Want relief from pain? Read about Acupuncture as Pain Management Treatment
Welcome to this NYC Acupuncture providing information on Acupuncture for Pain Management
Pain management is one of the most common reasons people seek medical care. Using Acupuncture as pain management should be considered by as an option for chronic pain suffers. It has none of the side effects associated with pain medications.
The Western Approach
The actual causes of pain often cannot be identified and addressed by western medicine. While a pain syndrome may be given a diagnostic name, such as,
arthritis,
osteoarthritis,
muscle strain,
sprain,
chronic fatigue,
or fibromyalgia,
the treatment regimen is often a one size fits all solution. Anti-inflammatory’s or pain killers are the most common forms of pain management.
While these treatments may provide temporary relief, they do not provide long-term relief.
Alternatives Options
There are safe and effective alternative medical treatments. Acupuncture as pain management and Chinese Medicine are alternative medical therapies that provide suffers of chronic pain with effective treatment options.
Further Understanding the Underlying Causes of Chronic Pain
The Eastern Model of Pain
In the Acupuncture model, chronic pain has a number of different diagnostic causes. These causes are termed patterns and can arise from external factors, such as exposure to certain weather conditions or a trauma; or from internal factors such as cold accumulation in areas of the body or a deficiency or blockage of vital substances.
In this model, all pain syndromes fall under the general disease name of “pain”. A simple and direct description. Within this broad category, there are designations by location of the pain, for instance, neck pain; or the type of pain, such as deep or superficial.
In making the diagnosis these factors are important. Further refinement is then made at the pattern level. This is where the diagnostic assessment departs from or is more in depth than the traditional western medical model. When we know the problem is pain both the allopathic practitioner and the alternative medical practitioner can provide temporary relief from the pain.
It is at the pattern diagnostic level that the acupuncturist determines the origin of the pain — the fundamental cause. Once this is accomplished, a treatment plan is designed to address the fundamental cause, with the ultimate result being to diminish or eliminate the condition that is causing the pain.
This allows for the provision of a long term non-medication solution.
Treatment Approaches
Using principles of Chinese Medicine, the acupuncturist will use acupuncture points that are effective for releasing wind. Acupuncture as pain management works, because the point prescription developed by the acupuncturist is unique to the patients specific pain pattern. If the acupuncturist is also a trained herbalist, then herbs that release or eliminate wind may be prescribed. In contrast, if the condition is of the second type, a completely different approach will be required. In that case the approach would be to tonify (build up) the deficient substances so that wind can no longer accumulate in the empty spaces. Once again, the point prescription developed by the acupuncturist will be unique to this specific pattern resulting in acupuncture as pain management. In either event, the treatment plan and approach is designed to address the specific situation. The ultimate aim is to eliminate the underlying condition which is causing the pain. In each case, because the acupuncturist has diagnosed a very specific pattern of the disease, the development of a specific point prescription, results in acupuncture as pain management.
For information on the treatment of the following pain conditions click the links below, or go to our web pages on those topics.