Acupuncture + LLLT (low level laser therapy aka cold laser)

My patients are preferring the combination of acupuncture plus LLLT to the cortisone or lidocaine injections that they have received for their acute or chronic pain. And, a massage therapist to whom I refer people says that they are much easier to work on after the addition of the LLLT.

Research recently published demonstrates the effectiveness of low level laser therapy for treating carpal tunnel syndrome. This is a big deal because so many people suffer with carpal tunnel and it is often extremely debilitating. The effective clinical protocol consisted of 24 treatments which is consistent with the time frame and number of treatments demonstrated in the literature. If you or someone you know has carpal tunnel find a doctor that uses low level laser therapy (ME) … otherwise, you are likely suffering needlessly.

24 treatments?! you say ...... Acupuncture works but is it a miracle, one time treatment cure? Not very often. Chronic pain, chronic health issues require treatment to get your body into a balanced, healthy, pain free state. Back pain that you have had for 10 years will take time to cure, not 3 treatments. But often, because for some things we can "take a pill", the immediate cure is an expectation. But the problem w/ some pharmaceuticals (pills) is that they are NOT curing, they are ameliorating a symptom. Face it. It may be a late-life-long effort to keep it in the kind of shape that allows you to continue to live the active lifestyle that you enjoy. I know it is for me so that I can continue playing soccer.

In my practice we talk a lot about a healthy life plan - it's not a magic pill. To those of you who say "but I don't have to go see my MD twice a week or three times a week or even once a week to get well" ..... really? If you are taking daily medication, that pill taking is akin to seeing your physician EVERY DAY and sometimes the pharmaceuticals are just treating the symptom. Get to the cause! A Chinese Medicine practitioner with good diagnostic skills can help you do that.

Acupuncture: just one therapy in the system of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture is but one of the therapies available in the system of medicine that is called Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Practitioners also offer Chinese herbal prescriptions, gua sha &/or tuina (both manual therapies), cupping, nutritional advice according to the theory of TCM and energetics of food, QiGong (I give all of my patients a QiGong CD in which I guide you through moving the qi through your body and storing it in your lower dantian/belly), take-home acupuncture tacks or bio-ceramic balls, and I am excited to announce that I will be adding cold laser as an energetic/electrical therapy for pain and cosmetic work soon! In CO, our title "licensed acupuncturist" does not reflect our full scope of the medical practice. It is a limiting title for those of us who practice a system of medicine rather than one therapy.