Acupuncture Request

Acupuncture is an ancient migraine and tension headache treatment used in Chinese medicine. Chinese medicine holds that life energy Qi (pronounced ?chee?) flows through the body along pathways or channels called meridians. When the flow of Qi becomes unbalanced and disrupted it causes health problems.

The main goal of acupuncture is to rebalance and unblock the flow of Qi by placing tiny needles in specific acupuncture points situated on your arms, legs or shoulders. This procedure is not as painful and terrible as it may sound. Usually a person experiences only a mild discomfort as the needle penetrates the skin, but after that all unpleasant sensations disappear and the person feels relaxed and sometimes even sleepy.

The duration and frequency of acupuncture treatment depends on multiple factors such as what type of headache do you get (migraine, tension and sinus headaches), severity and frequency of your headaches, location of your headaches, specific time of day or night when you get them and so on.

All these factors help an acupuncturist to determine the right meridians that are involved in your headache treatment. For example, migraine headaches often indicate the gallbladder meridian and are effectively cured with the ?preventive approach?, which involves 8 to 10 acupuncture treatments along with incorporation of Chinese herbs and a healthy diet. While tension headaches are related to the blockage of the stomach meridian and require different treatment approach than migraines along with such lifestyle changes as incorporation of stress-reduction exercises like yoga or Thai Chi into the daily routine. This helps to reduce muscle tension and promote relaxation.

Some headache symptoms are relieved after the first acupuncture treatment that may last from 5 to 30 minutes, while chronic and severe headaches generally require ten or more treatments.

Even though multiple studies around the world have proven the effectiveness of acupuncture for headache treatment, the exact mechanism of action remains unknown. Some scientists suggest that it helps to stabilize levels of serotonin or neurotransmitter in the brain that thought to be important in mechanism of migraine headaches. Other theory believes that acupuncture promotes production of endorphins or natural substances that brain releases to relieve pain.

If you are tired of constant headaches that interfere with your daily activities and prevent you from enjoying your life, try acupuncture as a safe and effective treatment!

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