Acupuncture for Pain
Acupuncture is one of the most effective drug-free treatments for pain relief.
According to the National Institute of Health’s 2007 National Health Interview Survey, 7 out of 10 people who get acupuncture use it to relieve pain.
Treatments are minimally invasive and simple – small, sterilized stainless steel, single-use, medication-free needles are tapped into the skin. Whether for healing injuries or managing pain, acupuncture frequently provides instantaneous relief with long lasting results when proper treatments are administered.
According to Western science, acupuncture’s pain relieving power stems from its ability to stimulate nerves, muscles, and connective tissue. The stimulation appears to boost the activity of our body’s natural painkillers and increase blood flow. Acupuncture may work by causing physical responses in nerve cells, the pituitary gland, and parts of the brain.
In traditional Chinese medicine, pain is viewed as blockages in the body’s circulation. These blockages cause inflammation, swelling, and reduce the body’s ability to deliver nourishment to injured areas – an essential part to recovery. Pain is the body’s way to communicate with the brain that blockages need to be removed in order to restore normal physiological and emotional function. By stimulating specific acupuncture and trigger points with needles, acupuncture will stimulate blood flow, relax and re-train muscles, soothe nerves, and renew the body’s ability to heal. As a result, pain is relieved.
Patients use acupuncture to alleviate all kinds of pain. Below are some commonly treated conditions in our clinic:
- Acute and chronic pain
- Migraines and headaches
- Neck and back pain
- Knee pain
- Arthritis pain – Rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis
- Joint pain
- Tendonitis – Tennis or golfer’s elbow
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Fibromyalgia
- Traumatic injuries such as fractures, strains, sprains, bruises
- Tooth pain
- Postoperative pain
- Menstrual pain