Dealing With Muscle Tension? Acupuncture Could Help. Victoria

How does acupuncture therapy work?

Muscle tightness is something of a vicious cycle. It both causes pain on its own, and further results in other parts of the body tensing up in anticipation of that pain. Many patients find acupuncture helpful for both decreasing pain and relaxing the body overall. If you’ve never heard of acupuncture therapy, the thought of someone inserting needles into your skin might sound pretty terrifying! The truth is though, this kind of therapy isn’t meant to cause pain — it’s meant to relieve it.

We understand that there can sometimes be a stigma around this interesting service, and many patients come to us believing it’s painful!

Acupuncture therapy is not painful. Acupuncturists gently insert needles both at the place of stiffness, and at distant parts of the body that control different pathways to healing — such as to the glandular system.

If you think acupuncture therapy could be helpful for you, call our clinic today to schedule an appointment with one of our licensed acupuncturists. We’d love to help you find the pain relief you deserve.

Release of Healing Compounds

By relieving natural painkillers in the body, acupuncture needles help short-circuit the loop of pain, and stiffness from anticipating pain:

Endorphin release. These mood-boosting and pain-suppressing opioid neuropeptides are released by your nervous system by stimulation such as exercise and acupuncture therapy. You will experience pain relief and easing of muscle tension in the area most directly related to your pain. Just as importantly, the areas that were “taking up” the slack by working harder to support the original source of stiffness will also be relaxed.

Neurohormone production. Substances like dopamine are released by your body’s glandular system through strategic placement of acupuncture needles. The needles stimulate the glands so that their secretion is regulated in a more pain-suppressing manner. Dopamine also plays a role in relieving muscular and emotional tension, further enhancing the effects of the acupuncture treatment.

Relieving Muscle Adhesion

Over time, some people experience a building up of scar tissue on the connective tissue joining nerves and muscles. These adhesions often cause a general stiffening up of the affected muscle groups, because they become fused to one another. (In addition, other muscle groups that rush in to support the failing ones also become overworked.)

A skillful acupuncturist will find these adhesions if after treatment some muscles are relaxing and others aren’t — possibly signifying adhesions on the connective tissue. Applying needles directly to that area helps dissolve these buildups by improving blood circulation and healing endorphins.

What to expect with acupuncture therapy

Most sessions last around an hour to two hours. Everyone responds differently to treatment, however, at your initial consultation, your physiotherapist will be able to do a conclusive assessment of your condition. He or she will then create a treatment plan for you, which will be tailored to your individual needs.

Typically, fine needles are inserted through the skin and left in position briefly, sometimes with manual or electrical stimulation. The number of needles varies but may be only two or three. It’s important to remember that everyone’s pain condition is different, and so their acupuncture treatment will be as well.

The response rate to acupuncture treatment is high, especially for patients with pain of musculoskeletal origin or headaches. The complication and side effect rate is extremely low. It’s certainly worth giving us a call today to discuss your options, and see acupuncture is the right choice for you.=

Call our clinic today for an appointment

Physiotherapists who incorporate acupuncture in their practice must complete postgraduate clinical education through institutions recognized by their regulatory body.

Contact our office today to set up an appointment with one of our trained physiotherapists to learn more, and how it can relieve your pain symptoms.

Interested in learning more about acupuncture and how it could relieve your pain? Contact us today for more information. We’ll have you feeling better in no time.