Tradi­tional acupunc­ture, proven effective over thousands of years, is directed toward good health, vitality, bal­ance, longevity, and alle­viation of stress. Even though Chi­nese medicine and West­ern medicine are different, they com­plement each other. Acupuncture is an ancient ap­proach ad­dressing modern concerns, ef­fective in a wide range of complaints.

  If you have any chronic symptoms or ill­nesses, whether physical, mental or emotional in nature;

  If your daily activities place great demands on your vi­tality and well-being;

  If you can imagine being healthier, more balanced, more vital than you are now;

  If you are committed to improving the quality of life,                                                                                               I can serve you.                             

What is acupuncture?

 It is likely that more people have been treated by Chi­nese medicine throughout history than by any other for­malized system of medicine. This model of medical prac­tice is based on natural laws de­scribing the movement of life energy in nature and the body. Acupuncture is the oldest continuously practiced medical system in the world and is used by one-third of the world as a primary health-care system.

 This life energy, called chi, courses through the body in chan­nels similar to rivers that course through the earth. When the chi in the body is full and mov­ing properly, health is promoted. When the chi is moving disharmo­niously, illness can begin. Even ev­eryday stresses like dead­lines and disappointments can dis­rupt the harmo­nious movement of chi. Hence stresses com­pounded over time can lead to symptoms later. My intervention treats the un­derlying imbal­ances rather than only the most obvi­ous symp­toms. In addition, treatment now can pre­vent symp­toms later.

 Acupuncture has become widely accepted in the United States and been endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The report from a Consensus Development Conference on Acupuncture, held at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 1997, stated that acupuncture is widely practiced by thousands of physicians, dentists, and acupuncturists for the relief or prevention of pain and for various other heath conditions.

What is the scope of benefits?

 Traditional Chinese acupuncture is often effective with a sur­prising range of com­plaints, including: headaches, aller­gies, chronic fatigue, depression, back pain, diges­tive disorders, joint pain, men­strual disor­ders, infertility, sleep­ing problems, asthma, addic­tions and stress.   Acupuncture is help­ful for many severe chronic ill­nesses, com­plaints that have no easily deter­mined cause, and for nagging chronic condi­tions as well.

 With ongoing treatment for maintenance and health pro­motion, I make these claims, evidenced in thou­sands of years of acupunc­ture prac­tice:

•  you will tend to get sick less often and re­cover more quickly;
•  your vitality and stamina will improve;
•  you will be more able to take care of your own  health;
•  your relationships with others will deepen and become more harmonious;
•  health problems other than those for which you entered treatment are likely to clear up;
•  you will have reductions in long-term health care costs.

 An in depth survey of people who receive acupuncture, conducted by Claire Cassidy, Ph.D., indicates that they see their physicians and physical therapists less frequently and use fewer prescription medications. In addition, over two-thirds of those surveyed reported having avoided recommended surgery.

 What is the relationship between acupuncture and other medi­cal care?

 While acupuncture is concerned with the whole per­son and ad­dresses itself to many lev­els of func­tioning, it is also a particular form of treatment with its own limita­tions. It needs to be used in conjunc­tion with other health-promot­ing practices.

 Acupuncture practitioners cooperate with other health providers and do not recommend al­tering medications or other therapies without consulting the personal physician or provider.

What can you expect from treatment?

 Your first visit requires about 1-2 hours, during which you have the opportunity to speak at length about your health concerns. This ini­tial visit, designed to enable your practi­tioner to as­sess the un­derlying condi­tions leading to your current situa­tion, includes an inter­view (which covers both your health and per­sonal histo­ries) and a physi­cal examination. The session is con­ducted in com­plete confidentiality by your practi­tioner, who will then ad­vise you of the anticipated fre­quency of treatments.  

 Subsequent treatment sessions generally last about 1 hour. Initially, you will be seen weekly in or­der to cre­ate an internal harmony which can be main­tained be­tween treatments. As this harmony is achieved, usu­ally after 4-6 weeks, treatments are ex­tended to every other week, every three weeks, monthly and eventu­ally season­ally. Of course, fre­quency of the treatments varies with each individual. Treatment fees are consis­tent with other medical care.

What about needles? Do they hurt?

 Acupuncture needles are solid, slender, slightly thicker than the thickness of a human hair, and bear no resem­blance to hypodermic sy­ringes. I use the finest quality, stain­less steel, pre-steril­ized, disposable nee­dles.

Most insertions are made just beneath the skins sur­face, and sensations vary from person to person. Some­times a person feels nothing at all or perhaps a dull, momentary ache or tin­gling sensation. Only a few nee­dles are used, of­ten only two or three.

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