Acupuncture and How It Works
Chinese Medicine is the oldest, continually practiced, medicine in the world. It is over 3000 years old and has proved to work effectively and safely over the millennia. Currently a quarter of the world population is using this form of medicine.
Chinese medicine aims to balance patterns of disharmony in the body. It works to strengthen and awaken the body's natural resources to heal itself. One of the most important foundations of Chinese medicine is the concept which assumes that a part can only be understood in its relation to the whole. The theory of Yin & Yang represents this concept. Yin & Yang portrays opposite but completing qualities. They are symbols which describe how things function in relation to each other and the world around us. Yin & Yang contain the capacity of opposition and change.
The main function of acupuncture is to regulate the circulation of Qi (vital energy pronounced "chee") and blood along the network of channels sometimes called meridians. These channels connect the interior of the body with the exterior. Therefore, the basis of acupuncture technique is that needling points of the surface of the body will affect internal organs & deeper systems.
Qi is the moving energy and force of our bodies, and of all living things. Qi warms and protects the body. When a person is sick, in Chinese medicine it means that there is a disruption or imbalance in the flow of Qi. By using acupuncture needles and Chinese herbs, it is possible to restore the free flow of Qi in the body.
In practicing acupuncture, the practitioner uses very thin disposable needles, and inserts them into the acupuncture points. Through manipulation of the needles and different needling techniques, it is possible to cool, warm, tonify or sedate the body. It is also possible to increase or reduce the flow of Qi in the meridians in order to correct Qi flow, thus helping the body eliminate disease symptoms, pain or discomfort.
