Acupuncture increases blood circulation and stimulates Qi. It removes energetic blockages and restores the flow of vital energy throughout the body.

Acupuncture is a safe and effective method of encouraging the body's natural healing processes.

These techniques are cost-effective, holistic, and preventative.

Each diagnosis and treatment plan is tailored to each patient. No two treatments are identical, as no two patients are the same.

Acupuncture is not a quick fix, as medications are, but we can restore balance to your system over time.

Acupuncture is a "slow" medicine in the sense that we want to ensure that we address the root problem, and allow for your life to change long term.

With acupuncture, you will most likely find this to be part of your life for the rest of your life. It's a beautiful medicine, and we can really change lives with it. 

Depending on what are the presenting factors, we usually recommend 3 or 6 visit treatment plan. We can see change early on, and continuing treatments ensure that we maintain the new balance that we have created. Patient compliance to home care is a huge contributor to making acupuncture effective. 

A typical acupuncture treatment involves the Acupuncturist to place some needles, and then leave to room for the patient to rest. At Ouchie, we choose to be present during your entire treatment time, as I will work on your body while the needles are set. This process will vary depending on what we are treating, but I generally include acupressure, tuina massage, gua sha, cupping or facial massage in all treatments. This approach allows for an amazing transformation as you can relax deeper.

Cupping is the application of cups onto the surface of the skin by removing the pressure in the cup, allowing the superficial muscle layer to be drawn into the cup.

This treatment can be used on various areas of the body and its effects are:

• to warm and promote the flow of Qi; warms, moves and unblocks the Qi in the channels, and treats local congestion

• to promote Qi and blood circulation, resolves blood stagnation, and removes obstruction and pain

• to dispel cold damp

• to diminish swelling and pain

Cupping is very effective for:

• Bi syndrome wind damp (arthritis), low back pain, sciatica, pain in the shoulder and arms, pain in the legs and muscular part of the body

• acute pain from blood stagnation

• stomach ache, vomiting, diarrhea, indigestion

• cough, asthma

• tendon and bone pain (wind damp)

• headache, dizziness

Gua - to scrape or rub

Sha -  reddish, elevated, millet-like skin rash; term used to describe blood stasis in the subcutaneous tissues before and after it is raised as petechiae

 Gua Sha is one technique that intentionally raises Sha

—Functions of Gua Sha:

• Moves stagnant Qi and Blood

• —Releases the Exterior (mimicking sweating)

• —Moves the Fluids

Promotes circulation and normalizes metabolic processes

—

Indications for Gua Sha:

• —Common Cold(treat or prevent)

• —Flu (treat or prevent)

• —Bronchitis (treat or prevent)

• —Asthma (treat or prevent)

• —Internal or External Pain

• —Chronic Disorders not resolved by herbs, moxa, acu, massage (stubborn recurring pain)

——

What the color of Sha might tell you:

• —Lighter, Brighter color is fresher (recent common cold)

• —Darker color – older blood stasis

• —Brown – blood dryness

• —Pale to slightly red - blood deficiency

• —Purple/Black – longterm stasis (patient will usually feel better right away)