ACUPUNCTURE and CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINE (Available starting in August 2007)

ACUPUNCTURE is an ancient holistic healing system with many different needle techniques. Needles are applied to acupuncture points to disperse stagnation and correct deficiencies in the body. The basis of this healing modality is to create balance and harmony in the patient by eliminating disruptions and invigorating the flow of energy (Qi).

Acupuncture uses small, sterile and painless needles. However, the treatment principles we use are classically based. The basic premise of acupuncture is that pain (physical, emotional) indicates some type of blockage or obstruction. Acupuncture helps to clear this blockage so that the pain is alleviated and the body can re-find its own balance. The World Health Organization and a Compendium of Controlled Clinical Trials conclude that acupuncture effectively treats these conditions:

• Upper respiratory tract conditions: sinusitis, rhinitis, colds, bronchitis, asthma
• Gastro-intestinal disorders: gastritis, chronic duodenal ulcer -- pain relief, gastric hyperacidity
• Neurological disorders: trigeminal neuralgia, facial palsy, Meniere's Disease, nocturnal enuresis, intercostal neuralgia, sciatica, osteoarthritis, post-stroke (usually within 3-6 months)
• Acute and chronic pain: headaches, migraines, dental, neck, knee and low back pain, tennis elbow, frozen shoulder, fibromyalgia, post-operative pain
• Nausea and vomiting: anesthesia - post operative, chemotherapy, morning sickness, motion sickness
• Substance abuse
• Gynecological conditions: dysmenorrhea/PMS, infertility, menopause
• Anxiety, stress and depression
• Facial rejuvenation

Part of acupuncture's success with these conditions that Western medicine may find difficult to treat, is due to its individualized approach. Acupuncture does not treat "diseases" or "conditions." Rather, it treats individuals – each presenting a particular set of signs and symptoms. And it treats the whole person – by addressing systemic, core imbalances as well as the more superficial symptoms being experienced.

The use of CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINE is more than 5000 years old. It embraces all the domains of nature – earth and sea, season and weather, plant and animals – all the elements that constitute the universe. Illness, physical or spiritual, occurs when the human body is out of balance with nature. Chinese herbal medicine corrects imbalances.

Staff practutioner: Jessie Shaw