There are some good books around on Chinese medicine that would do a good
job explaining acupuncture, but I will offer some of my understanding of
how it works.
First, the Chinese don't isolate acupuncture from other healing paths.
It's about third or fourth in the list of what they consider important for
health. I believe first is diet, second is probably tai chi or chi gong,
third is herbal treatment, and acupuncture is about fourth. There's also
one more that comes in fifth, I think.
The major idea is that the body is designed for efficient and correct
functioning for the maintenance of good health. The person sustains this
tendency through eating in a healthy manner and reducing stress and
imbalance with tai chi or chi gong/exercise. Just like we give chicken
soup, fruit juice, etc. to a sick person, diet changes may be called for
(at least temporarily) with illness in the Chinese system. There are also
specific chi gong exercises related to some health problems, and this is
under study in China for dealing with cancer. (Pre-TM, when I was taking
ice skating, my spins suddenly centered when I was taking tai chi at the
same time, which I attributed to its effect of balance/centering.)
Next the person who is sick would be treated with herbs and/or acupuncture
to help restore balance in the body. The progression to herbs/acupuncture
can be concurrent with diet and other modalities or consecutive. The
acupuncture helps align the chi (energy) to help the body regain its
correct functioning. If you've ever tried tai chi, chi gong, yoga, etc.,
you've probably felt this chi, and perhaps it is related to the images that
show up in Kirlean photography.
I would describe the chi as SORT of like electrical energy; the Chinese
consider it separate from the nervous system. They have mapped a chart of
the flow of energy based on an elaborate system that involves the major
organs. The chart does correspond somewhat with the nervous system, so
perhaps the chi "system" is allied or in conjunction with the nervous
system.
In any event, acupuncture (and herbs, diet, chi gong and tai chi and other
non-Chinese stuff like homeopathy) has helped me with asthma, allergies,
sprains, constipation from my TM (nervous system control of my intestines),
pain from TM. My girlfriend was treated with acupuncture for a sacral
spinal injury that left her with little control of her right leg and helped
reconfigure the nerve messages to the leg. My cat has benefited from
acupuncture and homeopathy for ailments that afflict a 17-year-old senior
citizen cat.
Barbara, don't count on this being a 100% explanation, because it's
filtered through my own perspective and a limited study of Chinese
medicine. I will answer questions, though, if I can.
As a patient, it is interesting to me that acupuncture needles often don't
hurt at all, but when they do, it is usually a deep ache that lasts a few
minutes. When I was really sick with asthma, the ache sometimes extended
along my leg (along the lines of the Chinese charts) and lasted the whole
treatment. Now with TM, the pain is varied, from painful in the
hypersensitive areas to no feeling or the achy feeling, but only for a
minute or two. I don't have asthma attacks anymore, even with the cold I
had last week.
Hope this helps.
Aurore
In a message dated 97-05-24 11:20:06 EDT, I wrote:
> I've never tried acupuncture -- I never got the point. :-)
>
> That was terrible, wasn't it?
>
> What I have never understood about acupuncture, though, is how
sticking
> needles in your back, or wherever, helps you.
>
> Barbara
>
>P.S. This wasn't meant as a criticism -- just saying I don't understand
how
>it works.
>Barbara
That also wasn't meant to sound like I was making fun of it. Hope I didn't
offend anyone. I really would like someone to explain to me how it is
supposed to work.
Barbara