Medicine has some of the oldest recorded medical history in the world, with medical texts dating back before the Common Era.
The practitioner’s needling technique and strategy determine the outcome of an acupuncture treatment. Acupuncture points are less like buttons and more like portals or doorways allowing access to various aspects of the body. The practitioner must engage or manipulate a point or set of points with learned techniques to generate a desired effect.
Using acupuncture to treat musculoskeletal injuries is an easy, tangible way to begin thinking about acupuncture. Acupuncture has a long history of treating external injuries as it was closely linked to marital arts for centuries. Today, the field of orthopedics in Chinese Medicine is steadily growing. The West has caught on, and now physical therapists and chiropractors are also using needles to release tight muscles with a technique called dry needling. There is so much that Orthopedic Acupuncture — or Sports Acupuncture — can effectively treat: acute and chronic pain management, sports injuries, orthopedic conditions such as pain, inflammation, sprains, strains, sciatica, arthritis, and fibromyalgia, as well as other chronic pain syndromes. The list goes on!
Acupuncture is also used in the treatment of internal illness. This facet of acupuncture offers excellent alternatives to standard medical care. Besides pain relief, acupuncture is also beneficial in treating anxiety, depression, insomnia, neurological disorders, digestive disorders, skin issues, high blood pressure, headaches, autoimmune diseases, gynecological disorders, and menstrual disorders. These imbalances and many others can be improved through acupuncture with a high degree of success.
Acupuncture is a flexible modality with a broad set of applications. Treatments range from debilitating pain to digestive issues to seasonal allergies. There is so much that acupuncture can support and help with. Thankfully, acupuncture is becoming more mainstream and accessible.
Hannah Dietz is a Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine practicing in Portland, ME
