Back Pain
Acupuncture for Back Pain
Back pain is a very common problem that will strike four out of five Americans at some time in their lives. It’s one of the top reasons people seek medical care. Unfortunately, back pain isn’t always easy to diagnose or relieve. Lower-back pain in particular, can become chronic or ongoing. Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) are very effective in treating back pain naturally.
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How back pain happens
There are many possible causes for back pain, including strained muscles or ligaments. It is often caused by improper lifting, sudden movements, or traumatic injury. Other culprits include arthritis, structural or spinal abnormalities, and vertebrae disc bulges or ruptures that impinge on nerves.
The following are the most common causes of back pain:
A natural approach
Acupuncture and TCM practitioners view back pain in a different way. We will not only work to relieve your symptoms but also to find and treat the underlying causes of your pain. In a study conducted at a Swedish hospital, doctors concluded that acupuncture provided long-term relief with improvement in physical activity levels, adequate sleep, and diminished use of pain medication. Acupuncture and TCM are based on the concept that Qi or vital energy flows through the body in channels called meridians. If Qi becomes stagnant, unbalanced, or deficient, symptoms such as back pain, ache, and inflammation can result. This can happen for any number of reasons from injury and illness to stress or external invaders, such as wind or dampness. Back pain can arise from disharmonies such as:
o Stagnation-type pain is often linked to sudden, stabbing, severe pain and is related to sprains, strains, or trauma. It can be accompanied by stiffness and tightness and becomes worse with rest. If it reoccurs often in the same area, there may be an underlying deficiency.
o Cold, damp obstruction-type pain is generally worse in the morning and exacerbated by cold or damp weather. This type of pain may be associated with numbness, swelling, and a sense of “heaviness.” Heat improves this condition.
o Deficiency-type pain is usually a chronic condition that manifests as a “dull” pain, and improves with rest.
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Restoring balance
Once we have determined the causes of your back pain, we will create a specific treatment plan designed to address your concerns and boost your overall health and vitality. During acupuncture treatments, we will insert fine, sterile needles into specific acupuncture points along the meridians in order to restore balance and the flow of Qi. We may also perform cupping with glass cups, infrared heat, moxibustion, or other types of therapy, based on your unique issues and symptoms.
Acupuncture is one of the best therapies for back pain resulting from all kinds of causes. Patients usually feel better after the first treatment, while many are pain free after several treatments. We have helped thousands of patients become pain free in the last 20 years, many of whom had tried everything else and failed.
