My Experience With Acupuncture

Acupuncture is a treatment that many people are curious about for countless health issues. I decided to give it a try myself in order to manage my stress levels, and acid reflux as a result of stress.

For those of you who are curious about it, I have decided to share my experience. I believe so many people are open to the idea, but are a bit turned off about being stuck with needles. And you may be one of them, wondering if it’s worth it.

That’s how I felt about it for a long time. I have thoroughly believed in the practice of acupuncture for many years. Especially after taking a course called Traditional Chinese Medicine when I was in college. The course required each student to present a research study on the effectiveness of acupuncture. It was amazing how much scientific research there was out there at the time!

The Research

What stood out to me the most was the research I reported on, and one other study. At the time, I had a dog with epilepsy, so I was impressed to learn of a study that found acupuncture to be an effective treatment for dogs with epilepsy (although I don’t think my skittish dog would have participated).

The study that I presented found that rats who received acupuncture produced more endorphins (I think it was endorphins–it was a long time ago), and thus had a higher pain tolerance than rats who did not receive acupuncture. Even more amazing was that when blood from rats who received acupuncture was transmitted to rats who did not, the effects were the same!

I also found recent research indicating that acupuncture could reduce stress, and that stimulation of specific points could actually reduce acid reflux by strengthening the LES muscle (a muscle believed to be too weak to keep in acid in the stomach for people who have acid reflux).

My First Session

My first session was with acupuncturist Dr. Ling Ling Luo (in the Philadelphia area) and it was AMAZING! One of the reasons I chose her is because she put on her web site that she will start with acupressure for anyone that has an aversion to needles–that sounded perfect for me!

We did a brief consultation where she explained that for my pariticular condition, I have too much energy going on in my head (too much thinking) that needs to circulate through the rest of my body. I believe this is true, and this is why mindfulness is so important to me. I am constantly using mindfulness techniques to learn to be more in my heart and body and to use my thoughts to raise my consciousness of this.

Dr. Luo said that sometimes you feel a little worse after acupuncture because of an energy surge, but that you eventually start to feel better. She also said that I would be moving into a more relaxed conscious state, and then out of one, and then back into one…and that eventually I would develop a more steady state of being with less moving in and out.

I told Dr. Luo that I wanted to start with acupressure, because of my aversion to needles, but she seemed to think I was ready for the real deal! She had a way of “flinging” the needle in really quickly that was virtually painless. I didn’t even feel it once I was in. Wow!, I thought. This isn’t that bad! I can do this!

She proceeded to insert needless in all the places she thought would be beneficial for my treatment and left me to lay there and allow acupuncture to do its work. I went through a lot of emotions as I lay there. I felt exhilaration at finally trying something I had been afraid of for so long. Especially since I knew that I would benefit from it if I could just get the courage.

My Experience

I felt very relaxed and connected to Source energy. I had been feeling disconnected for some time and thought, “Who knew? It’s as simple as getting acupuncture!” I couldn’t feel any of the needles at all while I lay there, except for the one in my left hand, which felt somewhat irritating.

When the acupuncture session was over, I felt very relaxed, drowsy, and disoriented. It was a big change from the stressful, doing-oriented state I had been in when I went in and started. I felt like I had just drank from pure, clean water, and whatever I had been drinking before was dirty and irritating (feeling stressed).

I did not expect that my hands would be so sore after acupuncture. I could barely move my hands for days! I tried to research this on line, but couldn’t find anything about this.

Fortunately, I did speak with a massage therapist who told me she had a similar experience. It is getting better, now after a few days. Another unexpected result is that I have no urge to bite my nails out of nervousness and this is a habit I have had for many, many years!

This has been such an amazing experience for me that I encourage anyone who is interested in trying it. Please let me know what your thoughts and experiences with acupuncture have been.