Tag: acupuncture

How Does an Acupuncture Practitioner Diagnose?

Most Americans know that acupuncture has something to do with healing diseases by using needles. These needles are used to redirect and restore optimal circulation of the life force, known as “Qi”, within the body. A person with a mental, physical, or emotional problem has the flow of Qi hindered at one or more points, and effective use of needles will change and restore that flow.One of the more suprising things at an acupuncture clinic is the way a problem can be diagnosed. In most cases, the practitioner holds the wrist of the client and takes his pulse. The pulse is observed at several different points on wrist, and the nature of the pulse is evaluated. After that comes a thorough evaluation and a plan of where to place the needles to best address the problem. There are several different qualities the acupuncture practitioner is observing in the pulse.

The patient can have up to 12 different pulse points taken. Three surface pulse points are taken on each of the wrists, and three deep pulse points are also taken on each wrist. Even an untrained person can notice the difference in pulses depending on the location and depth of the pulse point. There are many possible pulse descriptions in acupuncture, but six of the commonly encountered ones are: floating, sunken, slow, rapid, slippery, and choppy. Taking even a few people’s pulses, it is easy to see how some could be described as choppy, and others as slippery.

Another very useful technique for diagnosis in acupuncture is by observing the tongue of the client. Western physicians (and mothers!) can often tell someone has a throat problem by looking at the coating on the tongue. But an acupuncture practitioner is looking at a number of aspects of the tongue: the color of the tongue (both top and sides), any cracks that might be in the tongue, swellings, the condition of the dots on the tongue, and the level of moisture. All of these things provide an illuminating picture of the state of someone’s health, and indicates what the acupuncture plan should address.

One thing to remember is that, in acupuncture, a particular western medical diagnosis may not be of much help. That
is because a particular diagnosis may be caused by one of several different kinds of interruptions in the flow of Qi, and hence is not a major influence in what should be done in the acupuncture clinic. However, the acupuncture practitioner definitely wants to know how you actually feel, for this is very significant. Every symptom should be described, as well as the times they are most noticeable, and any associations that can be thought of. For example, the acupuncture practitioner should be told if pains are milder after a good night’s sleep, or if headaches are worse under fluorescent lights, and other such associations.

So expect the diagnosis at an acupuncture clinic to be rather different than a diagnosis at a physician’s office. The acupuncture practitioner is not looking just at the particular problem, but how your organs and systems presently interact, one result of which is the current problem. This introduction should make you more comfortable with such a diagnosis, give you more understanding as to why your tongue is being so carefully looked at, and hopefully make you interested enough to find out more about it.

Different Types of Acupuncture Treatment

When you normally think of acupuncture, you think of a person sitting with several needles inserted into their skin, into parts of the body like the ear, the arm, or the wrist. This is a good picture of a patient that is having an acupuncture treatment. These treatments last anywhere from a very short time up to thirty minutes or more, depending on the symptoms that are being treated. These needles are more frequently inserted just far enough into the skin to firmly keep them there, though an acupuncture practitioner may insert different needles somewhat further in depending on the treatment plan. Sometimes the needles are twirled in place, sometimes they are warmed before insertion, or have heat applied to them during insertion. Generally there is no discomfort when a needle is inserted, manipulated, or removed. Occasionally a slight twinge may be felt, but not more than that. Often during treatment a patient may feel more relaxed than when they came in, slightly warmer, or possibly feel a rush of energy during the treatment. Some patients feel no change during the acupuncture treatment, but their symptoms gradually change over a longer period of time, such as several weeks.

There are variations of acupuncture that do not rely on the use of needles. The ideas behind these are identical with standard acupuncture technique. The knowledge of acupuncture points, the organization of the body, and the importance of proper energy flow for a healthy body are all exactly identical to standard acupuncture therapy. The main difference is that the needle is replaced by a different technique to manipulate the acupuncture point.

In sonopuncture, a device that produces sound waves is applied to the point at which a needle would normally be inserted. In addition to the device that produces the sound waves, other devices that vibrate may also be used, such as tuning forks. There is a good deal of activity in this area, but results using these devices is not as well established as the results with traditional needle based acupuncture.

Another technique that has been in use since the middle of this century is to apply a low voltage electric current to the acupuncture point. Sometimes this is done together with insertion of a needle, sometimes it is done just by touching a small wire to the surface of the skin and connect a very low electric current. The feeling of the current is a very light tingling, and not any very noticeable or painful reaction. This technique using electricity was pursued independently in America and Europe in the 1930s and 1940s, but interest in the technique as a part of western medicine waned after that time.

Another variation of acupuncture that many more people have heard of is the use of acupressure. In this technique no instrument is used, just the technique of pressing a finger on the acupuncture point. This technique can be incorporated into such manipulations as shiatsu massage. This technique is also easy for a layman to do, and many have seen little cards with diagrams of pressure points on the hands and feet. Though these may be useful, the best use is made when the person understands more of the entire system of acupuncture rather than just where the acupuncture points are.

Acupuncture therapy has been extended beyond needles, and interest is continuing in using other instruments. Other techniques include the use of heat (a very traditional choice), friction, magnets, suction, and to the ultra-modern use of laser beams. Acupuncture is a very adaptable therapy, which yields very good results.

Acupuncture’s Acceptance in America

Acupuncture has been used in China and Japan for centuries, and was introduced into Europe in the 1700s by Jesuit missionaries. However, it has been popular in the United States for only the past twenty or thirty years. Initially, its most dramatic and effective results here in America were to reduce or eliminate pain, where some patients undergoing surgery had no anesthesia whatsoever. Their pain was eliminated during the surgery by use of acupuncture needles.

The National Institute of Health has been interested in both the use and the growing interest in acupuncture, and has had a number of conferences whose main subject is the use of acupuncture. Interestingly, thousands of traditional physicians, dentists, and other health practitioners now use acupuncture for pain relief and other symptoms. Also, currently more than 10 million adults in the U.S. have used acupuncture at some time in the past, or are using it currently. (Though acupuncture is also perfectly safe for children, and frequently children respond more quickly to the treatments than adults.)

The National Institute of Health has looked at many studies on the effectiveness of acupuncture to relieve a specific set of symptoms. There are some outstanding successes, but making any sweeping statement is difficult because many of the studies are not easy to design. Or, more properly, there is some heated discussion on what studies have been so carefully designed that the results are beyond question. But there is general agreement that acupuncture is highly effective for a wide range of symptoms, including pain and nausea after operations, headaches, menstrual cramps, asthma, osteoarthritis, etc. Research is continuing and new results are coming out quite often. One of the best ways to keep up is to search the Internet for your symptom of interest together with the key word “acupuncture”. Also look for websites sponsored by NCCAM, a branch of the National Institute of Health that investigates alternative medicines.

Since the main equipment of an acupuncture practitioner are needles, the needles in an acupuncture office are regulated by the government to ensure safety of the needles. The FDA approves their use by licensed practitioners in acupuncture clinics. The requirements are that the needles are sterile needles and one time use only, so no one need be concerned about the problem with needle contamination. The acupuncture needles are regulated by the same rules as those in your doctor’s office. To avoid any concern, watch carefully that the acupuncture practitioner opens a new, sealed package for each patient and swabs the insertion sites with some kind of disinfectant before inserting the needle (such as alcohol, traditionally used by nurses).

This survey is intended to give an overview of how the traditional medical community and also the institutes of the government have given credibility to the use of acupuncture. Acupuncture has evolved from an interesting import from China to an established technique that many doctors recommend, or have even become trained in the technique themselves. Acupuncture clinics and practitioners now have standards set up and regulated by the government in order to ensure the safety of the clients. It has become an accepted part of the mainstream American health system.

Acupuncture with Herbs

When most people think of acupuncture, they imagine someone sitting in a chair with a number of very thin needles hanging from their ears, or arms, or other parts of their bodies. This is a pretty good picture as far as it goes. The needles are usually not as large as they are imagined to be, and frequently only certain parts of the body have several needles, rather than in a number of different locations.

The purpose of the insertion of the needles is to redirect the flow of energy within the body. Once the flow of energy is restored to its proper channels, the body recovers its proper operation and the systems slowly or quickly disappear. The number of treatments in order for the symptoms to disappear depends both upon the patient and the set of symptoms that are being experienced.

The medical basis for the techniques of acupuncture were developed in China over thousands of years. Part of traditional Chinese medicine also uses a number of herbs, in conjunction with traditional acupuncture technique. In America we are used to taking vitamins and supplements, and we take them as either pills or capsules. Normally we take these supplements as a general nutritional support. The herbs recommended by an acupuncture practitioner are very specific for the symptoms being treated at the clinic. The herbs at the clinic may also be in pills or capsules. They might also be brewed with warm water and taken as a tea. This tea allows the acupuncture practitioner to mix just the right herbs for a particular person, rather than loading them up with several different pills. It is also easier to adjust the proportions in case several different herbs are used. Further, having the herbs taken as a tea makes the action of the herbs very rapid. Your acupuncture practitioner may also offer raw herbs, which have the most potency. They are also the worst tasting choice for someone not used to unusual tastes. However, once raw herbs are tried a few times, most clients prefer the raw herbs.

When your acupuncture practitioner decides on a plan of treatment, you and your practitioner should discuss the various parts of the treatment, including herbs, if any. Remember, not all treatments require herbs, and acupuncture can still be quite effective without them. Make sure that the acupuncture practitioner knows about any vitamin supplements or other nutritional foods presently being used, such as garlic pills or nutritional yeast. Generally nutritional supplements are quite compatible, but it is still important to realize any interactions between regular supplements and the herbs indicated for a particular acupuncture treatment. The same holds true for any prescription medications, even though generally the herbs are not planned to affect a particular organ’s mechanism, but rather influence a large part of the body’s system as a unit.

Finally, the acupuncture practitioner should be advised of any new symptoms if a new herbal prescription is started. Typically the only symptom might be a slight digestive upset, but if this or any new symptom is noticed, the practitioner should be notified right away. Herbs, though not a necessary part of acupuncture therapy, can be very helpful in promoting more rapid recovery and better health.