Pain Relief

HEAL. ENHANCE. PERFORM.   Acupuncture is excellent for helping heal pain, both acute and chronic.  The New York Times reported on a study last fall, stating  “… the most rigorous and detailed analysis of the treatment to date – found that it can ease migraines and arthritis and other forms of chronic pain. See: http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/11/acupuncture-provides-true-pain-relief-in-study/  Beyond the initial healing, acupuncture can improve overall performance in sports. 

The original article, published in JAMA, looked at chronic back, neck, osteoarthritis, headache, and shoulder pain. Their conclusion was “Acupuncture is effective for the treatment of chronic pain and is therefore a reasonable referral option. Significant differences between true and sham acupuncture indicate that acupuncture is more than a placebo.”  You can read the JAMA article summary here:  http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1357513

An injury damages the smaller, local meridians. From a Chinese medical perspective damp, heat, and blood can stagnate, causing pain. It is common for a person to compensate for the pain of an initial injury, creating other injuries from the imbalance. Acupuncture can help break the cycle of pain. Other modalities that can be combined are topical creams, massage of the channels, herbal teas, and customized breath-synchronized movement therapy (Qi Gong).  The types of pain that can be treated would include musculoskeletal, neuropathic, inflammatory, as with arthritis, or those types caused by repetitive motion, car or bike accidents, and sports.