The needles

One would assume inserting a needle into the skin would be painful since most of us can relate to being stuck with a pin or having a hypodermic injection. However, four Acupuncture needles can easily be inserted into the hollow tube of a hypodermic needle. Because of the extreme slenderness of the needle, most people compare the sensations to "less that a mosquito bite." A phenomena referred to as "TEHCI" occurs when the energy is contacted. This sensation is felt as a mild to moderate heaviness or tingling.

Needles obviously have their place is clinical practice. However, many physicians certified in Acupuncture and licensed Acupuncturists are employing electronic and laser stimulation to the Acupoint with equal effectiveness as the needle. Both of these procedures are painless and are quickly becoming standard worldwide.

Diagnosis

Practitioners assess a person's health by feeling the pulsations at each wrist and by observing the color and form of the face, tongue, and body. This information is interpreted in the context of a patient's present and past complaints, work and living habits, physical environment, family health history, and emotional life.

For example, if Max has red eyes, a yellow coating on his tongue, and a bounding pulse, this indicates Heat and congested Qi. He may be complaining of stomach pain, migraine, nausea, fever, or bronchitis. Diagnosis is a way of understanding a problem within the categories of Chinese medicine.

Treatment

The goal of treatment is to adjust and harmonize Yin and Yang, wet and dry, cold and heat, inner and outer, body and mind. This is achieved by regulating the Qi, Moisture, and Blood in the Organ Networks: weak organs are tonified, congested channels are opened, excess is dispersed, tightness is softened, agitation is calmed, heat is cooled, cold is warmed, dryness is moistened, and dampness is drained.

Treatment may incorporate acupuncture, herbal remedies, diet, exercise, and massage. Duration of treatment depends on the nature of the complaint, its severity, and how long it has been present. Acupuncture is scheduled as often an three times a week or as little as twice a month. Response varies. some need only a few sessions while others need sustained care to reverse entrenched patterns established over time. As symptoms improve, fewer visits are required, individual progress being the yardstick.

What conditions are accepted?

Acupuncture textbooks list well over one hundred different conditions that respond well to Acupuncture. The World Health Organization, working in close harmony with the International Acupuncture training center of Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, has indicated Acupuncture is effective in the following conditions. 

World Health Organization of the United Nations list of Conditions which Acupuncture treats
General:	acute and chronic pain
Eyes-Ears-Nose-Throat:	deafness, ringing in the ears, earaches, poor eyesight, dizziness, sinus infection, sore throat, hay fever.
Genito:	bed wetting, urinary and reproductive impotence, infertility, pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS), pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), vaginitis, irregular period or cramps, morning sickness.
Infections:	colds and flu, bronchitis, hepatitis.
Muskulo-Skeletal and Neurological:	arthritis, neuragia, sciatica, back pain, bursitis, tendonitis, stiff neck, Bell's palsy, trigeminal neuralgia, tennis elbow, stroke, cerebral palsy, polio, sprains.
Internal:	hypoglycemia, asthma, high blood pressure, ulcers, colitis, indigestion, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, constipation, diabetes.
Dermatological:	eczema, acne, herpes.
Mental-Emotional:	anxiety, chronic fatigue, depression, stress, insomnia, withdraw from addictions.

How does Acupuncture work?
The philosophy of Chinese medicine
Acupuncture treatment