Most Commonly Asked Questions:
Q: What is acupuncture?
A: Acupuncture is one branch of traditional oriental medicine which has been used more than 5000 years, by inserting sterile needles on an acupoint to enhance and balance body functions. If you want to read more, go to How acupuncture works
Q: What is Qi and meridian?
A: There are 12 regular medians plus 8 extraordinary meridians in our body through which Qi and blood pass through. Qi is the vital energy which is essential to maintain life. Each meridian has many points which have different functions to stimulate the flow of Qi. Points are selected according to your unique condition.
Q: When do people get sick?
A: Any misdirection, blockage or other derangement of Qi will cause pain, dysfunction and sickness. Besides Qi, there are pathogens that can affect the body such as heat, cold, wind, dampness and dryness. Excessive emotions and bad nutrition also can cause disease.
Q: What does acupuncture do to our body?
A: Acupuncture needles stimulate acupoints and balance Qi flow and body functions. They harmonize all the organs and the whole body systems. This helps our body restore its own functions and maintain its own health by itself.
Q: What are the main objectives of acupuncture?
A: *Relieve pain, and other uncomfortable symptoms
*Strengthen the immune system
*Balance, harmonize, and integrate the function of organs with each other to restore homeostasis.
Q: What are the needle treatments like? Are they safe?
A: Some people think acupuncture is painful, but the needles used for acupuncture are sterile, of one time use, and as fine as human hair, and most of the times, they do not create pain. In The United States, only licensed acupuncturists can legally practice acupuncture and they are trained with Oriental medicine as well as Western bio-medicine including human anatomy and physiology. Acupuncturists are trained to insert the needles in specific locations and at specific angles and depths, so as not to cause damage to tissues and organs in the body.
Q: How long is the treatment session?
A: Normally, first time treatments will be 1 hour and 30 min. Follow-up sessions will be 1 hour, but it may vary depending on your condition.
Q: How many treatments are needed to see results?
A: It depends on the nature of the disease and the strength of the patient fighting the disease. Ideally, 2 to 4 treatments per week for 4 weeks are recommended (traditionally, 1 course of treatments consists of 2 times per week x 4 weeks). Generally, acute conditions take less treatments than chronic conditions.
Q: How does an oriental doctor make a diagnosis without any machine and lab tests?
A: Acupuncturists use other methods to test the body such as pulse, observation, tongue diagnosis, interview and so on. These reflect your internal body organs’ condition as well as your Qi, blood, and body fluids. At AcuBalance Center of Houston we also use modern imagery technology to show imbalances in the acupuncture meridians, which show as excesses or deficiencies, and we get graphs of the state of the whole body channels.
Q: All the acupuncturists use the same way to treat patients?
A: There are a lot of branches/schools of acupuncture. Even for the same condition, an acupuncturist can select different point combinations based on his/her preference. So, there is no one exact way to treat symptoms or diseases.
Q: Is the herbal medicine safe?
A: AcuBlance Center of Houston uses only herbals and preparations which have passed rigorous tests and guidelines in the US, have been approved by the FDA, and are only available to licensed acupuncture practitioners.
Q: If I take medications can I still take herbal medicine? A: If you are taking prescription medications from your GP or physician, please let us know so we can adjust your herbal prescriptions. Some herbs may increase or decrease the effect of your medications.
