Acupuncture For Athletes
You want results. You want to thrive in your athletic achievements. You want to be the best. With the addition of Chinese Medicine to your regimen, we can help bring you to the top of your game. Being a professional athlete takes commitment, strength and intense physical training. Experts recommend working out a particular muscle group no more than twice a week without adequate rest, however when you are professional athlete, this isn’t always an option. Without proper recovery time, this might result in strain, dehydration or muscle tears, leading to severe pain or an injury. From the moment we stop growing, our body begins deteriorating. It’s common sense that overuse of any body part will cause deterioration to happen at a faster rate. By using the theories of Chinese Medicine, we can actually help hinder that process, using the medicine to fine-tune the body to precision, generating optimal physical performance. In addition to the physical issues that professional athletes face, we have found that it is just as important, if not more important, to address the internal organs and spirit. Where other tried and true therapies address the physical body only, the beauty of Chinese medicine is that we can access both the outer and inner body, resulting in more overall benefits. According to Chinese medicine philosophy, the outer body (muscle, nerves, tendons, ligaments, bone) is connected to the inner body (organs like the Lungs, Liver, Heart, etc and all emotions) through internal pathways. For example, the lateral epicondyle is connected to the Large Intestine pathway. Working with the pathway and organ will alleviate the pain in the epicondyle area. Additionally, it will address digestive issues and allow the athlete to let go of any unnecessary emotions: stress, anxiety or worry that may be stored in the body. This ancient medicine can provide you with unique tools to excel in your game. Benefits that occur on this deeper level are more restful sleep, more energy, and sharper focus. Traditional Chinese Medicine also boosts the immune system, improves digestion, and enhances muscle and joint hydration. This gives true meaning to working with the body from the inside out. Research There are tons of research that supports the efficacy of acupuncture and how it supports and treats pain, internal issues like digestion, low energy, stress or anxiety. However, for athletes, you are a different breed and need a specialized treatment and treatment plan. You need an acupuncturist that understands what your body goes through on a micro and macro level. We have the experience and have worked with players from the Oakland Raiders and the Edmonton Oilers, so we understand what it takes. The NFL As opposed to research studies that pertain to lay people, here’s a fascinating article from a few years back about acupuncturist, Lisa Ripi. Lisa works with 5 NFL teams on the East coast, every day she flies to a new city and clocks in at about 96 hours a week. Come Fridays, the players fight over her for treatments because they can see the difference the acupuncture makes for their weekend game. “As Pittsburgh linebacker James Farrior said, “I’m not the same if I don’t have it. It’s like getting the game plan. You can’t go into the week without either one. Players require individualized treatment. Steelers linebacker James Harrison takes more than 300 needles, and Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora begs for fewer than 40. Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis hates needles and grips the table as if under attack.” Today almost every single professional team in the US has their own acupuncturists on staff. In summary, here are the most common things we treat in reference to athletes. If you are experiencing something out of the ordinary, please reach out to us to speak about your special situation. In conclusion, our medicine can be a great adjunct to the game and to the longevity of your career by supporting your body through the physical demand you go through as an athlete. Hundreds of NFL players swear by this medicine, they can’t all be wrong.
The Treatment of Back Pain
The Treatment of Back Pain When it comes to managing pain, Chinese medicine possesses many unique characteristics and modalities to provide quick results. At Tao to Wellness, we work with many patients who are in pain. The most common areas would certainly be the neck and the entire back. In Chinese medicine, it doesn’t matter where the pain is located, we can treat it by trusting the meridian system and Chinese philosophies and theories. We always start with acupuncture and depending on the particular situation, we may or may not incorporate Chinese herbal medicine, cupping, moxibustion or herbal patches. We are committed and in active collaboration with you to achieve results quickly and gently. How does it work? In Chinese medicine, the sign of pain is merely a blockage or stagnation in an area of a meridian; picture a traffic jam on a freeway or highway. When a strain, sprain, injury, repetitive stress issue or any number of things occurs there is a blockage of Qi (Energy) and Blood. These two vital substances, which are necessary for circulation, cannot nourish the area so inflammation, weakness or pain will be experienced, it’s the body’s way of sending a signal to the brain asking for help. Acupuncture is the perfect treatment because it easily opens the blockage, allowing the smooth flow of Qi and Blood to heal the area and when the area is addressed, pain disappears. How many treatments do I need? This is dependent on the following: Length of time the pain has been an issue Severity of the pain Consistency of the pain Overall health lifestyle 80% of patient’s have relief after the very first treatment; from there it’s a matter of how long the patient ‘holds or sustains’ the treatment. Change is easy, sustaining it is more challenging. We are creatures of habit and so are our bodies, all of the factors above dictate how long it takes to unwind the pattern. Chinese medicine acts as an interruption of that pattern, consistently willing the body to return to balance and an optimal state. We have a saying in the office, “When the pain comes back, you come back!” We listen and allow the body to dictate the treatment plan. So essentially time in between treatments could be a day or a week. This depends on how deep the pattern is but also takes into account the patient’s lifestyle, this will certainly feed the healing process or take away from it. Pain can be debilitating, Chinese medicine provides an outlet to regain quality of life without surgery or medications. Research studies Research confirms that using acupuncture for low back pain is extremely effective. At Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Oakland, California, a research study was performed to test the efficacy of acupuncture for low back pain. 640 subjects ranging from ages 17-80 with low back pain for more than 3 months participated in the study. Exclusions to the study were: already having previous acupuncture or any blood clotting issues. Ten treatments were administered over seven weeks total with follow up phone call interviews at the 8, 26 and 52 weeks after the last acupuncture treatment. The study is complete and did, in fact, conclude that acupuncture was a valid form of treatment for low back pain. An even larger study was done in Germany with 1,162 patients. This was the largest investigation of acupuncture for the treatment of low back pain vs. conventional non surgical treatments. Modalities tested were acupuncture, prescription medication, exercise and physical therapy. Researcher, Heinz Endres said, “Acupuncture represents a highly promising and effective treatment option for chronic back pain. Patients experienced not only reduced pain intensity, but also reported improvements in the disability that often results from back pain and therefore quality of life”. For this study, acupuncture was administered in ten, 30 minute sessions conducted over six weeks. The results were astounding and although it is still considered an alternative treatment in the US, based on the findings of this study acupuncture is now covered by the country’s health insurance in Germany. Dr. Endres, a research scientist, says that acupuncture is clearly useful for treatment for low back pain, “Just because we cannot explain exactly the mechanism by which a treatment works, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t work”.
