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ABOUT
ORIENTAL
MEDICINE
& ACUPUNCTURE |
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What It Is & How It Works |
Chinese medicine is a complete health care system that has been used to
diagnose, treat, and prevent illness for over 3,000 years yet remains
effective today. It is a powerful remedy for many ailments
and a means of strengthening the body, which can be weakened by
modern-day stress and environmental hazards. Rather than treating
symptoms as western medicine does, Chinese medicine focuses on
strengthening your own vital energy (Chi) so that your body can heal
itself. It's true value is based in its power to enhance
recuperative ability, immunity, and the capacity for pleasure, work, and
creativity.
Oriental
medicine emphasizes a holistic approach that treats the whole body.
Acupuncture, along with herbal therapy, nutrition, exercise and massage
are the key tools to wellness.
Oriental Medicine is cited as an effective system of healthcare by the
National Institute of Health and the World Health Organization. Both
acupuncture and Oriental Medicine have become a serious alternative or
complement to conventional pain management and medical treatment. |
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Acupuncture,
which
works in harmony with your body’s natural ability to heal,
originated in
China more than 3,000 years ago and is one of the oldest and most
commonly used medical procedures in the world.
According to the tenets of
traditional Oriental medicine, disorders or diseases from which people
suffer are related to an imbalance in one’s Qi. Qi is the vital energy
of the mind, body and spirit. The intention of Oriental medicine is to
improve the patient’s health physically, emotionally and spiritually by
empowering the body’s own healing mechanisms. |
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There
are over 2000 acupuncture points on the human body that connect
pathways, called meridians to all of the body's vital systems. Vital
energy, or Qi, flows through these meridians between the surface of the
body and internal organs. Qi empowers spiritual, emotional, mental, and
physical balance. When Qi flow is disrupted, through poor health
habits or other circumstances, pain and/or disease can result.
Acupuncture acts to keep the flow of this energy unblocked, which in
turn, facilitates optimal health. The intent of Oriental medicine is to
stimulate the body to release energy blocks, establish normal
equilibrium, thereby facilitating the body's natural ability to heal
itself.
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Acupuncture is the insertion of
sterile, hair-thin, disposable needles through the skin at specific acu-
points on the body’s meridians.
Acupuncture needles are solid, usually made of stainless steel and
extremely flexible. The small diameter and contoured shape of the
acupuncture needle allows it to be inserted easily and painlessly just a
few millimeters into the skin. Acupuncture needles can also be
stimulated with pressure, heat, friction or electromagnetic impulses to
further activate Qi. |
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Diagnosis in Oriental medicine involves observation, listening,
questioning and palpation, including feeling the quality of an
individual’s pulse. Treatment focuses on the well-being of the entire
person, not simply on the physical complaints and symptoms.
Oriental medicine's effects are
gentle and free of the side-effects of many drugs used for the same
conditions. As a form of primary healthcare, Oriental medicine
addresses a broad range of conditions that Western medicine finds
difficult to treat such as chronic pain, allergies, migraines, low back
pain, stress, depression and addiction. In addition to treating primary
health complaints, the benefits of Oriental medicine include pain
relief, immune enhancement and increased energy and well-being.
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