Acupuncture

Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine

The practice of acupuncture is a part of Chinese Medicine, which is a well-developed holistic health care system. 
Acupuncture and chinese medicine is based on the physiological inter-relationship of body organs and their energetic laws.

Acupuncture began as an attempt to understand the invisible "flow of qi". Qi simply means "energy". In the understanding of acupuncture and chinese medicine Qi gives life and vitality to the human body.

The main aim of acupuncture therapy is the promotion of health and the alleviation of suffering and pain. Though the methods used in acupuncture therapy seem mysterious and strange to many people, they have been in use for more than a thousand years and have passed the time of time.

An acupuncturist views sickness and health from a different perspective. Concepts such as energetic balance, vital energy and energetic imbalance are what are important to an acupuncturist. The same way that western medical doctors have to monitor the flow of blood through blood vessels and the way messages travel using the nervous system, similarly an acupuncturist assesses the distribution of this vital energy and how it "flows" using various pathways, also called channels or meridians.

The acupuncturist is capable of influencing sickness and health by the stimulation of certain vital areas that lie along these meridians. Stimulation of these areas, also known as acupoints, was brought about by slender, very fine needles. In present times however, stimulation is brought about by many different additional forms including lasers, magnets, electricity and herbs. Though the methods may be different, the aim still remains unchanged - vital energy needs to be adjusted so that the appropriate quantity reaches the desired place at the correct time. This is what helps the body in the process of self-healing.

Acupuncture is only one of the many different forms of therapy that are employed within the coherent healing system also called Oriental Medicine. This form of healing includes dietetics, physical therapy and herbology as well as a few special kinds of exercises such as Qi Gong and Tai Chi. Oriental Medicine is an entirely different medical system. It is complete into itself and is unlike any branch of Western medicine which is more commonly practiced. Acupuncture evolved from philosophies and principles that are unique to the Oriental way of thinking and to Oriental medicine and its application is most effective when done strictly in accordance with specified principles.