Oriental Acupuncture - 1st Treatment Today!

After a bad start to the week from high pain levels and my upper back becoming horribly irritated from tension and compensating for my hip area I had my first appointment with the Oriental Acupuncture Clinic here in Timaru this afternoon.

I had acupuncture previously with physio's but most times it hurt or they managed to hit a nerve which was not pleasant. Plus their attitude and execution make you feel like a number rather than a paitient. They pop some needles in and leave you for 5-10mins then take them out and send you on your way. I never thought to ask how long they trained for and what was their qualifications..

I arrived and was led into a lovely warm treatment room and got settled face down in the table. He started off feeling different points over my back and identifying the problem areas then started inserting the needles across my shoulders, down my back and around the hip area.

Once all the needles were in he turned on a heat lamp (this bit I loved as I hate the cold and felt like a turtle sunning it'self!) and positioned it over the needles to allow the muscles to warm and the heat to travel deep into the muscles down through the needles.

While the needles were doing their thing he moved onto my ears and undertook acupuncture on each ear with an Electro Acupuncture machine - basicly it found the points and beeped when in the correct position then the needle went in and an electric stimulation charge was sent through the needle. (I know this sounds weird but I will try to find some good reference photos!) There were about 5-6 points on each ear and once finished he placed small seeds over the points and secured them with tape as in txt below;

How is ear acupuncture used in a treatment?

Ear acupuncture is generally incorporated into a regular acupuncture treatment. In addition to using acupuncture points on the rest of the body, your acupuncturist may select a few ear acupuncture points that they feel will be helpful for your particular condition.

What are ear seeds and ear tacks?

Ear acupuncture points may be stimulated for a longer period of time by using ear seeds or ear tacks. Ear seeds are small seeds from the Vaccaria plant. These seeds are held in place on the ear with a small piece of adhesive tape. Ear seeds may be left in the ear for a few days or up to two weeks. Ear tacks are very small needles with an adhesive backing. Ear tacks are inserted into the ear and left in the ear for a few days or up to one week.

So I think I will wear my hair down for the next couple of days otherwise I think I will get some funny looks!!

A while later the needles were removed from my hip/back and this was followed by the most amazing massage - completely different to any I had experienced over the years from physios/therapist and was vigourous but relaxing at the same time. He also used a very strong peppermint/herb oil and I felt this seeping deep into the muscles.

The whole treatment was just over an hour and it was so much more rewarding than any physio appointments I have had. I walked out feeling like I was on a cloud and that lasted for a couple of hours before the aches started to come back again. I do expect some flares as this is the first time I have had handson treatment in OVER 6 MONTHS!! So I have a lot of knotted/tight/toxic muscles.

Off to heat a wheatbag up now and hopefully have a better nights sleep :)