FAQ

Acupuncture is an ancient, time-tested method of using tiny needles, strategically placed on the skin, to bring your body’s natural healing abilities back into balance.

Acupuncture gently engages your whole body so it can alleviate whatever is creating pain or illness and causing you to suffer.  It awakens your body and reminds it what health is.

Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine have been utilized for thousands of years.  If it didn’t work, we wouldn’t still be using it.  There is a lot of published research that shows acupuncture works.  If you’re interested in reading some of it, you can click here.

Millions of people, over thousands of years, have used and continue to use East Asian medicine and all it has to offer.  But you don’t have to take anyone else’s word for it.  Why not try it for yourself?  Bring a nagging health issue to an experienced and skilled acupuncturist and give yourself a number of sessions (perhaps 4 – 6) to really check it out and see how it works for you.  You’ll have your own answer, and that nagging health issue may just be gone.

It seems weird because it hasn’t been a part of our western culture for very long. It’s unfamiliar, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t work.  You don’t have to believe in it or even understand it for it to be effective.  All you have to do is show up and experience it. Bring your curiosity.  Better yet, bring your desire to be healthy.

You’ll know because you’ll start to feel better.  And perhaps in more ways than you’d have expected.

For example, it’s common for patients to come in with a complaint of digestive issues.  After a few treatments, patients frequently report that they are sleeping better, they have more energy, and oh my gosh, their back pain is gone, not to mention, no more digestive distress.

If any practitioner, Eastern or Western, tells you that they can cure everything, run in the opposite direction.  Having said that, Eastern medicine is a comprehensive system of medical care in which strategically placed needles, or a well-crafted herbal formula, can awaken your body’s natural inclination toward balance and healing.  We treat symptoms, of course, yet the root cause of what’s ailing you is always foremost in our consideration.  With this as our guiding principle, there is a much greater likelihood that both acute and chronic illnesses can indeed be cured.

The World Health Organization publishes a list of medical conditions acupuncture has been proven to treat.  For more information, click here.

Yes, when done by a qualified professional.  I graduated from an accredited four-year acupuncture and herbal medicine program with highest honors.

The practice of acupuncture and herbal medicine in the United States is overseen and regulated by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM).  This organization requires acupuncturists to go through rigorous testing, including needle safety and sterile needle techniques, as well as requiring continued education to maintain licensure.  In keeping with the vast majority of acupuncture clinics in the West, I use only single-use, sterile needles to ensure the utmost safety in my medical clinic.

There is a large body of research that shows that acupuncture is indeed safe.  If you’d like to read the results of a comprehensive study, surveying over 34,000 treatments, click here.

Most of us are afraid of needles.  We imagine the big hypodermic needles used to draw blood. Acupuncture needles are much thinner and do not have openings at their tips.  In fact, about 40 average size acupuncture needles can fit within the opening of a hypodermic needle.

Does that mean you won’t feel anything?  No, you might.  There are many sensations one may experience with acupuncture.  They may be new to you, yet most often, they are not considered even remotely painful.

Jean-Paul Thuot, a Canadian acupuncturist, sums it up best.  He says that acupuncture is nowhere near as painful as:

• biting your tongue

• a mosquito bite

• a hypodermic needle injection

• stubbing your toe

• a paper cut

• hitting your funny bone

• a cat’s scratch

• being pinched by your little sister

• your average sore throat

• ‘pins and needles’ from your arm falling asleep

• falling down

• getting a parking ticket

• having to listen to advice from your parents

• an eyelash in your eyeball

• a bee sting

Acupuncture is sure to be much less painful than whatever ache, pain or disease you are suffering with.  The anticipation of acupuncture hurts more than the needles ever will!

As with so many things, it depends.  In the Eastern medical tradition, patients usually have daily, or 2-3 times per week sessions, with 10-12 sessions equaling one full treatment.  This treatment format allows for the quickest and most lasting results.

Here in the West, patients generally come once per week for treatment, especially at first, then taper off as progress is made.  For some acute issues, twice or three times per week is much more helpful, as in the case of acute physical injuries, post-stroke, Bell’s Palsy, and certain digestive complaints.

If a condition calls for more than one session per week, Linden Healing Arts can arrange discounts to help offset any financial strain this may cause, in order for you to have the most comprehensive and effective care possible.

It certainly can. Acupuncture helps your body return to a more healthful state, which in turn can manifest itself in a more youthful appearance. There are even cosmetic acupuncturists that focus solely on facial beauty and reducing the signs of aging. Many of my patients experience the side effects of a more youthful and vibrant appearance when I treat them for issues that are not cosmetically focused. Health equals beauty.

Give me a call, email me, or stop by for a cup of tea.  I offer free, 20 minute consultations to answer any questions you may have.

You can contact me using the form on the Contact page.