Acupuncture Treatments

• Overview
• Acupuncture Treatments

What to Expect During Your First Acupuncture Appointment

• Preparing for Your First Appointment
• What to Expect During Your First Appointment
• What to Expect During Your First Treatment
• What to Expect After Your Treatment
• What to Expect Over the Course of Your Treatments
• Will I Have Any Side Effects to the Treatment?
• What Are Flare-ups?
• Download Confidential Patient Information & Consent to Treatment Forms

Overview

Traditional Chinese medical theory and diagnostic procedures can often make sense out of illnesses that can often be difficult to evaluate with conventional medical laboratory testing and diagnostic instrumentation and, therefore, many have been traditionally managed poorly by Western medicine. Furthermore, where conventional medicine has come to rely almost exclusively on prescription medications in an effort to try to manage or suppress symptoms, the focus of acupuncture is on correcting the underlying, core, energetic imbalances that are at the root of any illness so that the body's own natural, self-healing processes can then be re-activated.

Although acupuncture has been widely practiced in every major, industrialized nation of the world for almost half a century, applications are just beginning to be integrated into mainstream medicine here in the United States as rigorous, double-blind, clinical trials corroborate their efficacy. Acupuncture and hypnotherapy techniques are currently two of the fastest growing treatment modalities in the country.

Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) recognize acupuncture as being effective for treating the following symptoms and disorders: If, however, you do not find your particular condition listed, please feel free to contact me. Acupuncture has been used throughout the world to successfully treat many other conditions that have not yet been studied on a large scale by both of these health organizations.

Acupuncture Treatments

Musculoskeletal Disorders and Pain:

Psycho-Emotional Disorders:

Circulatory Disorders:

Neurological Disorders:

Autoimmune Disorders:

Gastrointestinal Disorders:

Gynecological & Reproductive Disorders:

Ear, Nose & Throat Disorders:

Respiratory Disorders:

Urogenital Disorders:

Preparing for Your First Appointment

The following suggestions are offered to help to insure that your first acupuncture appointment will be a successful and relaxing experience:

You should arrive for your first appointment a least 20 minutes earlier than your scheduled appointment time so that you can fill out a very comprehensive, 5-page Confidential Patient Information Form designed to gather as much information as possible about your past family and personal medical history as well as the signs and symptoms you may be currently experiencing. Again, filling out this form is not a part of your first, scheduled appointment time and, therefore, must be done prior to it by either arriving early or downloading and filling out the forms beforehand by clicking on the links provided at the bottom of this web page.

It is very important that you take your time to carefully fill in all applicable blanks and check off all signs and symptoms that apply to you. Unlike Western medicine, which relies heavily on laboratory and diagnostic testing equipment, your practitioner will be carefully evaluating every sign and symptom you have checked in order to ascertain the functioning of the various physiological systems of your body from a traditional Chinese medical perspective. This information may be combined with an examination of your pulse, tongue and, depending upon your condition and the style of acupuncture selected, palpation (finger pressing) on your hara (abdomen) in order to formulate and accurate diagnosis and treatment plan tailored to meet your needs.

If you are currently taking any prescription and over-the-counter medications, herbal supplements and vitamins please prepare a list of them along with the daily dosages you are taking. And, if you have them in your possession, please bring a copy of any laboratory or medical reports that are relevant to the condition you are requesting treatment for with acupuncture. Also, provide the name of your primary care physician and his/her telephone number.

Ideally, it is recommended that you eat a light meal approximately 2 hours before each of your treatments. Acupuncture should not be performed on individuals who are fasting because the treatments may be energetic enough to cause nausea or dizziness if administered on an empty stomach. One should, however, avoid over-eating or ingesting rich, greasy, fried or extremely spicy foods that could also cause stomach upset.

Stimulants and caffeine beverages such as coffee and soda should not be consumed within 4 hours prior to your appointment time in order to insure accurate pulse readings. Please also avoid alcohol on the day of your treatment. Acupuncture should not be performed on individuals who are intoxicated due to the increased risk of shock. It is also advisable not to consume alcohol within four hours after a treatment.

Since there are more than 350 acupuncture points located all over the body, patients should wear loose-fitting, comfortable clothing that will easily allow exposure to the legs to above the knees, the arms to above the elbows, and the abdomen and back if required. Full length dresses are, therefore, not recommended.

In a large number of cases this exposure if often all that is necessary in order to be able to administer a prescription of acupuncture points for treatment. In some cases, however, a patient may be required to disrobe (females should always still continue to wear a bra and underwear), put on a johnny and/or be covered with a draping sheet while lying on the treatment table.

Although rare, failure to remove specific acupuncture needles at the end of a treatment is the single most common cause of minor injury to patients because they have accidentally been covered by clothing. Consequently, patients are advised not to be moving around during the treatment period. This topic is covered in detail on the Informed Consent for Treatment Form. Please read it carefully before signing.

What to Expect During Your First Appointment

The first appointment will begin with an intake interview with your practitioner going over with you the detailed information you have provided on the Confidential Patient Information Form. If necessary, more specific questions will be asked about each of your signs and symptoms in order to achieve a more accurate diagnosis. Depending upon the complexity of your condition, your intake interview may take from 15 to 30 minutes and your subsequent acupuncture treatment from 30 to 60 minutes. You should, therefore, allot at least 90 minutes for your first acupuncture appointment (not including the 20 minutes to fill out the forms).

During your intake interview, you may be asked questions that you might not think are relevant to your chief complaint, such as your emotional well-being, sleep patterns, diet and eating habits. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) considers every aspect of the patient's lifestyle, not just symptoms in order to identify the origin of a pattern of disharmony. Although your treatment will be primarily focused on your main complaint, the overall treatment plan may include acupuncture points to restore energetic balance to the whole body.

What to Expect During Your First Treatment

Acupuncture needles are typically retained for 30 - 45 minutes depending upon the condition being treated, the over-all energetic health of the patient and the style of acupuncture chosen. Clearing your mind of all thoughts and completely relaxing during the treatment actually facilitates the rebalancing of Qi throughout the body. Since the needles actually stimulate the release of endorphins and enkephalins (the body's own morphine-like, sedative substances), the degree of relaxation patients experiences can be quite profound with many drifting off into a deep, rejuvenating sleep.

What to Expect After Your Treatment

Depending upon the nature of your complaint, you may begin to experience relief immediately after the acupuncture needles have been inserted, within a few hours after your treatment or over the course of the next few days. Your practitioner will instruct you to monitor how long your relief lasts after each treatment in order to evaluate whether or not the frequency of your treatments is sufficient enough to allow the cumulative effects of acupuncture to sustain progress over the treatment plan established for your particular condition.

Typically, as the signs and symptoms begin to subside, the frequency of treatments can be reduced. And, once the symptoms are completely gone, it is recommended that you undergo a course of several stabilizing treatments to insure that they do not return.

What to Expect Over the Course of Your Treatments

Since the effects from acupuncture treatments are cumulative, a rule of thumb is that the more frequently you come for treatments the quicker you will be able to experience the positive results you desire with the least total number of treatments. Three times per week is sometimes necessary with once per week usually being the minimum required in order to be able to sustain progress. A course of treatment involves both the total number as well as the frequency of treatments you will need to commit to in order to achieve positive results with acupuncture for your particular condition. Your practitioner will discuss the recommended course of treatment with you at the end of your intake interview.

Will I Have Any Side Effects to the Treatment?

Although side effects are uncommon, the following have been known to occur: Feelings of light-headedness (especially when arising from the treatment table too rapidly), dizziness, sleepiness, euphoria, slight nausea and residual muscle aches. Sometimes a slight bruise may appear at one or more of the acupuncture points treated which usually disappears within a few days. If cupping therapy has been administered, slight bruising may also occur at the site. If moxa herb is burned on top of a protective cream directly applied to the skin, some redness may occur afterward. Staying properly hydrated and warm after each treatment is recommended.

What Are Flare-ups?

In approximately 10 percent of the cases, especially those involving muscular injury, pain, and/or nerve involvement (i.e. sciatica) a patient's individual symptoms may briefly appear to get worse shortly after a treatment. This is referred to as a "healing reaction" whereby the acupuncture needles have caused stagnant Qi and blood from the injured, inflamed area to begin to spread outward to cover a larger area. Consequently, the patient perceives that the pain feels worse because it has spread out over a larger area. This typically dissipates within 24 hours and is often a positive indication that the treatment is working and recovery may actually take place at a more rapid rate over subsequent treatments.

Downloading Confidential Patient Information & Informed Consent to Treatment Forms

• Acupuncture Confidential Patient Information Form
• Acupuncture Informed Consent to Treatment Form

For additional information:

• Acufinder Learning & Resource Center (search acupuncture + information)
• World Health Organization (search acupuncture)
• National Institutes of Health (search acupuncture)