You are lying face down on a table. It is quiet. You feel a needle painlessly slip into your lower back, a tiny pinch that lasts a second. Then another, and another. You think to yourself, “This is supposed to help me?” Meanwhile, another person in the adjacent treatment room, with more Acupuncture experience, may be lying in the same position with a blissful smile, convinced that these little pokes are unlocking a magical flow of energy, healing everything from their back pain to their migraines and their chronic fatigue. This is the curious world of my day at AcuZen Wellness, where a needle can be a miraculous cure for some people, and initially a straight-up perplexing experience for others. Regardless of whether you are a skeptic at the onset of treatment, or a needle-loving enthusiast, Acupuncture can help you.
I am fortunate to have helped both the believer and the non-believer. The believers are happy to try a Holistic approach with no negative side effects to help resolve their acute and chronic health concerns. I recently saw a 43-year-old female who believes in Acupuncture and its innate healing. In addition to grieving, she was suffering from an acute episode of lower back pain that led to shooting pain down both of her legs. The pain was increasing daily. Taking the time to get to know my patient at the extensive consultation allowed me to understand that helping her accept her grief, or resolving her pain alone, would not have sufficed. I was certain that the grief had caused her body to stagnate emotionally and physically. We treated the whole person, working on both the emotions and the resulting pain. By doing so, we were able to completely resolve the physical issues. She was on her way to accepting and healing during the grieving period.
The doubters present a fun challenge, typically coming to see me as a last resort. They do not understand how Acupuncture works, nor do they believe it will help. They ask numerous questions about Acupuncture, not really listening to my explanation. Recently I saw a patient in his twenties who had suffered a chain reaction of events that made everything in his body turn on itself. He had seen a multitude of various Dr.’s and had extensive testing which did not yield any results. From neck pain to difficulty breathing, and severe anxiety, it just kept getting worse. He came to me having exhausted every other option. I began seeing him a few times a week and saw almost immediate results. By the second week of treatment, I could tell he was listening to me. He asked specific questions about how tiny little Acupuncture needles inserted into the meridians were helping him. Initially a frustrated skeptic, he was now happy to believe he was on the road to healing. He was quick to begin referring his friends.
I give credit to the true believers, and their confidence in a Holistic approach. I love how they swear by Acupuncture like it is their mom’s secret chicken soup recipe. For them, Acupuncture is not just a treatment but a lifestyle. They breeze into my office like they are arriving at a spa. They are ready for healing encompassing unblocking Qi, restoring balance, and realigning the body’s meridians. They are devoted. They even have the Acupuncture vocabulary down. They will casually toss out terms like “Yin-Yang balance.” They will eagerly tell their friends how the treatment cured their knee pain, relieved their sinus issues, and boosted their energy. Needles in their head, No problem. Needles in their toes, Bring it on! For them Acupuncture is a solution for everything. They are quick to give you advice that you need Acupuncture for all things. Mention a health concern, and they are quick to suggest it is “Needle time.” Feeling emotionally blocked? Sounds like Qi is not flowing right—needles again. The conversation always seems to lead back to one solution in which tiny needles, perfectly placed in mystical Acupuncture points.
On the flip side, there is a certain breed of patient who enters the calming offices at AcuZen Wellness with extreme skepticism. They are typically the type of person who Googles everything and has already mentally debated both sides of the “is this even real” argument. This patient may have been dragged in by a spouse or a well-meaning friend who is tired of listening to them complain about their ailments. Having tried everything else for their aching back, they surmise, out of desperation, they simply have nothing left to lose by trying Acupuncture as a last resort. I thoroughly enjoy treating this type of patient, and watching their attitude and belief evolve as they achieve their wellness goals.
For the cynics, Acupuncture is somewhat of a puzzle. They walk in, look around suspiciously at the calming music, the soft lighting, and think, the whole environment feels like it is selling serenity, and they are not sure they are buying it. When I start inserting the needles, they are fully alert, trying to recall who convinced them to try this in the first place. They are quick to ask, “How does poking a needle in my ear resolve my anxiety problems? Or “How does putting one in my ankle help relieve my headaches?” The waiting during the treatment for the needles to do their magic fosters this conundrum of “Is this going to help me?” They are just lying there, trying not to think about how ridiculous it feels. A needle in your hand, a needle in your shoulder, and before long, they start wondering whether they are playing a game of “Pin the Needle on the Donkey.” You can practically hear their thoughts: “Is this thing working? Is my Qi aligned yet? What even IS Qi?” The skeptical patient emerges from their Acupuncture appointment and, when asked, “How do you feel?” they respond with a vague “I don’t know… kind of relaxed, I guess?” They are not convinced, but they are also not about to say they feel the same. It is Acupuncture limbo. Acupuncture doubters wonder about the old placebo debate. Is Acupuncture genuinely effective, or does it just work because people think it works? Proponents of Acupuncture often point to clinical studies and centuries-old traditions to back up their claims, while skeptics are not buying it. But here is the kicker, does it really matter? If lying on a table with needles sticking out of your back makes you feel better, isn’t that the whole point?
Whether you are a true believer, or a skeptic, either way I am confident Acupuncture can help you. The main difference I see with my patients who are believers, is that they both look forward to, and enjoy their treatments more. I do not spend my time citing the myriads of clinical studies showing brain mapping and proving that Acupuncture works. I do not have time to prove anything to the cynics by showing the research spanning over four thousand years. I much prefer to help them feel better- and let the incredible magic of Acupuncture and its healing make them a believer!
At the end of the day, if you are a die-hard believer, Acupuncture can be your go-to for anything from seasonal allergies to existential crisis. On the other hand, if you are a skeptic, hopefully this helped poke a few holes in your Acupuncture doubts. With time, I am happy to prove you wrong while you experience the incredible healing Acupuncture offers across the board. Even disbelievers have reported feeling a sense of relaxation after a single session. That may be a combination of the treatment as well as being forced to turn off their phone and lay still for a time. And hey, maybe that is the real secret of Acupuncture: Getting people to sit still long enough for their bodies to do the healing work themselves! The next time someone suggests Acupuncture, try to keep an open mind. You never know, one needle might just align your Qi, and with a series of treatments get to the root of your imbalance. You may become a die-hard Acupuncture fan after all!