Using Acupuncture to Treat Trauma

The mind/body connection is truly undeniable. When one isn’t working properly, you can bet the other isn’t either. This is perhaps nowhere more complicated than in individuals dealing with trauma.

Trauma is a multifaceted word that embodies so much. Pain, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, memory issues, terror, difficulties adjusting to post-trauma life — it’s almost endless. But if you work to heal the mind, you can often heal the body. And you can use the body to heal the mind, too.

But with what, you might ask? Acupuncture, of course. In fact, it’s a proven way to help reduce stress and anxiety and improve sleep, which naturally lends itself to improved mental health. In dealing with something as serious as trauma, the smallest improvement can mean a world of difference.

As reported on Rfi News, acupuncturist Elise Boghossian packed up her acuneedles and headed to Iraq, leaving her lie behind in Paris and setting out to bring healing to kidnapped and enslaved women in northern Iraq.  

She told the site, ““The first time I went to Iraq I was completely alone. I didn’t have colleagues or work with a specific organization. I just had my acupuncture needles to offer people pain relief.”

Through her experiences, she eventually founded NGO EliseCare, an organization with six sites throughout Iraq that offer free medical consultations, continuous psychological care to patients, and medical training in acupuncture, emergency medical care, gynecology, radiology and biology.

You can watch her story, here.

Vocal Issues? Let Acupuncture Clear Those Pipes

You yourself may not be a singer, actor, or have to speak publicly as part of your career, but our voices are super important to us nonetheless. And one in 10 adults will at some point be effected by some sort of voice disorder caused by overuse. Polyps, lesions and other conditions brought upon by overuse and strain on the vocal chords can be painful to deal with, and also take a toll on our public lives. You don’t realize how essential your voice is to everything until it starts being taken away.

Most voiceover can only be treated through a surgical procedure, which is costly, invasive and can lead to post-operate scarring and other side effects. Thankfully, it’s not quite true that these disorders can only be treated by surgery. That’s just what most folks think.  

A study led by the University of Hong Kong and in collaboration with McGill Univeristy and the University of Pittsburgh explored the use of acupuncture to treat voice disorders rather than the patient receiving surgery.  Specifically, the study says: “…acupuncture has short-term anti-inflammatory effects on patients with vocal nodules – a disease caused by phonotrauma, where the vocal fold is injured due to phonation.”

Unsurprisingly to us, acupuncture was deemed to be effective at treating these nodules and potentially eliminating the need for surgery. Why was this unsurprising? Vocal disorders from overuse are usually caused by inflammation in the vocal chords. Acupuncture is known to be one of the most safe, effective and long-lasting natural treatments for inflammation of all kinds. Just because the inflammation happens to be in the throat doesn’t change that fact. The same can be said for wound healing, for lesions on the vocal chords.

So don’t wait until you’re struggling through your big gig, presentation, maid of honor speech or karaoke night. If you’re struggling with voice issues, think about how acupuncture can help you return to vocal clarity.

Losing Weight One Of Your Resolutions? Add Acu To Your Plan

Thanksgiving is upon us, and that means the Holiday Season has officially begun. It’s a time for family, friends, parties and plenty of eating. It’s no wonder that the number one New Year’s Resolution is to lose weight.

Before you head out to the sure-to-be-packed gym on January 2nd, it’s important to know that eating well and exercise aren’t the only things you should do when hoping to shed off some extra pounds. Those are both paramount, but sometimes our getting in shape process need an extra boost.

It just so happens that acupuncture is a safe, effective supplement to eating well and exercising when it comes to losing weight. In fact, a study in China has recently shown that those who receive acupuncture treatment for weight loss in addition to a healthy eating and workout-led plan. Conducted by the First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University, the study determined that acupuncture enhances weight loss efforts. Acupuncture “reduces body fat and adiposity, decreases serum triglycerides and total cholesterol, reduces harmful low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and raises beneficial high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels.” The study was broken into two groups, with one receiving acupuncture on top of a dietary plan and the other just receiving the dietary plan. The acupuncture group received warm needle acupuncture in 7 distinct acupuncture points. While both groups saw decreases in BMI, body fat and cholesterol, the acupuncture group saw a more significant decrease.

The acupoints are chosen carefully and help open up energy pathways associated with areas of the body that contribute to weight gain. Specifically, these points address the endocrine system and kidneys, which are related to retention and nerve and hormonal rebalance. In addition, the spleen and thyroid gland are also targeted, which will help the body rebalance sugar and hormones, leading to more efficient and rapid weight loss.

Always consult with your doctor to map out a safe exercise and diet plan. But once you do, make an appointment with us to kickstart your weight loss journey!

College Football Team Using Acupuncture To Stay on the Field

It’s that time of year—the leaves are changing, the temperatures dropping, pumpkin spice lattes are being drank, and of course football is in high season.

Football is one of the most physically demanding sports for its participants, and it’s understandable that many players are often seeking as many different types of treatments to deal with their injuries and overall pain. And while most college and all professional teams employ big medical staffs that include doctors, trainers, and massage therapists, not too many have a team acupuncturist on staff. Boise State University is one of them.

A few years ago, a player on the Boise State team was dealing with a hamstring issue. The team medical staff had an idea—the player should try acupuncture to see if his injury would heal faster. They called on local licensed acupuncturist Dana Logan.

“They were flying out the next day, and I thought, ‘If this doesn’t work, acupuncture isn’t happening again.’ I had that session to make an impression, and it obviously worked,” Logan recalls.

The treatment was a success, and that that moment was the beginning of a fruitful relationship between the team and Logan. Logan’s treatment regiment isn’t just about helping heal players’ one-off injuries. She has developed treatments that help players with everything from improving range of motion, to properly functioning muscles, to helping players’ bodies be better prepared for post-football life, something we know many former football players struggle with after their playing days are over.

“Acupuncture in football is going to become more and more mainstream,” Logan said. “I think it’s awesome Boise State is ahead of it and has given it a chance.”

Many individual athletes utilize acupuncture to help stay on the field. As acupuncture gets more popular, there’s no doubt that more teams and organizations will encourage their players to seek it out.

Acupuncture a Great Solution for GERD and Peptic Ulcers

If you’re feeling a burning sensation in your stomach, heartburn, nausea, and experience discomfort when eating certain fatty foods, you may not be dealing just with your garden-variety indigestion.

While they are fairly rare, you could be dealing with a peptic ulcer. Around 200,000 cases of peptic ulcers are treated a year, and usually only when they cause severe pain. On top of it all, many times, peptic ulcers are caused by overuse of over the counter painkillers and NSAIDs…the medications many use for their pain and discomfort instead of seeking out holistic and natural approaches.

But, 75% of peptic ulcers go untreated, with many people believing they just suffer from heartburn or stomach aches. The good thing is that, regardless of if you’re been professionally diagnosed with a peptic ulcer or do indeed just GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), acupuncture is here to help. A recent study has been done that shows that acupuncture combined with medications was more effective in treating peptic ulcers than the medications alone. According to the study, the drug control group achieve an 82.2% total effective rate, while the acupuncture treatment group achieve a 95.6% total effective rate.

And the acupuncture proved to be a more long-lasting solution to treating peptic ulcers. In a follow up a year after the initial study, patients receiving only drug therapy had a 41.7% recurrence rate of peptic ulcers. Patients receiving drug therapy plus acupuncture had a 15.4% recurrence rate. 

An additional study sought to find out acupuncture’s effectiveness in treating GERD, specifically a subset of the disorder called non-erosive reflux disease. The study concluded: “Acupuncture regulates the following bodily processes: gastric acid secretion, gastrointestinal motility, neuroendocrine related secretions, perceived pain thresholds. Acupuncture increases the concentration of blood motilin (a polypeptide hormone) and gastrin, both of which restore LES motor function, effectively treating GERD.”

So if you or anyone you know is dealing with chronic GERD issues or has a peptic ulcer, be sure to make an appointment and get started on your acupuncture treatment.

Carpal Tunnel and Acupuncture

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is one of the most common conditions affecting adults. Over 8 million people are affected by Carpal Tunnel every year. It’s caused by the squeezing or pressing of the median nerve which runs from the forearm to the palm of the hand. When this happens, one can feel numbness, pain, and tingling in the palm of the hand and the fingers, particularly the thumb, index and middle fingers.

One thing that unites us is that we are constantly using our hands. No matter what line of work you’re in or what you do in your spare time, not having full use of your hands and wrists can be devastating. It’s something we take for granted.

While Carpal Tunnel is treated by medication and sometimes surgery, an article last year from Time got us excited about the effective way acupuncture can treat Carpal Tunnel. Massachusetts General Hospital conducted a study of 80 people who suffer from the condition and split them into 3 groups. Two of the groups received acupuncture while one was a placebo group. One of the acupuncture groups received acupuncture on the wrist and the other in points on the opposite ankle.

The results of the study were clear, the groups that received acupuncture saw an a lasting improvement in nerve condition. In a follow up session three months after the experiment, those who received acupuncture reported continued improvement—less pain, more feeling, and indeed a better life!

It’s no surprise to us that acupuncture is effective for treating Carpal Tunnel. The disorder is often associated with changes in the somatosensory cortex which is the part of the brain that is responsible for our sense of touch. Acupuncture, unlike medications, is able to treat root causes by focusing on the energy in our bodies and our brains.

Acupuncture Without Needles?

Some people are scared of needles. While there’s nothing unsafe or painful about receiving acupuncture treatment, some people’s fear of needles is what keeps them away from receiving the beneficial, wide-ranging treatment that acupuncture provides. While there are key differences between the two, there’s an alternative holistic treatment that is growing in popularity that uses many of the same principles that acupuncture does—tapping.

“Tapping is a meridian-based therapy that releases negative emotions and self-sabotaging thinking,” Joan Kaylor, a Wahington, Pennsylvania based clinical therapist explains. “It employs the same acupressure points of acupuncture, but without needles.”

Tapping was developed in 1993 by Stanford-trained engineer Gary Craig and has increased in popularity as the years have passed. Like acupuncture, tapping centralizes on points in the body that send energy through meridians.

Although it may seem like anyone can learn tapping on their own and do it from home, like acupuncture, it is best performed by a certified practitioner.

“Someone who has watched YouTube, read a book or who has taken one workshop does not have the experience and training to teach tapping,” Kaylor says. “In addition, the more specific a patient can get about their situation, the better the results. But only a trained tapping practitioner knows how to get specific.”

So what’s the difference. While the principles are the same, the effectiveness of acupuncture has been shown to be more pronounced, leading to more permanent results with fewer visits and treatments. That’s because while tapping may apply pressure to meridian points, acupuncture goes much deeper, penetrating the points and more quickly and effectively releasing energy to the correct points of the body.

Tapping is an alternative for those who may have a fear of needles. And when one sees the benefits from tapping, they are getting just a glimpse of how acupuncture can benefit them.