When most patients come in to see me in Mamaroneck for an acupuncture session to treat their pain condition they are often surprised to find that I usually do not place the needles in the area where they are experiencing the pain. For example if a patient comes in for right knee pain I would not needle the right knee . I might needle the left knee, the elbow or even their hand. After the needles are in place I ask the patient to move their right knee. The patient should experience some degree of pain relief. When patients first experience this they think it is bizarre, but it definitely works.
Why does it work? From a Chinese medicine perspective every small part of your body represents the body as a whole. You can treat every part of the body just by using a single part. For example you could use the hand to treat back pain, headaches, foot pain, knee pain, shoulder pain etc. It may sound crazy but I see it working everyday in the clinic.
Why is it better to place the needles far away from the area of pain? The best thing about treating pain using this method is that you can get instant feedback as to whether or not the treatment was effective. After the needles are inserted I always ask the patient to move the area of the body that is painful. Most of the time the patient will see a change in pain levels, range of motion, etc. If it does not work then the needles can be adjusted or a different area of the body can be used for treatment until the desired relief is attained. The movement of the painful area not only helps to see if the treatment works it also allows the patient to exercise the problem area to further the effects of the treatment. It has been my experience that if the injured area is not moved or exercised during the treatment the effects of the treatment will not be as positive.
A few days ago I treated a patient that was suffering from left sided hip pain. She came into the office limping. I had her sit down and I inserted two needles into her right hand. I asked her to stand up and walk around. To her amazement the hip pain was gone and she was no longer limping. I had her walk around a little and do some simple movements using her hip. Then I had her lay down with the needles to rest for a while. This particular patient has arthritis in her hip. She will need a series of treatments to eliminate the pain 100%, but we both knew that we were going in the correct direction in her treatment.
The method of acupuncture that I described here is Master Tung’s family acupuncture system. This system is known for needling very far from the diseased area and using very few needles. I also use the balance method of acupuncture which has some similar principles. Both are very effective systems with many similarities and they both offer great relief for pain as well as internal medical complaints including digestive issues, sleep issues, fatigue, diabetes, heart disease etc.
For more information about Ira Wahrman L.Ac or to make an appointment for an acupuncture session in Mamaroneck give us a call at (914) 772-4044.