Acupuncture and Treating Addictions

Acupuncture is the use of needles strategically placed in certain areas on the body called pressure points. The small acupuncture needles are virtually painless as your acupuncturist inserts them into your skin to aid in the relief of pain, stress, addictions and illnesses.

Acupuncture originated as a traditional form of Chinese medicine based on the theory that the body is filled with networks of energy called chi. This energy flows along natural pathways through the body. When these energies are out of balance or blocked, pain and illness occur.

Through the insertion of needles at precise positions along these pathways, your acupuncturist works to restore balance and the flow of bodily energies. Skilled acupuncturists learn to place their patients at ease, relate to them, respect their space and express sympathy for their issues. Acupuncturists also strive to induce calmness, confidence and motivation in their patients and encourage them to start, continue and heal through their treatments.

For regular acupuncture treatments, patients can begin visits once or twice a week. Then as the healing process advances, many patients discover that they can cut their visits back to once a week and eventually once or twice a month for routine maintenance of healthy balance and function. The rate of healing and progression depends greatly on what the patient is being treated for, how well they respond to treatments and how willing they are to commit to their treatments.

Treating Addictions

The use of acupuncture to treat addictions began in the 1970’s. A neurosurgeon named Wen began testing its use as an anesthetic. During his tests, he determined that it reduced withdrawal symptoms in opium addicts. These symptoms included nausea and the shakes. Since this discovery, acupuncture has been used as a holistic therapy to treat addictions related to:

* Alcohol
* Cocaine
* Heroin
* Nicotine

In addition to acupuncture’s biological effects on addictions, this holistic care gives patients a sense of calmness, confidence and self-motivation to move ahead with treatments. It is used in all stages of addiction from the time a person realizes they need and seek help, to assistance in maintaining their abstinence from their drug addiction.

Withdrawal symptoms are one of the most difficult aspects of kicking a tough addiction of any kind. With the help of acupuncture and a caring and skilled acupuncturist, patients can ease such symptoms as:

* Insomnia
* Profuse sweating
* Nausea
* Muscle ache
* Depression
* Cravings
* Fatigue
* Seizures
* Diarrhea
* Hypertension

Once the patient has kicked their habit, continued acupuncture treatments can aid in remaining calm and balanced so they can continue other aspects of the recovery process. The patient finds themselves less defensive, more open-minded and more thoughtful through the process of their healing.

These days, the government is beginning to approve the use of acupuncture in treating addictions and as a form of therapy to maintain a healthy recovery from the addiction. Acupuncture is a positive step in the right direction toward the use of holistic healing to treat and cure not only addictions, but debilitating injuries and illnesses.

The author of this article has been successfully treated for nicotine addiction, debilitating chronic lower back pain and chronic pain in the knees with success in all areas of treatment. As an added bonus, these treatments have been used to help heal acute injuries as well as assistance in maintaining stress levels. Her treatments began as a twice a week commitment and have decreased to one maintenance visit per month and have been very satisfying and successful.