This is without doubt one of the main questions I get asked when I tell people I run an acupuncture clinic. Followed swiftly by….how does it work and does it work? To answer the last question first, YES!!! It does work!
The natural response from that then is, ‘well how does it work?’.
Straight out of acupuncture college, I would launch in to my best efforts of explaining the balance between Yin and Yang and how there is Qi in the body that needs to flow freely through the meridians and if it doesn’t then there are disharmonies and/or stagnations and by getting acupuncture, this helps to smooth out how the Qi is flowing, therefore helping balance out the Yin and Yang in the body.
Now…..is that a mouthful??!! This, I thought, was a fantastic explanation but over time I realised that the look on people’s faces was not one of understanding but of complete ‘not-understanding’. For any of us that have been to Eastern Medicine school, we geek out on the language and philosophy that the sages spoke about. We spend hours, upon hours reading, learning, thinking, talking about it. In fact we fell in love with it.
But in our society, how we have been brought up speaking about our bodies, our health, our illness….it makes no sense at all, at least not really. We are more used to hearing the conventional medical terms and how they work (though admittedly, we don’t always understand them fully either!)
The first thing I would say, no matter how I want to explain acupuncture, is to ALWAYS remember that your body KNOWS how to HEAL itself. That is its natural process. We are always in certain cycles of healing from the food we eat, to the emotions we feel or from the weights we lift in the gym etc.
(we follow the laws of nature, nature works in cycles, we ARE nature – but that is for another post!).
Say, you fall and cut your knee. Your body instantly starts healing the area, blood will clump together and clot, to try to close the wound to stop excess bleeding, then some slight inflammation at the site of the cut to bring in macrophages, which protect from infection and oversee the healing process, they also call in growth factors (chemical messengers) to help repair the wound and over time depending on the size of the cut, the area is completely healed. And all this happens without us even thinking about it.
So, acupuncture is able to tap into this innate healing ability of your body. It modulates how the nervous system talks to different systems in your body like the endocrine system, pain regulation system, inflammatory system etc. The nervous system controls the hormonal (endocrine) system and it is a fact that hormones control everything from metabolism to sleep, to mood, to the immune system. So from this, acupuncture is able to modulate what hormones are being made to work towards a desired result by. For example, acupuncture increases endorphin secretion. Endophin is a powerful central nervous system (CNS) relaxant and analgesic (pain relief), and produces and natural tranquilising and mood stabilising effect. And when your body is relaxed, it heals!
This is also another explanation as to why you normally feel so relaxed after having acupuncture, sometimes in my clinic, it’s called the “Acupuncture cloud”. And this is why, acupuncture has become so popular and readily accepted as a go-to-therapy for pain relief such as migraine, painful periods, fibromyalgia to name a few.
Acupuncture also influences or adjusts circulation and small capillary blood supply both in local areas of treatment and in the internal organs. Healthy blood flow nourishes and detoxifies tissues, it supports healing and restorative functions.
In my next post I will discuss what acupuncture is, the process it entails!! (I will give you a little sneak peak…..it’s not just about sticking needles in random places on your body!)
In the mean time, if you want me to help you tap into your innate healing processes so you can live your life freely and without pain, request your FREE consultation and I will be happy to answer your questions and get you back on track.
Or, just call 01-5613014 and I will be happy to answer your questions.
* Individual results vary. No guarantee of specific results is warranted or implied and your results will depend on many factors. Full disclaimer