While pins and needles might not sound like the most attractive approach to achieve pain relief, the ancient treatment modality of acupuncture has been used for thousands of years to accomplish healing, recovery, and optimal health.
Acupuncture, which involves inserting thin needles through the skin at strategic points on the body, is based on the movement of “qi” (also called “chi”), or vital energy, through pathways in the body called meridians. “When energy in the meridians is sluggish, stuck, or deficient, that’s when illness and pain result,” says Roberta Klein-Siegelson L.Ac., of South Shore Acupuncture in Rockville Centre. “Acupuncture aims to restore this balance by stimulating specific points along the meridians.”
Benefits of Acupuncture
Acupuncture treatment plans can be customized according to an individual’s healthcare needs and goals and are based upon age, physical constitution, and condition, Klein-Siegelson notes.
“Acupuncture addresses our physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of ourselves,” says Sheila Gordon de Miranda, L.Ac., a licensed acupuncturist with The Healing Space in East Northport. According to de Miranda, clients often seek this treatment to address chronic pain, anxiety, digestion issues, skin challenges, menses irregularity, and grief, fertility, prenatal, and immune system support.
“Acupuncture benefits all ages and all body types, from athletes that seek acupuncture for maintenance and recovery in between games to chronic illness,” de Miranda says, referring to a client who sought the treatment as a last resort to avoid surgery for an injured rotator cuff. Another one of her patients suffered from migraines for weeks, she says: “He responded very quickly to acupuncture—his migraines stopped completely.”
One of de Miranda’s most memorable and rewarding experiences was providing the treatment to people in hospice. Regardless of where you are on your journey, “acupuncture helps to restore quality of life,” she says.
Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of the ancient treatment is that it is noninvasive, says Bret J. Shulman D. Ac. (RI), L.Ac., of All About Acupuncture in Hicksville. “It works completely opposite to the way our traditional medical system does. It doesn’t suppress or hide symptoms like drugs or surgery do, it works with the body’s own natural healing mechanism to boost that innate effect.” As a result, individuals may experience healing or side benefits from other issues they had previously been living with, he says.
Following treatment, says Shulman, his patients have reported improved sleep and mood, an increased “sense of well-being” and more. “This is because of acupuncture’s unique ability to help the body achieve the balance or homeostasis that it is constantly striving for but often can’t achieve for a multitude of reasons,” he explains. Some feel positive effects after the first visit and others experience gradual improvements, he notes.
While some of his patients have utilized acupuncture for healing and recovery, others turn to the ancient healing as a means to achieving vitality, Shulman says. “Whichever road they’re on, we walk it together.”
