Chinese herbal medicine – Herbal medicine includes the use of over 400 individual Chinese herbs and hundreds of formula combinations, and has been tried and tested for thousands of years. It can be a great additive to acupuncture and in many cases beneficial on its own. Herbal medicine can come in many different forms such as pills, granular extracts and raw herbs, sprays, liniments and soaks for external use. The manor of herbal delivery is decided on a patient by patient basis and can even differ depending on the condition being treated.
Moxibustion – Moxibustion (Moxa) is the burning of the Mugwort herb, which has the capabilities such as warming, increasing blood-flow to relieve pain, and even turning a breech fetus.
Cupping – Cupping is a modality that is great for many different complaints. Many people are familiar with cupping for pain relief and for recovery after vigorous exercise, such as swimming. What many people don't know is that cupping is an excellent way to improve lymph drainage and improve your immune system. Cupping can also rejuvenate the face, increase blood flow to the area and even help reduce sinus pressure.
Tui Na – Tui Na is a form of Chinese medical massage used for musculoskeletal complaints, to relieve sinus pressure, relaxation and much more.
Gua Sha – Gua sha is the process of scraping the skin and tissues with a flat edged tool. Gaining popularity these days in the facial realm, gua sha is great for boosting blood flow and circulation of the face and skin. It doesn’t stop there though, gua sha is excellent for musculoskeletal pain and many other complaints.
Nutritional consultations – Food is the original medicine. We can assess your current diet, make changes (big or small) and form a plan that will aid you as well as your acupuncture and/or herbal treatments on the road to health!
What is acupuncture?
Acupuncture, in its rawest form, it is the insertion and manipulation of tiny needles into the skin. The points chosen can differ depending on each patient’s needs and overall body constitution. An acupuncturist looks at the body as a whole. If one part is disrupted, the entire system can't function at its prime. That's where I come in. With acupuncture we can bring your body's systems back on track and functioning efficiently.
What can it treat?
Acupuncture has been proven to show therapeutic effect for many disorders, such as abdominal pain, alcohol dependence, Bell’s Palsy, depression, fibromyalgia, headache, hypertension and hypotension, infertility, insomnia, knee pain, nausea and vomiting, opioid/heroin/cocaine dependence, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, sciatica, sprains, spinal pain or stiff neck, stroke, tennis elbow, tobacco dependency and so many more. If you’re wondering if or how it can help you feel free to contact me!
What other modalities do you offer?
A visit to your acupuncturist isn’t always about the needles. There are many different complaints, and that means we offer plenty ways to help treat them. We can use these other modalities combined or separately from acupuncture to get you the results you want. Here at Sunshine Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine we also offer Chinese herbal medicine, moxibustion, Cupping, Tui Na, Gua Sha and nutritional consolations as part of our healing toolbelt.
Does it hurt?
A normal acupuncture treatment should be relatively pain free. However, because we do break the skin, there might be a slight pinching sensation for a second, followed by the relaxing sensations of warmth, coolness, or a slight pressure. If you’re still a little nervous, that’s completely normal. Feel free to contact me and we can talk it through together!