Category Archives: Uncategorized
Feng Shui Tips For People Who Hate Their Job
Wow, who knew? According to a recent study, a vast majority of working Americans (70 percent) hate their job. This means that millions of people in the US are not happy with what they do and this is a big problem since 70 percent of our lives are devoted to our careers. Most of us spend the majority of our lives in an office or working environment and only work to make money and survive. This is quite depressing.
So trying to make your office space a lot more appealing is a big deal as this can help prop up your morale and make your working environment more meaningful and uplifting. If you customize your space to suit your needs and clean up the clutter on your desk, it can increase your productivity and give your job some sort of meaning. A lot of us spend way too much time tied to our desks. The important thing here is to modify your workspace environment based on your personality and make yourself as comfortable and as happy as possible.
Some people seek solace in looking at photographs of their loved ones placed on their desks. This just keeps them motivated and reminds them from to time the reason they need to keep pushing on. Some buy pretty picture frames that are brightly colored and fun looking where they insert the photos of their loved ones. These things actually make a huge difference in the moods of many Americans. Others change the pictures every week or so, in order to gain a fresh perspective on things.
One other thing people do is to upload a pic of their dream holiday destination and use it as wallpaper to their computer screen. Placing a picture of a tropical beach or island paradise can be very relaxing or stimulating, more so if you listen to the sounds or music of the tropical island in your headphones. Actually, any kind of soothing music can very much help you get through the day.
These are some of the Feng shui tips that can help turn an uninspiring, depressing, boring workplace into a more alluring and invigorating one, and they are only the proverbial the tip of the iceberg. Try reading more office tips in a few good Feng Shui magazines that can reveal more ideas on how to enhance your desk area that can lead to a flow of positive chi energy in your workplace.
Jacksonville Acupuncture Clinic
8855 San Jose Blvd
Jacksonville, FL 32217-4244
(904) 260-2598
http://www.jacksonvilleacupunctureclinic.com
Five Suggestions For Creating Positive Feng Shui in your Home
“Health is Wealth” and Feng shui has the means to make this adage a reality for you. It has so many useful tips to help improve your well-being and health.
The significance of good feng shui cannot be overstated since few things really do matter without good health. Feng shui can provide us a direct path between health and the energy quality in our office and home.
Several businesses and homes suffer from stagnant and weak feng shui chi or energy. Research shows that most businesses and homes are unequipped with the most fundamental level of energy needed to maintain the wellbeing of individuals who work or live there.
The following are four simple and basic feng shui suggestions to create a feeling of happiness and joy in our life and to enhance well-being and health.
Suggestion 1:
Use of Color and Light
The color and quality of natural light are vital ingredients for one’s well-being and health. A combination of beautiful and vibrant colors in your home and office as well the amount of natural light you’re getting during the day is essential for the nourishment of your energy.
If you need to be indoors most of the day, make it a point to invest in a whole range of colors that can help nourish your chi or energy.
Make sure you decorate your office or home with vibrant art – make it joyful and happy with alive and fresh colors.
Be aware that the energy you have becomes all the more enhanced by the presence of light and colors, be it through fresh flowers or a wall color art.
Suggestion 2:
Be Conscious of the Air You Breathe In
The issue of environmental pollution, specifically air pollution, has been plaguing modern societies for decades. Few people have the smarts to realize that air pollution indoor is much actually worse than the pollution outdoors.
Unless one works and/or live in a genuinely environmentally friendly and green building, they need to constantly work on keeping the quality of air in their space fresh and clean.
Essentially, this implies that no level of feng shui health cures will help, because the number one priority in feng shui for health is the air you breathe.
The best way to maintain or generate good air quality in your office or home– while also significantly enhancing its feng shui chi – is by using plants that can purify the air.
These are quality feng shui plants that can be purchased in local flower shops.
Buy as much plants as your space can handle, one to a couple of tall plants, at least, such as Areca palm will do.
Suggestion 3
Having Spa Energy in Your Bathroom
Feng shui-wise, your sense of health is closely associated with your bathroom’s energy quality.
You may have occasionally heard that a bathroom presents a huge feng shui challenge. Hence, this makes it all the more essential to consistently and diligently apply good feng shui to your bathroom!
One can easily produce a spa feeling in the bathroom, but they need to start with a clutter free and very clean foundation.
After having achieved that, art should then be introduced such as an aromatherapy diffuser, candles and other items that can generate a spa feeling in the bathroom that is pleasing to the senses.
Begin enjoying the benefits of good feng shui in your bathroom which while improving your health, also increases the overall positive feng shui chi in your house.
Suggestion 4:
Acquiring Positive Feng Shui Chi in Your Bedroom
We obviously need to work on generating positive chi in our bedroom since we spend so a lot of time there (sleeping, which is about a third of our lives).
This is extremely vital for our well-being and also for the sake of our relationship with our partners. Based on my consulting experience, an overwhelming number of bedrooms have negative energy.
Positive bedroom feng shui chi is both a very simple and complex application. It’s simply a matter of constant effort that may eventually be something of a second nature for some people.
Suggestion 5:
Positive Feng Shui Chi in Your Health Area
Each office or home has certain areas in feng shui (as determined by the map of feng shui energy or by the bagua) that can affect different aspects of a person’s life.
The health of a person is based obviously on the overall chi of the entire space, and on a deeper level, there are two parts that are associated with the state of his well-being.
The first part is the heart of your office or home, and the second part is the area named Health & Family bagua.
When it comes to both modern and traditional feng shui, there are so many cures that anyone can apply to reinforce their health.
From a sculpture of a Laughing Buddha to the use of colors, Water and Wood elements, to the ever popular feng shui lucky bamboo plant, pick one or two that best works for your space.
You’ll so much enjoy having to go through these daily steps of reinvigorating the chi in your bedroom once you have felt and known their incredible effects that can make a huge difference in your health and wellbeing.
Recommendations like not storing anything under the bed, exposing yourself to natural light during the day, keeping your closets organized and clean, maintaining good air flow, and others might look like too much work, but you can be sure that they eventually become very enjoyable!
In producing positive feng shui in your bedroom, there are still a lot of recommendations I can give. In your home, your bedroom is the most important area wherein you can position your bed in order to acquire positive feng shui. Be certain you read and comprehend these suggestions, and realize that by utilizing them in your life, they can greatly benefit your health and well-being emotionally and physically.
By practicing constancy and patience and by exerting just a little effort, anyone you can apply proper feng shui tips to convert their home into a pleasurable and beautiful space that will totally support their wellbeing and health.
Begin with little steps today, and never stop generating positive energy!
Eastern Healing Solutions, LLC
10875 Grandview St #2200
Overland Park, KS 66210
(913) 549-4322
http://www.overlandparkacupuncturist.com
Natural Methods For Treating Anxiety And Panic Attacks
A panic attack is a frightening experience. It often begins with an unexpected, unexplainable feeling of fear, and then intensifies, adding other symptoms along the way, such as feelings of suffocation or choking, , dizziness, chest pain, losing control, lightheadedness, or that you’re having a heart attack or going crazy. Prescription medication treatments are commonly used in addressing anxiety disorders (panic attacks and anxiety attacks are the same thing), but a lot of these drugs can generate symptoms and many of them are addictive; worse, the attacks come back when these drugs are withdrawn. Fortunately, several natural treatments for anxiety disorders are available that are used by psychologists and psychiatrists alike and are sometimes used (and sometimes not) as an adjunct to pharmaceutical drugs to help treat to anxiety disorders.
Methods that are frequently used to control the signs of a panic attack include: deep breathing techniques, avoiding caffeine, and eating a healthier diet. As a stimulant, caffeine can make you irritable, edgy, and anxious. Avoidance of it and consuming highly nutritious meals can help you sleep and feel better. To avoid hyperventilation, performing certain breathing exercises can help calm you down during panic attacks. They are effective ways that can help you control panic attacks, although they still only treat the symptoms and not the source of the condition itself.
A therapy known as “Tapping” works in treating anxieties by bearing pressure to acupoints and tapping then these points in a certain way to free the bad chi (negative energy) generated by negative thoughts. This therapeutic technique is used by some therapists since they believe it works really well and faster than other natural therapies.
In the treatment of panic attacks, hypnosis was recognized by the AMA (American Medical Association) as a valid form of treatment more than 50 years ago. This type of natural therapy can substantially relieve panic attacks but unfortunately cannot cure anxiety disorders.
Interestingly, laughter is considered a natural treatment for panic attacks. Humor removes the adverse emotions related to panic attacks by decreasing the levels of stress hormone in your body. Humor visualization methods make the patient imagine and remember a period when the patient was laughing uncontrollably. He again imagines this memory when he feels the coming of a panic attack. If this memory can make him laugh, it can help stop his anxious feelings and panic attack.
Desensitization is a gradual process that can make victims of panic disorder resistant to situations and things they are afraid of that can set off a panic attack. It has proven to be effective in stopping anxiety disorder and its symptoms. Psychologists or psychiatrists place the patient in a location or situation that usually triggers panic attacks or fear for just a few minutes. The patient is often accompanied by a person he trusts. The support person often accompanies the patient just the first time. The amount of time increases each time the patient repeats the experience, until he can eventually deal with it on his own, without experiencing a panic attack. This technique has proven to work very well for phobias and other anxiety-related conditions.
But the most successful and widely used known natural treatment for panic attacks and anxiety disorders by far is CBT or Cognitive Behavior Therapy. This therapy makes use of tools such as in vivo methods techniques and cognitive restructuring to treat and sometimes totally cure panic attacks and anxiety disorders. Cognitive restructuring instructs the patient on how to modify his thinking in response to panic symptoms. “In real life,” (In vivo), exposure to places and things that sets off a fear reaction makes people learn to face their fears. This technique is quite similar to desensitization therapy. In vivo and cognitive restructuring combined can help treat panic attacks and change the way they behave and think in fearful situations. Professionals admit that CBT may not work for all people but for those who do, it has provided some relief from their panic attacks.
Ling’s Acupuncture, Inc.
120 Gatlin Ave
Orlando, FL 32806-6908
(407) 851-2533
http://www.lingsacupuncture.com
Natural Breast Enlargement Through Chinese Nutritional Therapy
Chinese nutritional therapy (also called Chinese food therapy) is the practice of maintaining as well as healing the body using natural foods. According to Chinese medicine practitioners, several health problems can be cured with food therapy. The problems include issues of the intestines, liver, and heart.
Chinese nutritional therapy has been practiced for thousands of years and can also be used for treatment of animal and pet ailments. It is currently and widely used among in developed Asian countries such as Korean and Taiwan.
Based on the Chinese nutritional therapy principles, all foods have a cold or hot quality or yin or yang quality. Not as in cold or hot to the touch but the kind of energy it possesses.
Ideally, for optimal health, a person would need to eat a balanced diet of both cold and hot foods; however, when addressing an issue, he needs to focus on trying to lessening the one type and increasing the other type.
Each food as varying amounts of yin and yang foods in it. The amounts are as follows:
- Cool food or Moderate yin food
- Cold food or Extreme yin food
- Neutral
- Warm food or Moderate yang food
- Hot food or Extreme yang food
Chinese Nutritional Therapy for Natural Breast Enlargement
You may want to reduce yang foods and add more yin foods in your diet if you want to see results in the enlargement of your breast. There’s no need to deny yourself of yang or hot foods, you only need to lessen your consumption of it.
Therapists have listed some of the foods that are considered good for the enlargement and health of the breasts. Here they are:
|
Apples
Carrots
agar agar broccoli beef asparagus bananas Avocado chicken feet corn cherries cooked tomatoes bean sprouts Chives Bamboo Cabbage Beer Chinese Dates (jujube) Chinese cabbage |
Dried dates
Lettuce
Dairy foods green papaya eggplant Goji Berries Gelatin rich foods Eggs papaya peanuts olives peaches grapefruit Oranges Coconut Leeks Honeydew melon Kiwis Ice cold foods and drinks |
Pomegranate
Sesame seeds
Pig knuckle seafood potatoes Red wine Raspberries protein rich foods pineapples Pears Soy milk Watermelon Walnuts Japanese Napa (wild yam) whey protein Seaweed Turnips Raw tomatoes Sugar Strawberries |
In addition to these foods, women can have a successful enlargement of their breast by consuming/drinking foods/fluids in room temperature. For instance, rather than drinking ice water, drink room temperature water instead. According to Chinese nutritional practitioners, the digestive system is strained and shocked when you eat cold food. Eating room temperature or warm foods is considered more gentle on the stomach.
Eastern Healing Solutions, LLC
10875 Grandview St #2200
Overland Park, KS 66210
(913) 549-4322
http://www.overlandparkacupuncturist.com
Jin Shin For Greater Vitality And Physical, Mental, And Emotional Peace
Traditional people, during ancient times, saw no difference between mind, body, and spirit. As a result, the practices they utilized to help the body enhanced naturally their emotional, physical and spiritual harmony. In addition, people saw their ‘harmony’ and health as necessary for restoring the energy of their body back into balance.
Jin Shin jitsu also called Jin Shin Jyutsu is an age-old Oriental healing art that balances the energy of your body by utilizing the hands and fingers to bring about emotional equilibrium, ameliorate stress, relieve chronic and acute conditions, and alleviate pain. Jin Shin is non invasive and gentle. It is based on the hundred years old concepts of Eastern energy therapy, manifesting many similar principles on which acupuncture is based. However, in Jin Shin, the life force that’s utilized is discharged from the fingertips, which generates a penetrating but extremely gentle touch that aids rather than pushes the natural circulation of life energy within the body.
Our harmony and health is based on an even and free distribution of this vital energy all over our mind and body. When the strains and stress of daily living interrupts the flow of life energy, our body, mind and spirit are all affected. We not only fall to fear, worry, sadness, anger, and pretensions, we also raise the likelihood of becoming unbalanced and ill, this is when we manifest physical malady.
Jin Shin is just a way to bring back balance to our life energy. It alleviates pain, restores emotional equilibrium, and eliminates the causes of both chronic and acute health problems. It can be safely used as an adjunct to medication or any other therapy. In addition, the benefits of Jin Shin are accruing so the more Jin Shin you use the greater will be your vim and your mental, emotional and physical tranquility.
Emily Farish is a licensed acupuncturist in Spokane, WA with advanced training in modern acupuncture techniques and traditional Asian therapies.
Respect Your Body By Providing It With Healthy Feng Shui Remedies
Improving your health through Feng shui is one of the first things to consider when you’re considering usig feng shui in your space. It does not matter whether your health is undergoing problems for a some time now or is simply slightly out of balance, feng shui can be an effective way to improve your health and will help raise the energy levels of your body.
Using feng shui guidelines for the improvement of your health should always be based on priorities, since you need to establish a solid foundation in order for higher feng shui remedies to work for you.
If you skip the fundamental processes of feng shui for health, you can never hope to advance to much higher feng shui cures.
Just as a woman applies the best quality make-up that will make her skin appear healthy for a long time (if the skin is not properly cared for and cleansed on a daily basis), the same goes for more advanced cures for feng shui health.
To produce a positive feng shui groundwork for a chi-positive home, one has to begin with certain feng shui health fundamentals.
Here are a Few Simple Feng Shui Basic Steps in order to Attain Good Health
There are three definite feng shui priorities that can promote vibrant health in a home:
- Adequate natural light: Aside from allowing as much natural light as possible to enter your home, you also need to be aware of the importance of a smart and intelligent indoor lighting system. You will immediately sense a positive change in your wellbeing and health once you take care of the quality of light your home receives. Light is our most important nutrient, so be smart and provide your body with adequate light nutrition. As color is a component of light, this also involves the prudent use of feng shui colors.
- Good and quality fresh air: More often than not, good quality air is overlooked in most homes which unfortunately can weaken the resident’ health over the course of time. Good quality air is actually the most important priority in feng shui health. To allow good quality air to constantly fill your home, use air purifiers and essential oils to clear the air, open the windows to allow poor air to escape and fresh air to enter, and place air-purifying plants in your area, among other suggestions. To find solutions for fresh air in your home, do whatever it takes; the feng shui foundation for well-being and health is by regularly breathing in clean and fresh air.
- A space free of clutter: The extremely important aspect of feng shui called clutter clearing is often postponed or ignored in favor of “flashier” feng shui remedies. Be aware that no amount of feng shui plants, positive feng shui colors, or wind chimes can neutralize the depressing and low energy of clutter in your house. You simply need to take care of your clutter, as it saps energy out of you consistently.
Once all of these health priorities have been taken care of, one can begin utilizing finer point feng shui remedies that are grounded on the energy of the 5 elements.
For instance, when you place a Water feng shui element like a fountain or a Wood feng shui element like fresh green plants in the East bagua part of your home, it will bring about positive feng shui chi or energy to your health.
You can deliver the energy of the essential feng shui elements in your space through colors (for the Water element, black or blue, and for the Wood element, brown or green) if there’s no way to place a water feature or plants in your space.
You can also deliver in your space the required feng shui elements using art that depicts lush greenery and/or a body of water (a waterfall, bay, lake, ocean, river, etc.). Strategic placement of mirrors can also add to the feng shui element of Water in your house.
Know your best feng shui directions and your Kua number and consider rearranging your bed, and desk so that while you sleep or work, you are facing the most positive directions.
Always keep in mind the view you first see when you open your front door or when you open your eyes after waking in bed. These details might seem trivial to you, but they set the energy of feng shui your will body receive through the course of the day. Because our bodies are consciously aware of all these things, every detail and item is important.
Give your body the dignity and respect it deserves by giving it the energy of joy and beauty – eventually, this will attract good well-being and health.
Emily Farish is a licensed acupuncturist in Spokane, WA with advanced training in modern acupuncture techniques and traditional Asian therapies.
Five Amazing Benefits Of Tui Na Massage Therapy
Are you desperately seeking a way to alleviate those pains and aches and eliminate that stress out of your body? Perhaps, the answer you are looking for lies in the ancient Chinese massage therapy called Tui Na. Tui Na works by restoring energy balance to your body. It often leaves people feeling energized, whole, and relaxed both on the inside and out.
Here are some of the benefits people can expect when getting Tui Na massage therapy:
- It is enduring – The benefits of this therapy tend to last a long time. Although a lot of people prefer getting regular sessions with massage, they’re expected to experience the difference for a long time and instantly with this form of therapy. Since each person is unique in one way or another, you are required to consult with your doctor first regarding your state of health because the techniques used in tui na therapy is different for each person. A good therapist customizes the treatment based on a person’s unique constitution.
- It can be used for a wide range of problems – Tui Na has shown to work very well for all types of ailments including arthritis, pains and aches, high blood pressure, reproduction problems, depression, weight gain, sprains, headaches, and many more.
- Boosts the circulation of blood, oxygen, and energy – This form of combined Chinese therapy generally works by enhancing the function of all the systems of the body and increases blood flow, making sure that healthy energy flows in a balanced way.
- It can be relaxing – Nothing compares to a soothing and relaxing massage. Tui na is basically a kind of medical therapy that soothes the muscles whilst working away the cramps and kinks in the body through rolling, rubbing, pressing, kneading, and patting procedures. What’s more, all these are done with care and intention so that the client won’t feel any pain, although certain areas may be uncomfortable, but this tends not to last. You’ll leave the session feeling reinvigorated and refreshed.
- It is all natural – If you’re feeling run down or in pain, you’ll probably take some kind of medication, which may include caffeine, to improve your body and mood. With Tui Na, you don’t need to put painkillers and chemicals into your body; rather, you’re increasing the positive energy flow within and massaging the toxins away from your body. Tui na massage therapy is all natural (and you don’t have to spend money on Ibuprofen).
Ling’s Acupuncture, Inc.
120 Gatlin Ave
Orlando, FL 32806-6908
(407) 851-2533
http://www.lingsacupuncture.com
The Importance Of Detoxifying Your Body
A lot of people believe that they can control the level of pollution and cleanliness in their environment and because of that they feel very safe in their offices and homes. In truth, however, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat are so full of toxins, which eventually causes our vital organs to conk out.
People nowadays are tuned in to the dangers pervading their environment and systems that the need to purge them is of the highest priority. Eliminating our body by means of a detoxification system will extend our longevity and give us the chance to lead a healthier and happier life. It was the absence of these toxins that allowed our ancestors to live past the century mark, while in this lifetime, we consider ourselves lucky if we reach the age of 70. If we are to eliminate the toxins building up in our systems that wreak havoc to our immune system, we need to detoxify our systems on a regular basis and we just might be able to live a little longer.
If you closely analyze the way you live, you might notice that the liquids you drink and the food you eat are made up of chemicals that are meant to extend the shelf life of those products. These chemicals are unwittingly partially responsible for the buildup of toxins in your body when they are drunk or consumed. The seemingly innocuous aerated drinks such as coffee or chocolate drinks that we imbibe on a daily basis are saturated with harmful chemicals that only add to the toxins already festering in our body. Ultimately, these poisons will interfere with the normal mechanisms of our vital organs and eventually will result in disease and illness. This is why it is essential to cleanse the body of toxins which the system itself cannot purge.
Fortunately, these toxins can be eliminated in our system in a variety of ways. This method is known as detoxifying the body for a healthy body and mind. However, it’s important to emphasize caution before one goes on a crash detoxification diet; first talk to your doctor and while the process of detoxification should be done at least once a year, it should be done under the supervision of a medical physician or practitioner.
Observe your life every day; the kinds of food you regularly eat are full of harmful chemicals. Beverages such as coffee, soda pop, milk beverages, and alcohol can also cause illnesses. If you’re a cigarette smoker, you’re just collecting harmful acids in your body that will eventually lead to ill health; people who commute everyday often inhale exhaust from trucks, cars, and other vehicles. Immersing your body with pharmaceutical drugs and hygiene products that contain adverse chemicals can all contribute to the accumulation of acid in your body.
With all these harmful things permeating our environment, you can just imagine living your life every each day filled with these dangerous materials. Now we know why a lot of people tend to get sick for no apparent reason at all. A desire to seek a natural way to treat illnesses and diseases or illnesses is the clamor of a lot of people who are now realizing the sad fact that many others ignore.
Body detoxification has been the most effective way of eliminating harmful chemicals in your body for quite a while now. Detoxification will help your body offset all the adverse effects the body attains from bad eating habits and an unhealthy lifestyle.
There are a lot of detoxification materials you can watch and read that help you live a new and rejuvenated life. If you long to live a life filled with energy and health, detoxify your body, and modify your current unhealthy lifestyle.
The Importance Of Proper Body Alignment In Tai Chi
Alignment of the body pertains to the manner things are positioned internally. In Tai Chi, you learn to be aware of the alignment of your body and acquire optimal body alignment for whatever activity you’re doing at that time which is either in battle conditions or otherwise. Through the proper alignment of your body, many health conditions can be treated including shoulder, back, and neck pain and make you attain unprecedented levels of skill in your practice of Tai Chi.
When pushing a movable but heavy object, there’s an alignment through your body which, if proper all the way through, won’t give you a hard time moving the object. But if your body alignment is skewed, then your body mechanics are also improper and you would have a tough time moving the object.
You can practice being aware of your body’s alignment at all times through tai chi. But this practice is not just based on rules on how to stand and sit but rather on a true understanding of your body’s skeletal system. They include how the midsection should be positioned, how to align the spine correctly, how should the feet be placed for good knee health that uses the leg muscles and protects the ligaments and tendons, and how the knees ought to be aligned to the feet.
This comprehension of posture and alignment is necessary for the attainment of health. It can hinder the rise of problems such as back pain, neck pain, poor circulation, knee pain, headaches, and migraine among others. When one practices Tai Chi, they will learn how to properly move in a variety of whilst maintaining alignment and excellent posture the whole time.
One of the most common unreported health problems people suffer from is back pain. While back pain is occasionally caused by a traumatic event or an injury, it, more often than not, is caused by years of bad posture. Tai Chi helps us learn proper back alignment by taking us through a series of movements and forms whilst supporting a very straight back alignment at all times. This helps the Tai Chi student learn how to move in ways that promote proper alignment.
If body alignment is practiced appropriately, it will lead to increased bone density that in turn, can help prevent the elderly from falling. To derive this Tai Chi benefit, it’s important for the practitioner to align his upper body weight over his legs and relax his entire body in order for the weight of his body to bear down through the structure due to gravity. Through this, his thigh bone mass and density will increase over time and the strength and muscle mass of his entire leg will be strengthened.
Proper alignment of the back is also the basis for Tai Chi’s additional health benefits. Most of the time, students fail to reap the full benefits of tai chi because they do not practice the correct back alignment. They must first realize about what they’re trying to achieve in terms of body alignment and then practice the correct alignment into their exercise. This means that students need to pay close attention to their alignment when they do their Tai Chi set. They can then advance to higher levels of skill and progress in their exercise only after they have accomplished this.
Is Sham Acupuncture Just The Same As Real Acupuncture When It Comes To Relief and Management of Pain?
The wealth of scientific research that has been and is being done into acupuncture’s use for various health conditions attests to the legitimacy and potentiality of this treatment, especially for the treatment and management of pain. Much of those studies however have led to the conclusion that acupuncture usually does not outperform sham therapy which calls into question the legitimacy of the treatment itself.
Traditional acupuncture is a procedure that uses thin tiny needles stuck into certain points on the body known as acupoints. Chinese medicine believes that these acupoints are located just above energy channels called meridians in the body. When a blockage develops along the meridians pain and disease develop. The needles are used to remove the blockage to once more allow the free movement of energy in the body. Western medical researchers believe that the mechanism of action is either the stimulation of blood flow or the stimulation of nerves in the body.
The reason why the effectiveness of sham therapy calls into question the legitimacy of real acupuncture is that this implies that whatever benefits are gained from the procedure can be attributed to the placebo effect alone. However, more studies into sham therapy – and, especially, people who gained good results from it – shows that this type of therapy may actually possess pain relieving qualities of its own.
One study suggested that the sensitivity of people to pain may be a factor in knowing whether sham acupuncture was effective (or not) for them. People suffering from systemic pain conditions like fibromyalgia, can find relief from treatments that stimulate sensations in the body designed to reduce pain. Since less sensation in the body is stimulated by sham acupuncture, the conductors of the study believed that only patients with high pain sensitivity would be ideal test subjects for sham acupuncture, since these patients require less stimulation to experience results.
A total of 50 women all suffering from fibromyalgia participated in the study. They were divided into either a traditional acupuncture treatment group or sham group. Prior to the start of the treatment, the pain sensitivity of the participants was measured through a test that exerted pressure on their thumbs, which the participants rated. The neurochemical levels associated with pain sensation were also measured by the researchers. After treatment the thumb pressure test was administered. In sham acupuncture treatment, the needles did not penetrate the skin. This procedure consisted of a gentle pricking with the needles.
The participants who manifested more sensitivity to pain experienced much better improvements in pain sensitivity after sham treatment, compared to the participants who had low sensitivity to begin with, at the end of the study. Both low-sensitivity and high-sensitivity patients had comparable outcomes for traditional acupuncture.
The study showed that using subjects with a high degree of pain sensitivity aren’t likely to produce marked differences in efficacy between real and sham acupuncture treatments. It also indicates that people with high pain sensitivity may need a less intensive form of acupuncture compared to those with less pain sensitivity. Chronic pain sufferers should consider acupuncture in Fort Lauderdale as a worthwhile option to help manage their pain.