Acupuncture at Family Chiropractic

Acupuncture is one of the oldest commonly used systems of healing in the world. Originating in China over 3000 years ago, it has only become popular in North America in the last 30 years.

The theory behind Acupuncture’s ability to treat pain and disease is based on the energetic system of the human body. Vital energy or Qi (pronounced Chee) flows through the body in specific pathways/channels. Pain, disease, or imbalance (physical/emotional) occurs in the body when there is a deficiency, excess or blockage of the energy in the pathways. There are over 400 acupuncture points on the body. Insertion of a very fine disposable needle at a given point has unique effects on correcting or manipulating the energy that passes through the point.

If the underlying problem is not addressed at its early stage, more serious imbalances or illness may arise, affecting your physical body, mental clarity and emotions.

Nature has the tendency to self-correct imbalances in Qi and maintain homeostasis, so we usually recover from most illness or emotional hurt in due course. Symptoms that persist, however, alert us to an imbalance on a deeper level. The acupuncturist looks for the root of the disharmony and focuses the treatments on both the root cause and the symptoms brought on by the imbalance.

Acupuncture has an impressive advantage of being free of side effects. The acupuncture needles used are high quality, sterile and disposables. There is absolutely no risk of contamination between patients.

Tui Na is a therapeutic form of massage and has been used in China for more than 2,000 years. Tui Na is used to treat people of all ages, from infancy to old age. This Chinese therapy makes use of rhythmic compression techniques along different energy channels of the body to establish harmonious flow of Qi throughout the body thus facilitating the healing process. It removes the blockages and keeps the energy moving through the meridians as well as the muscles. Many of the techniques used in this massage resemble that of a western massage like gliding, kneading, vibration, tapping, friction, pulling, rolling, pressing and shaking. It is a very effective therapy for arthritis, pain, sciatica and muscle spasms. Other benefits of this Chinese massage therapy include alleviation of the stress related disorders like insomnia, constipation, headaches and other disorders related to digestive, respiratory and reproductive systems.

Cupping is a technique that uses small glass cups to create suction on the skin. Once the suction has occurred, the cups can be gently moved across the skin. The suction in the cups causes the skin and superficial muscle layer to be lightly drawn into the cup. Cupping is much like the inverse of massage – rather than applying pressure to muscles, it uses gentle pressure to pull them upward. The suction and negative pressure provided by cupping can loosen muscles, encourage blood flow, and sedate the nervous system (which makes it an excellent treatment for high blood pressure). Cupping is used to relieve back and neck pains, stiff muscles, anxiety, fatigue, migraines, rheumatism, and even cellulite. For weight loss and cellulite treatments, oil is first applied to the skin, and then the cups are moved up and down the surrounding area.

Generally, cupping is combined with acupuncture in one treatment, but it can also be used alone. Please note that after a cupping treatment, temporary bruising may appear due to the suction of the skin. For most patients, this is a particularly relaxing and relieving sensation. Once suctioned, the cups are generally left in place for about ten minutes while the patient relaxes.

Gua Sha is a unique scrapping modality in Chinese Medicine. It is used to treat as well as prevent the common cold, flu, broncitis, asthma, and pain both acute and chronic. A special tool is used over a lubricated section of the skin to bring up to the surface any stagnation or heat. It results in detoxification of the body. Gua means to scrape and Sha is the bruising that can surface. This unusual trauma that the area experiences (although painless to the patient) results in an amazing healing response by the body. Gua Sha can be performed on the face, neck, shoulders, back, and legs.