Does Acupuncture Help With Aches and Discomfort?

Acupuncture constitutes one of the oldest forms of alternative medicine that is still being practiced. It is popularly attributed to Traditional Chinese Medicine of the sixteenth century.

The Primitive Take on Acupuncture
The ancient science believed most of the health issues stemmed from the imbalance of energy. The fine, stainless steel needles were used to stimulate the 14 major energy channels in the body, building immunity and resistance to illnesses while helping the patient overcome apparent problems. Acupuncture was known to be an effective remedy for different health concerns ranging from minor aches and discomfort to major health problems.

The Modern Take on Acupuncture
The conventional science today explains the same phenomenon with different words. Instead of talking about "chi" (energy), the modern science explains the process of acupuncture as a means to stimulate specific anatomic sites or nerves in the body. This process seems to have profound impact on the health and well-being of the patient.

 

The modern science has accepted acupuncture as an unparalleled mode of treatment. The process is extremely intricate, demanding years of learning and expertise to locate specific target points on the body. Even the slightest miscalculation can have drastic consequences. This is why it is recommended to seek reputed professionals for acupuncture treatments. The process is now covered under the medical insurance offered by most companies, which explains the modern viewpoint on acupuncture.

Here's how acupuncture is known to help with aches and discomforts.

Acupuncture for Aches and Discomforts
Acupuncture is known to help with aches and discomfort just the way it works for other health problems. The acupuncturist starts by analyzing the body for problem areas, identifying the root cause of the ache. S/he may use additional equipment to identify other characteristics of the body in order to devise the correct treatment.

Small, fine and sterile needles will be used to reach and stimulate the nerves under your skin. This process is usually painless or may be accompanied with minor discomfort. The needles are left for a period of 5 to 40 minutes depending on the need. This does not only help invigorate the nerve cells and muscle tissues, it also steadies the blood flow, ensuring appropriate flow of nutrients to and from all parts of the body.

 In some cases, placement of needles in one part of the body may be able to help relieve tension in another part. The treatment is known to help in managing the pain associated with arthritis, stress, inappropriate posture, fibromyalgia, dental treatment and post-surgery problems. Although the relationship between acupuncture and pain relief is unclear, it nevertheless has helped several thousands of people in achieving optimal health.

In chronic cases, acupuncture will most likely be recommended in addition to other treatments. Acupuncture is not a holistic cure for all health problems. It may, however, be able to help you keep numerous complications at bay. Acupuncture does help in relieving aches and discomfort by revitalizing internal body functions for overall betterment.

Muscle Spasms and muscle knots

Muscle spasms are sudden, violent and involuntary contraction of a muscle or muscle group and may be experienced due to a disease, strain, or injury to the muscle or nearby tissues. Later on, when the basic injury is not fixed, muscle spasms form muscle knots which are painful. Oftentimes, it is this pain from the muscle knots that pushes a person to seek treatment of the injury.

A spasm is an unexpected, violent and involuntary contraction of muscle or group of muscles accompanied by sudden burst of pain which is generally harmless but may interfere with function.  It produces involuntary movement and distortion but ceases after a few minutes. 

Spasms may occur due to disease, strain or injury to the muscle or nearby tissues.  It could also be an impairment of circulation or disturbance of body chemistry which can be confined, severe or fairly generalized.

Painless or localized spasms are called tics. This involuntary movement of muscles, usually of the face, may seem to be a natural reaction or response to a certain stimulus but eventually, it will happen automatically even without any reason at all. 
Spasmodic muscle contraction may also be due to a large number of medical conditions, however, including the dystonias.

 Muscle spasms occur early after an injury takes place.  It is characterized by a tightening of muscles in the area which could be painful at times but not always.  Later on, when the basic injury is not fixed, muscle spasms form muscle knots which are painful and become part of the problem.  

Often times, it is this pain from the muscle knots that pushes a person to seek treatment of the injury. This is the case with injuries to the neck and back.

 Muscle knots, also known as myofascial trigger points in medical term, are abnormal areas within the muscle which cause pain. There is still not much information as to what muscle knots really are. However, doctors made some biopsy test by cutting a piece out of muscle knots and results showed that some abnormal protein deposits seemed to be present in the sample tissue. Some treating practitioners believe that there is excessive connective tissue in these areas, but there is little evidence in the (unfortunately few) studies that have been done to support the idea of excess connective tissue. 

The knots form because the spasm keeps the muscle working continuously around the clock which is beyond normal body function. Generally, our bodies move in normal activities with different muscles working in cycles. Since the muscles are not designed for such continuous work, time will come when muscle work overloads and forms these knots. That is why it is important that spasm is treated to help reduce this problem. 

Treatment of muscle spasms and muscle knots depends on medical professional who is working most closely to you.  

Exercise is an important method to help with muscle spasms and muscle knots.  Another helpful treatment is massage therapy to supplement other treatments. 

However, exercise and massage can become uncomfortable but the patient is expected to feel better later 

The Benefits Of Accupuncture Can Often Exceed Western Medicine

The first thing many people think of when it comes to acupuncture is pain relief. In reality, the benefits of accupuncture are far more than numerous than this. Acupuncture, along with other therapies, such as herbal medicine, has been healing the Chinese for thousands of years. Our Teeam use it frequently for remedial work on various muscles much like trigger point therapy to get us back in the BOX WODing on the bike or out on our next adventure..

Acupuncture works by helping your body to restore itself to balance. Whenever your body is not functioning properly, whether due to disease or injury, of a type emotional or physical, there is an imbalance a system or systems within your body. As simple as it sounds, because of this view, acupuncture can treat just about any problem you have.

Of course, in the case of cancer, or other terminal disease, acupuncture cannot claim to be a cure. However, even in the worst of cases, it will normally have some effect on improving symptoms and side effects, such as those resulting from treatments of drugs and radiation.

Where acupuncture really shines is where Western Medicine tends to fail, for conditions that the modality does not understand. In the case of Western Medicine cures, a cause must be understood. In Chinese Medicine, however, it is much easier to find a cause according to the theory applied, as the diagnosis is made according to a simpler methodology. The ailment is described as an imbalance in simple terms such as too much cold or heat in the body. Using this theory, a diagnosis and method of treatment can always be found.

One disease that exemplifies this is Irritable Bowel Syndrome. The name itself just describes the hallmark symptom of the syndrome, illustrating that Western Medicine does not well understand the underlying causes of this disease. However, one generally realizes ones bowels are irritable when they alternate between diarrhea and constipation. Knowing this does not help arrive at a solution. With the diagnosis method and treatment of acupuncture, people with this disease who once had no hope are now getting relief.

Progress is being made, however, as Western Medicine now believes that this disease, along with many others that are currently common in our society, has a strong underlying stress component. Treating the myriad of symptoms stemming from stress is one of the most important acupuncture benefits. This is especially true considering that the drugs used for many of these symptoms hide them more than treat them, and often cause additional negative side effects.

A strong factor in the effectiveness in acupuncture is that the practitioner treats the patient as a whole, and does not just focus on one symptom. Rather than using needles alone, they generally look at the entire lifestyle of the patient, and make recommendations to improve the underlying imbalance that is causing the problem being treated. You will find that the benefits of accupuncture you receive will be greatly enhanced by making changes in your life in tandem with your treatments.

Written with Thanks by Matt Prellie /Go