Acupuncture has been practiced in China for over 2000 years, resulting in a wealth of empirical experience. Interest in the technique grew tremendously in the West over the latter half of the 20th Century, and to an even greater degree in the last 10 years.
The growth in medical acupuncture took place as a result of its perceived efficacy in acute and chronic pain, as well as in functional and reversible organic disorders, and addiction and as a result of considerable recent research.
Auricular Medicine was developed in France by award-winning physician, Paul Nogier, M.D. He was a conventionally-trained neurologist, but he also had an engineering background, which ultimately became useful in his medical research. Dr. Nogier studied abroad in the disciplines of Chinese medicine, acupuncture, homeopathic, and manual spinal correction.
His research revealed that the outer ear—known as the auricle, is energetically connected to the entire body: a “micro-system.” This meansthe ear functions as a tiny microcosm of living energy—a comprehensive acupuncture system the correlates and connects to the entire body. Dr. Nogier discovered that the electrical conductivity of the skin of the ear changes in very specific areas when there is a disturbance in the body. He found those disturbances as detectable acupuncture points that are otherwise not present.
Acupuncture improves the body’s functions and promotes the natural self-healing process by stimulating specific anatomic sites–commonly referred to as acupuncture points, or acupoints. The most common method used to stimulate acupoints is the insertion of fine, sterile needles into the skin.
First, your acupuncturist will ask about your health history. Then, he or she will examine your tongue’s shape, color, and coating, feel your pulse, and possibly perform some additional physical examinations depending on your individual health needs. Using these unique assessment tools, the acupuncturist will be able to recommend a proper treatment plan to address your particular condition. To begin the acupuncture treatment, you lay comfortably on a treatment table while precise acupoints are stimulated on various areas of your body. Most people feel no or minimal discomfort as the fine needles are gently placed. The needles are usually retained between five and 30 minutes. During and after treatments, people report that they feel very relaxed.
Migraine, headache, neck pain, stiff neck, low back pain, sciatica, fibromyalgia and fasciitis, neuralgia post-herpetic, spine pain, facial pain, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, meniere’s disease.
Depression, dysmenorrhoea, premenstrual syndrome, polycystic ovary syndrome (stein-leventhal syndrome), nausea and vomiting, tietze syndrome, knee pain, periarthritis of shoulder, rheumatoid arthritis, sprain, tennis elbow, osteoarthritis, insomnia, obesity, opioid dependence, tobacco dependence…