ACUPUNCTURE
What is it?
DEFINITION AND EXPLANATION OF ACUPUNCTURE
Acupuncture is one of the oldest known healing systems in the world. Its ancient roots stretch back some 5,000 years to China, and possibly Europe. Part of the traditional Chinese medicine system, acupuncture has been gaining medical and mainstream acceptance in American since the '70s.
Acupuncture is a medical-type technique of inserting and manipulating sterile hair-thin needles into "acupuncture points" on the body. This “needling” is done to rebalance the energy in the body, referred to as "qi" or “chi” via subtle energy pathways called "meridians." According to acupuncture philosophy, imbalance, ailments and illness result from the energy of the body becoming impeded, misdirected, or blocked. Acupuncturists are trained to diagnose imbalances and locate standardized points for treatment that restore the free flow of energy. This, in turn, assists in the body's return its natural state of balance and health, also referred to as homeostasis.
What is it used for?
WHAT ACUPUNCTURE IS KNOWN TO HELP
Where did it come from?
Hieroglyphics dating back to 1000 B.C. indicate ancestors of the Chinese may have used a primitive form of acupuncture using Bian shi, or sharpened pointed stones found in ruins. Some scholars believe that the stones were used for bloodletting, a forerunner of certain acupuncture techniques.
The first text describing acupuncture is the Yellow Emperor’s "Classic of Internal Medicine (History of Acupuncture)," which was compiled around 305–204 B.C. The theories focus upon the organs of the human body, the "five elements" (metal, wood, water, fire and earth), and the internal organs. These, along with sense organs and brain waves interacting with each other, were unique at the time, and laid the foundations of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Clearer evidence of Chinese acupuncture exists from the 1st millennium BCE. Gold needles unearthed from a tomb in Hebei Province are the earliest medicinal needles discovered to date. The points of these needles fall mainly into three types of shapes, demonstrating that the technique of acupuncture had reached a fairly sophisticated level as early as in the Han Dynasty (202 BC–220 AD).
Acupuncture was honed over generations by healing practitioners in China. It was then threatened in the early days of Communist Party rule. Along with many other classical forms of Chinese medicine, the Communists dismissed it as superstitious, irrational and backward. The party proclaimed that traditional methods of healing conflicted with their dedication to science as the way of progress. Later, Chairman Mao reversed this position, stating "Chinese medicine and pharmacology are a great treasure house and efforts should be made to explore them and raise them to a higher level."
Party representatives then scoured China to collect information about these theories and practices leading to the formalized system now known as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). TCM combines the use of acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, the acupressure/massage treatment tui na, and other modalities. After the Cultural Revolution, TCM instruction was incorporated into university medical curricula. Forms of classical Chinese medicine other than TCM were then outlawed, and some practitioners left China.
The first forms of acupuncture to reach the United States were brought by non-TCM practitioners, many employing styles that had been handed down in family lineages or from master to apprentice (collectively known as "Classical Chinese Acupuncture").
One of the first pioneers of U.S. acupuncture was Miriam Lee, who began her career as a nurse-midwife in China before becoming an acupuncturist. Lee lived through both the Japanese occupation and World War II before leaving the Chinese mainland in 1949. She lived in Singapore for 17 years before coming to the U.S. where acupuncture was illegal. Lee worked on a factory assembly line and gave treatments quietly out of her home. Later, she shared a space with a supportive medical doctor.
Interest in acupuncture in the U.S. was heightened in the early 1970’s when a newspaper columnist for the N.Y. Times newspaper wrote an article about the benefits of acupuncture during his recovery from an appendectomy while in a Chinese hospital. In 1974, Lee was arrested for practicing medicine without a license. At her trial, her patients filled the courtroom to protest her arrest, claiming their right to the only medicine that had truly helped them. With the overwhelming support of her patients, she was acquitted and made part of an acupuncture research project at San Francisco University where she practiced until 1976. At this time, acupuncture was legalized due in part to her actions.
During the late 70s, 80s, and early 90s, Miriam owned and operated a busy acupuncture clinic in Palo Alto, CA. Throughout this time, she taught hundreds of Western students in workshops and seminars and apprentices in her clinic.
How is it done?
CLINICAL PRACTICE OF ACUPUNCTURE
Acupuncture needles are much different than hollow needles used for drawing blood or receiving a shot. They are solid, stainless steel and extremely fine, anywhere from 0.007 – 0.020 inch in diameter (0.18mm – 0.51mm). Reports state that they rarely hurt or draw blood, and instead, seem to induce a state of deep relaxation. In 1996 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved single use, pre-sterilized disposable needles for use by licensed acupuncturists.
During a treatment, needles may be inserted to a depth of anywhere from a quarter of an inch to 3 inches, depending on the amount of subcutaneous fat they must penetrate. Acupuncture, though generally painless, can bring about a slight sharp sensation for some people depending on their sensitivity and where the needles are inserted. Once the needle is in place, it’s common to initially feel a tingling sensation, numbness, mild pressure or warmth. The acupuncturist may adjust the needles if discomfort is felt.
Patients usually are instructed to wear comfortable loose-fitting clothing during their session, as the main needle-insertion points can be on the lower legs, ears or arms. The acupuncturist may also ask the client to disrobe and put on a gown if he/she needs to work on the back, upper legs or torso. First visits generally include a detailed medical history followed by a physical exam that notes skin tone, tongue condition and the qualities of the wrist pulse. According to TCM theory, these observations provide an indication of strengths and weaknesses in the body's systems, organs and meridians. After making a diagnosis, the practitioner would then have the client lie down on a table and insert needles into key points. The client may then rest with the needles in place, anywhere from 5 to 45 minutes.
The number of treatments suggested depends on the severity of the condition. For some people, the effect of acupuncture can be quite dramatic: many feel the benefits after one session, where for others, the response may be more gradual and could take several sessions. Most clients will see some type of changes in their condition within four to six treatments.
What is it based on?
TRADITIONAL THEORY OF ACUPUNCTURE
It is proposed that acupuncture produces its effects through regulating the nervous system, aiding the activity of pain-killing biochemicals such as endorphins, and heightening the activity of immune system cells at specific sites in the body. Studies have shown that acupuncture may alter brain chemistry by changing the release of neurotransmitters and neurohormones, affecting the parts of the central nervous system related to sensation and involuntary body functions. This includes immune reactions and processes that regulate a person's blood pressure, blood flow, and body temperature.
Acupuncture is based on the philosophy of meridians, acupuncture points, and the concept of yin and yang. Most sources describe 14 main channels or meridians that crisscross the body in an interconnecting matrix of at least 2,000 acupuncture points. They are said to run through the head, neck, torso, arms, hands, legs and feet. It is believed that meridians transport the body’s energy, qi, in one direction only, similar to the circulation of blood that originates and returns to the heart, flowing in well-determined order from one meridian to another.
The major meridians and acupuncture points are mapped and have been standardized by the World Health Organization. Many are named according to the organ (zang-fu) they correspond to, such as heart, spleen, gallbladder and liver. The meridians are classified as yang or yin meridians based on whether they flow upwards towards the head or downwards towards the feet. According to acupuncture philosophy, each channel also has an internal and an external pathway. The external pathway is what is normally shown on an acupuncture chart and it is relatively close to the skin. The internal pathways are the deep course of the channel where it enters the body cavities and organs.
Needling points along meridians to rebalance the flow of qi springs from the Taoist principle of dynamic equilibrium, or yin yang. The yin yang principle is a universal way of describing the interactions and interrelations of all natural forces that occur in the world of phenomenon as inseparable, oppositional, transforming and balancing.
Who does it?
PRACTITIONER STATUS
At this time, about 40 states have training standards for acupuncture certification, and some states have additional requirements for obtaining a license to practice. Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners can train for four to six years to become certified as traditional acupuncturists and thereby specialize in acupuncture, which can also include herbal remedies and several other traditional Chinese medicine practices.
Medical practitioners such as physicians, dentists and chiropractors can also learn the techniques as a complement to their other services. Training can range from introductory day long trainings to intense advanced training of the art. Many learn medical based acupuncture, which can be focused on the symptomatic relief of a condition, while others can get training in traditional acupuncture, which is based on the body coming back into balance.
Acupuncture is one of the alternative therapies most frequently covered by insurance. It varies what insurance companies cover acupuncture and whether the practitioner will submit to the insurance companies or whether it is left up to the client.