What to expect from an acupuncture treatment:
First of all, the needles do NOT hurt! :) A lot of people have that fear. You may feel a slight little 'stinging' or 'pricking' sensation as a needle goes into the skin but that lasts for only a second. The needles we use are hair-thin, sterilized , single-use needles. A typical treatment consists of about 15 minutes of discussion(longer on the first visit), then I will look at your tongue and check your pulses (I check for 3 pulses on each wrist). I will combine the intake from our discussion with the tongue and pulse diagnosis to decide which acupuncture points to use. I then insert the needles and you lie quietly for a period of 20-40 minutes. Many people fall asleep during this part of the treatment. Depending on what we are treating, I will sometimes recommend herbal therapy/nutritional supplements as well.
A few additional things to know: I ask that you eat something before a treatment. It doesn't have to be right before, but within 2 hours. Please try to not have any caffeine before your treatment (at least 3 hours before). Also just wear loose comfortable clothing. Short sleeve tshirts and stretchy, loose pants or shorts work best. Some patients like to bring something to change into before their treatment. There is a small amount of paperwork to fill out on the first visit. Expect the first treatment to last about an hour and a half. Follow up treatments are usually an hour and fifteen minutes.
First of all, the needles do NOT hurt! :) A lot of people have that fear. You may feel a slight little 'stinging' or 'pricking' sensation as a needle goes into the skin but that lasts for only a second. The needles we use are hair-thin, sterilized , single-use needles. A typical treatment consists of about 15 minutes of discussion(longer on the first visit), then I will look at your tongue and check your pulses (I check for 3 pulses on each wrist). I will combine the intake from our discussion with the tongue and pulse diagnosis to decide which acupuncture points to use. I then insert the needles and you lie quietly for a period of 20-40 minutes. Many people fall asleep during this part of the treatment. Depending on what we are treating, I will sometimes recommend herbal therapy/nutritional supplements as well.
A few additional things to know: I ask that you eat something before a treatment. It doesn't have to be right before, but within 2 hours. Please try to not have any caffeine before your treatment (at least 3 hours before). Also just wear loose comfortable clothing. Short sleeve tshirts and stretchy, loose pants or shorts work best. Some patients like to bring something to change into before their treatment. There is a small amount of paperwork to fill out on the first visit. Expect the first treatment to last about an hour and a half. Follow up treatments are usually an hour and fifteen minutes.
