Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine in Ottawa ON

What is Acupuncture in Ottawa ON?

Acupuncture in Ottawa ON is a big part of Eastern Medicine & Chinese Medicine. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and acupuncture have been used for thousands of years because of their effectiveness for many health issues and symptoms. The contemporary acupuncturist uses many therapies, only some of which use sterile, single-use, tiny needle-like filaments. Other branches of Chinese Medicine include herbs and diet, massage therapies, and exercise like Tai Chi and Qi Gong

The NIH and World Health Organization have both given formal approval of certain uses of acupuncture. In fact, 51% of medical doctors believe acupuncture to be efficacious and of value. In Canada, only about 8% of people have tried acupuncture, but that number is growing every year (SOURCE). According to a 1998 survey of the literature published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, Western medical doctors are most likely to refer patients for acupuncture (43%) than for chiropractic (40%) or massage (21%) (SOURCE).

Because it is a completely separate medicine, Acupuncture may treat most symptoms.

​There are several treatment modalities that may be incorporated into an acupuncture treatment (explained more below):

• Balance Method / Distal Needle
• Dry Needling / Trigger Point Acupuncture
• Motor Point Acupuncture
• Tung Acupuncture
• Micro Acupuncture
• Electro Acupuncture
• Cosmetic Acupuncture
• Auricular / Ear Acupuncture
• Cupping Therapy
• Moxibustion
• Acupressure, Tuina & Guasha Massage
• Laser & Infrared Light Therapy

---

The Acupuncturist's Examination & Diagnosis

Our Acupuncturist's goal is to understand the patterns of disease of the individual at the time of examination. Just like a Medical Doctor, an Acupuncturist will assess your physical condition, by identifying symptoms, uncovering your medical history and any external factors that may impact your health and well-being, through an extended interview.

Acupuncturists will inspect your expressions, facial color, and body build. They observe the body, coating, moisture and mobility of the tongue. Practitioners will listen to respiration, speech characteristics, cough and even consider your bodily odors. They may examine your pulses by feeling different regions in each of your wrists, as well as elsewhere on the body. Each of the regions reflects the conditions of the heart, liver, the right and left kidney, lung and spleen. Additionally they will perform palpation techniques of various acupuncture channels and points, with the aim of discovering abnormal reactions that occur when disease appears in the body. Based upon all of the collected information, the Acupuncturist will determine the stage to which the disease has developed, location of the disease and the amount of the body's strength and resistance to fight the disease. The Acupuncturist will then choose the acupuncture points, the techniques and methods, such as cupping and moxibustion, to be used in order to regulate and bring the body into balance.

Once the diagnosis is made, you lie down on a padded bed while hair-thin needles are inserted into the acupuncture points. Needles come in different lengths and widths, according to the depth of the insertion. Depending upon the placement of the needles, you may lie face down or face up or on your side, or even be seated. The procedure is not generally painful. Most people feel very peaceful and may even fall asleep.

The needles are usually in place for 15-30 minutes. Each condition requires a different number of needles at various acupuncture points. A typical treatment usually requires between 4 and 20 needles. According to the nature of the problem being treated, 2 to 30 treatments may be needed. Pain relief can be almost instant for migraines, menstrual cramps, an acute pain. For example, acute neck pain can be treated with 4-6 treatments usually, whereas, a bronchitis will be treated in 8-10 sessions. Some chronic pain and diseases, such as diabetes, asthma, cardiac disorders, or paralysis, require extended treatment plans. Most researched articles get results with 20-40 acupuncture treatments. Your Acupuncturist will be able to assess the approximate amount of treatments needed after your first visit.

---

Acupuncture Treatment is not Painful

Acupuncture involves the gentle insertion of hair-thin sterile, disposable needles into specific points on the skin to restore balance and encourage the body to heal itself. Acupuncture increases oxygen and blood flow, stimulates the endocrine and nervous systems, aids cellular repair and alleviates pain by blocking pain receptors and stimulating the secretion of the body’s natural pain killers – endorphins and enkephalins.
​
Scientific studies have proven acupuncture to be effective in treating many disorders including fatigue, common cold/flu, digestive disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, acute/chronic pain, respiratory conditions, allergies, headaches/migraines, infertility, gynecological disorders, neurological conditions, anxiety/depression and much more.

We have helped many patients achieve better health through acupuncture even when other treatments have failed.

---

How Does Sticking a Tiny Needle into the Body Improve Health & Treat Disease?

Acupuncture is based on treating the #1 cause of disease – Blood Stasis. Blood stasis means impaired blood flow in the body, which can lead to pain and/or organ dysfunction. The process of aging is caused by blood stasis, and the measure of health is determined by the functioning of the vascular (blood vessel) system. Simply put, if there is insufficient blood flow in the body, there is pain or disease; and the body will not heal without proper blood flow. Sticking a needle in the body opens up the blood vessels and causes an increase in blood flow. Depending on the area targeted, this will influence blood flow to specific organs and muscle groups to treat the cause of pain or dysfunction – Blood stasis.

Acupuncture also affects the nervous system. It involves the nervous system by activating nocicepter fibers, sensory nerves and proprioceptor fibers that travel from the skin to spine and into brain. This action causes the body to release enkephalins (the body’s natural pain killers) and shuts off the brain’s pain signal to a particular area.

---

Acupuncture Reduces Pain & Increases Blood Flow

Acupuncture is a physical medicine that improves the flow of oxygen in the body, enhances blood flow and improves the health of the organs and nervous system. If there is an obstruction in the blood flow to a particular area of the body, that area of the body will be negatively affected, resulting in disease or malfunction. There is only one way to heal, and that is through blood flow. The blood contains all of the essential healing ingredients that the body can possibly produce – analgesics, anti-inflammatories, hormones, and oxygen is all contained in the blood. Acupuncture makes this healing process possible and also fixes dysfunction in the body to prevent the progression of disease.

​With acupuncture, what we are actually doing is working with networks of blood vessels in the body to encourage blood flow to various structures of the body including muscle groups (to relieve pain) and organs (to treat internal conditions). The network of blood vessels we are working with are named by the organs they supply blood to (i.e. Liver, Stomach, Kidney, Lung, etc.) For example, if you have a Liver problem, we would needle points on the Liver vessel and points that influence blood flow through the Liver in order to improve its function. Each vessel system is also involved in supplying blood flow to specific muscle groups. For example, needling points on the Kidney vessel will encourage blood flow and relaxation of the deep muscles of the back, spine, neck and back of the legs. The blood vessels dilate (vasodilation) and this increased blood flow and relaxation of the musculature then treats chronic pain in the back, neck and legs (in this case). For the treatment of organ system problems and internal conditions, needles are left in 8-12 minutes to stimulate the sympathetic nervous system, while in pain conditions and anxiety, needles are left in 30-45 minutes to promote parasympathetic relaxation.

---