WHAT IS ACUPUNCTURE?
Acupuncture is a holistic therapy. This means that it treats the whole body rather than just treating a symptom. You may have a pain in your heel which makes it difficult to walk, however it could be that an X-ray shows that nothing is obviously wrong with your heel. It would therefore be pointless to treat the heel as although this might help in the short term, the problem would inevitably return. You may have discovered this with other health concerns you have. People in pain frequently have other complaints such as heart palpitations, insomnia, night sweats or headaches. It would therefore be more beneficial to search for the root of the problem and treat this. The patient with heel pain might be pleased to find that not only will their heel pain disappear following a course of acupuncture, but their insomnia is cured and their headaches go away (for example). A holistic practitioner recognizes that because the sum of the parts is the whole, it is necessary to treat the whole body to bring relief to the individual parts.
An acupuncturist does this in several ways. One is the insertion of needles into points on the body. These points are located and join together in channels which are connected to the internal organs. The points are carefully chosen by the acupuncturist to clear any blockages in the body and bring the body back into balance.
Another tool used by the acupuncturist is the herb moxa. Moxa is made from the dried leaves of Artemesia Vulgaris. Moxibustion, which is a pleasant warming technique, is frequently used to effect changes at very deep levels within the body and to effect movement in areas where injury has caused disruption to the normal circulation of blood and energy. The heat from burning moxa allows heat to travel directly into an acupuncture point and deep inside the body. Heat is an excellent means of removing blockages and cold from the body.
We use specialized Japanese cups to invigorate the flow of "qi" or energy and relieve tension and pain in traumatized areas. Cupping involves the use of glass cups over areas of tension or pain in the body. Cupping is used as a home remedy in many countries and is particularly effective in loosening up hardness and relieving the tension in shoulder and back pain.
