Acupuncture needles nowadays are made very fine and smooth. The needles are about 30 to 100 times thinner than hypodermic needles. Patients may feel gentle pricking sensation during acupuncture needle insertion. After the insertion, some patients may briefly feel warmth, tingling, heaviness, or numbness along the acupuncture channels. This is normal (called “De Qi” in acupuncture term). Some patients may be more sensitive to needles, or occasionally more pain may be felt. In this case, the needles can be quickly adjusted to alleviate the discomfort. For most people, they find acupuncture very relaxing, and may even fall asleep during the treatment.

No. Only FDA approved, sterile, nontoxic, disposable needles are used. No chemicals or pharmaceuticals are used on the needles. All needles are used once and then disposed of.

Before the visit, the patients are advised not to brush the tongue, and eat lightly so as not to feel hungry or stuffed during the treatment. It also helps to wear loosely fit clothing. Fatigue can compromise the effectiveness of the treatment so be sure to be well rested prior to the visit.

Depends on the condition, I may speak with you regarding your health history, medical history, family health history, your main complaint for the visit, current health condition, lifestyle, and behavior. The purpose is to have a big picture of your health condition, and to discover the root cause of your health issue. This will allow me to design a treatment plan that is specifically suitable for you. Please be prepared to discuss your prior treatments before the visit, and the medications you are taking. Additionally, I typically may examine your tongue, check your pulse, palpate your abdomen and the pain areas. After the investigation, I will provide you the acupuncture treatment which will last about 30 to 50 minutes. Your first visit may take about one hour .

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the tongue reflects the health of various organ systems in the body. The color, coating, and the shape of those areas provide insight information about the health conditions of the patient. Pulse is also taken, complementary to the tongue. Pulse can tell the condition of yin, yang, blood, and the life force energy (called Qi), to gauge health condition of the patient. This would allow the acupuncturist to know where and what the issues in the body need to be addressed.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the abdomen reflects the health of various organ systems in the body. The abdominal palpation is not used much by TCM practitioners nowadays, but is regularly used by the Japanese acupuncture practitioners. The major complaint of a patient often has a corresponding pain somewhere in the body (often the abdomen). By palpating the abdomen and other specific areas, the corresponding pain can be found. Through this process, the specific acupuncture points that can be used to treat the primary complaint are assigned to effectively treat the patient.

How often the patient should be treated depends on the nature of the disease and how responsive is the patient to the treatment. Typically, the weekly treatment is recommended. However, if the condition is acute and severe, 2 or 3 times a week may be required. The effect of acupuncture is accumulative. With continuing treatment, the frequency may be reduced to once every other week, and then once a month or less.

It depends on the nature of the illness and how responsive is the patient to the treatment. For acute condition, some patient may feel better after one treatment; some may take 2-3 times. For chronic conditions, it may take longer. Occasionally, before feeling better, a patient may feel worse after the first one or two treatments.

We provide receipt for the patient to claim for insurance reimbursement.