Community Acupuncture: What to Expect

Please arrive 15 minutes early for your first appointment. Your acupuncturist can meet with you privately before your first treatment to discuss any concerns. We will also ask you to fill out a few brief forms.

The acupuncturist will take your pulses and look at your tongue and ask a few questions. They will then perform acupuncture and leave you to rest.

Treatment will be performed in the community room, which is a quiet area. Once treatment has begun, please refrain from talking with other clients. Questions for your acupuncturist can be asked before or after your treatment.

Eat a little something an hour or two before your appointment. Wear loose, comfortable clothes that are easy to roll up to your elbows and knees. Your treatment will average around 40 minutes and can vary depending on your needs.

Community Acupuncture FAQ

Does acupuncture hurt?

One of the most common reasons that people are hesitant to try acupuncture is the fear of pain caused by the needles. These fears are mostly unfounded and based more on anticipation than reality. Acupuncture needles are not like hypodermic needles. They are very fine (about a hair's width) and with skilled insertion, there is minimal (if any) discomfort. Most clients find the treatments to be very relaxing and drift off to sleep.

Can acupuncture help me?

Any illness, disease or discomfort in the body, indicates an imbalance. Because Chinese medicine works to restore balance of the body, it is useful in the treatment of any illness, excels in treating pain (both chronic and acute), nausea, gastrointestinal imbalance, gynecological imbalance, fatigue, stress, anxiety, and addiction. With serious complication or trauma, acupuncture works best as a complementary medicine and in treating the side effects of Western procedures or medications. The World Health Organization has compiled a list of over 40 illnesses that it recommends for treatment with acupuncture. Included among those listed are: common cold, bronchial asthma, toothache, tennis elbow, sciatica, low back pain, rheumatoid arthritis, constipation, diarrhea, gastric hyperacidity, headache, migraine and facial paralysis.

Is acupuncture safe?

When practiced by a competent acupuncturist, acupuncture is completely safe. Practitioners use disposable needles, so risk of infection or transference of disease is minimal. The most common injury to the patient from acupuncture is slight bruising at the site of insertion which disappears after a few days.

Does acupuncture work?

Acupuncture has a history of at least 2500 years. It is a highly developed, systematic form of medicine that has thousands of years of human trials to validate its method and it continues to evolve as a medicine to adapt to modern day needs. Numerous studies conducted both in the U.S. and abroad demonstrate acupuncture's effectiveness for many illnesses. Recent research has shown that acupuncture does affect the body by changing brain chemistry, affecting the Central Nervous System and changing blood flow. More funding by the National Health Institute is being allocated for further research. Acupuncture's effectiveness is recognized throughout the nation, as hospitals, pain clinics, addiction clinics, cancer centers and women's health centers are quickly incorporating acupuncture into their practices.

How does acupuncture work?

Generally speaking, acupuncture works with what is known as "qi", which is roughly translated as the body's energy. When there is illness or discomfort in the body, there is an imbalance in the qi of the body, whether it be a deficiency, an excess or a blockage of some sort. The qi is accessed and rebalanced by needling acupoints on the body. These acupoints run along what is known as meridians that connect all of the body's organs and tissues.