Dr. Steve Sterling, L.AC.

Feeling light headed after acupuncture is not an uncommon side effect. Some of the contributing factors to getting light headed include low blood sugar from not having eaten recently, if you haven't been drinking enough water. Other factors can include if the treatment was too strong for example with needle manipulation that was too strong for the patient's constitution, or if electroacupuncture stimulation was too long (longer than 25-30 minutes) this is because of the endorphin effect released. When removing the needles it is helpful it is helpful to go from top to bottom Yin before Yang, if these are not done in this order then this can cause the patient to feel lightheaded. The lightheaded symptom usually goes away after a few minutes, if this occurs you can sit there and have a few sips of water and it will help and usually resolves within 5-minutes. It is advisable to wait until the lightheaded symptoms subside before getting into your car to drive. I hope this information is helpful.

Acupuncture can help with addressing musculoskeletal related injury related to the head trauma that caused the concussion. But, for a concussion I would recommend instead to consider this information:
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You should get some immediate relief usually at least 50% improvement but, how long will the relief last for? Typically, most conditions take one course of treatment for every year that the condition has existed, for example if you have had this condition for 2 years then 2 courses of treatment, one course of treatment is 12 treatments usually over 12 weeks. The results are cumulative and so to avoid riding the pain rollercoaster I usually schedule the patient to come 2-3 times per week or prior to the return of any symptoms the following week. For example if the patient comes in and their pain is rated 10 on a 1-to-10 scale, they get an acupuncture treatment and their pain goes down to a 3. I schedule them for the following week and ideally before the pain starts to increase. That way we can keep the pain threshold lower and start to increase the amount of time of pain relief. Chronic conditions and more severe conditions can take longer to heal than acute and mild conditions.

Acupuncture can help relieve or eliminate most types of pain. The cause of the pain will determine how well the acupuncture works in terms of the reduction in pain as well as how long the pain relief lasts for. For example, if the pain is caused by a spinal stenosis or a nerve entrapment, then although acupuncture can offer initial pain relief, that it is reasonable to expect that the pain will return since the acupuncture didn't correct the underlying cause of the pain.

The structural alignment of the body starts at the feet with the arches. Tai chi slippers do not have much arch support or much padding for shock absorption either. If you dad has fallen arches aka "flat feet" then the Tai chi slippers don't offer enough support and this can contribute to misalignment issues which can affect the back.

If the needles retention time is too long then this can be sedating. Typically I don't recommend retaining the needles for more than 25-30 minutes for this reason, especially if I am using electroacupuncture. If you are deficient and the acupuncturist overstimulates the needles with wide amplitude rotation as in a draining technique then this can be sedating. I had a patient with severe insomnia who hadn't slept in 7 years, after I treated her she went home and slept for 3-days straight. It is possible that if your body hasn't been getting sufficient rest then it may be trying to catch up on the lost sleep(?)

I had the good fortune of having a professor from Chendu, China who specialized in treating thyroid disorders. I have his notes for differential diagnosis. I have also studied a lot of Functional medicine and I specialize in using this to treat hypothyroid including Hashimoto's hypothyroid. If it is hyperthyroid than I recommend Western medicine. As for the term "cure" it is forbidden to use for any medicine. For more info please see http://weblac.com/hashimotos.html

http://weblac.com/hashimotos.html

Yes, acupuncture can help with smoking cessation. It works better when you combined it with other stop smoking therapies, hypnotism, Nicorete gum, Nicotine patch, etc. Ear acupuncture "Auricular points" specifically the NADA (National Drug & Alcohol Addiction protocol. Ear seeds applied over these points can be used for acupuressure in between treatments. There is an extra point called "Pok's point" located on the top of the big toe. The NADA points interact with 3 'cranial nerves' that are connected directly to the brain. These points have successfully been used for years in treating cravings associated with heroin or nicotine. It is helpful to have in mind a strong intention with your motivation for why you want to stop smoking. Don't buy or have cigarettes around and avoid habit situations where you would have used to have a smoke.

Yes and no, not everyone is the same and technically the FDA is not allowing anyone to advertise effectiveness in preventing Covid-19. That being said, here is the basics. a healthy immune system can help to reduce the likelihood of getting sick and having a healthy body is going to help to have a healthy immune system. Acupuncture can help you to achieve & maintain a healthier body and boost your immune system. There is research that has demonstrated that certain acupuncture points such as ST36 boots specific immune cells which increases immunity. Chinese herbal medicine is also being used effectively in China and here in the prevention as well as the early treatment of the pandemic flu. Chinese herbal formula used on hospital workers in China that has reportedly been very effective at keeping them from getting sick. One such formula is a modified Gui Zhi Tang (Cinnamon Twig Decoction) with the addition of licorice root (gan cao) & dried-ginger root (gan jiang). Here is the recipe if you are interested; https://weblac.samcart.com/products/gan-cao-gan-jiang--gui-zhi-tang-jia-jian

I'm sorry that you are in pain! There is a saying among acupuncturist that acupuncture can treat any condition (any kind of pain) the limitations of this medicine are based on the ability of the practitioner. Heel pain like any structural pain needs to be differentiated as to what is the cause of the pain, is it a bone spur? If yes, then the acupuncture analgesic effect may be short lived and the pain will return shortly after because in this case acupuncture is not treating the cause of the pain. With other types of heel pain such as plantar fascitis or a bruised heel acupuncture can have longer lasting effect with pain relief. Treatment of heel pain may take several treatments depending no the severity and how long you have had the heel pain for. I suggest that you consult your neighborhood acupuncturist to see if acupuncture would be a good fit for you in reducing or eliminating your heel pain. Thank you for your question. I wish you a speedy & full recovery!

It is difficult to speculate on how long your headache relief from acupuncture treatment will last. That depends on the type of headache that you have for example frontal headache, migraine, etc. The cause of the headache is also a consideration, for example car accident, high blood pressure, toothache, head injury, etc. In general, I usually see at least a 50% reduction in pain symptoms that last for around 3-5 days depending on contributing factors for example sleeping under a ceiling fan, with an open window draft or an AC vent pointing down on you at work, excessive driving or stress in traffic, lack of sleep, over exercising, lack of proper food or water intake, etc can all cause the headache condition to return. What is causing the headache? If the acupuncture alleviates the headache, are the stressors that contributed to you getting the headache gone or are they still there in which case the headache may come back again. Depending on the severity and how long you've had the headache your results may vary. I had a 27 year old female patient who had migraines everyday since she was 17 that were so bad that she got a cranial nerve in her brain cauterized but, she still had the migraines. In just one treatment her pain went completely away but, your results may vary.

Ask you acupuncturist what their particular recommendations are for your specific health condition. It is common to want to assess before and after treatment to see how you responded, and to see how long your symptom relief lasts. This will help your acupuncturist create your treatment plan and determine how many treatments and how often you come as well as when to reassess your treatment progress. The main things to avoid are doing any excessive exertion such as working out, etc after your acupuncture treatment for the rest of the day, and to be sure and drink lots of filtered water in my opinion. Also, to wait for at least 1 hour after your treatment before getting wet or going swimming, etc and to avoid wind blowing on you directly on you.

Yes, acupuncture is awesome at not only relieving back pain but, also at helping to alleviate stress! I treat lots of patients with low back pain from work stress and I get amazing results. Two of my patients come in in agony and feel so great after that they forget to take it easy and they go out and do heavy yard work the next day and have to come back in because they over did it and are in pain again.

Yes, acupuncture can be done daily. When I interned in China at the PRC hospital in Nanjing we would treat the same patients 5 days a week and we got great results. The effects of acupuncture are cumulative. Depending on whether the condition is acute or chronic (more than 3 months old), as well as the type & severity of your health condition this can influence your need for how often and how many treatments you would need to make improvement.

I’d tell you a joke about a blunt needle but it’s pointless.

The needles are usually sterile, disposable and for single use but, ask your acupuncturist. A special guide tube helps to aid in the needle insertion making it relatively painless.

The location of the acupuncture needles aren't going necessarily be the same for every woman who is being treated for infertility. This is because not every woman's infertility is caused by the same underlying pattern of imbalance. There are also different styles of acupuncture treating. One popular style is called TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) which differentiates infertility into different patterns for example dampness or phlegm, heat, blood stagnation, etc.

Based on your answers to 10 questions regarding your sleep, digestion, energy level, temperature, etc along with a pulse & tongue diagnosis, the skilled acupuncturist can determine which pattern you have and then use the appropriate point prescription which is used to treat that pattern.

Most of the needles are usually inserted relatively shallow under the skin on acupuncture points which are located below the elbows & knees, some are on the torso and even on occasion on the head or ears.

Your body can change during your course of treatment and your acupuncturist may use different points from time to time.

One of the most important goals in fertility treatment is to regulate the menstrual cycle. This means addressing any aspects of an irregular, long, short, heavy, scanty, or painful menstrual cycle as well as if there are clots present in the menses which can be a symptom of blood stagnation and is usually accompanied by dark distended sublingual veins (under your tongue).

I hope that you find this information helpful.

How often should you get acupuncture for migraines? That depends on how long you have had them and how severe they are as well as what your underlying TCM (Traditional Chinese medicine) pattern you have. It can vary from person to person. The more often you have acupuncture the better your results because the effects of the acupuncture treatment are cumulative. But, it may not be cost affordable(?)

The general rule of thumb is to allow one course of treatment (which is 12 visits) for every year that the condition has existed. But, I have seen much faster results in my clinical experience.

The acupuncture treatment plan can vary depending on the frequency and severity of the migraines as well as the needs of the body for example if there is a lot of deficiency or depending on what you are doing that may be contributing to increasing muscle tension in your neck &/or upper back.

If you look at the 3 phases of care: Relief care, Corrective care, and Maintenance care. You may have to come 1, 2 or 3 times a week during the Relief care phase, and then you can taper down less frequently during the corrective care phase maybe 1 time a week or every other week once symptoms of migraine have subsided. Then get treated periodically perhaps once a month or 5 or 6 times a year usually 1 or 2 weeks before seasonal changes. This helps the acupuncturist to catch disease before it manifests by heading it off at the pass. "An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure".

I get great results with my migraine patients using acupuncture and herbal medicine. Usually the patient comes 1 or 2 times per week for 3-6 weeks and then 1-2 times per month for 3-6 months. Once the migraine episodes have subsided then they can come less frequently. I have some patients that have been migraine free for years that keep coming for maintenance. Acupuncture is also great for stress reduction.

The most common causes of migraine that I see are neck &/or upper back tightness or pain. And, often I see a tongue without any tongue coating and usually with a crack down the middle, as well as dark distended veins under their tongue. In TCM this diagnosis is called Kidney yin deficiency with Liver blood stagnation.

I hope this is helpful!

Acupuncture pain relief can last differently from person to person as well as depending on what is the cause of the pain and what activities contribute to the return of pain.

For example, if it is an acute neck & upper back muscular tightness that is causing the pain then it may only take one treatment to get rid of the pain completely until the next time the next gets strained again. Or if it is back pain do to spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal which pinches the spinal cord) then the pain relief may only last a few hours to a day or two before it returns, this is because in this case it will take time to correct the narrowing if at all. These are just examples. The general rule of thumb is if the correct diagnosis is made and the appropriate corresponding acupuncture treatment prescription is utilized usually I see at least a 50% reduction in pain symptoms if it is not completely gone with the first treatment. I then ask the patient to see how long the pain relief lasts. Based on their response it is a good idea to schedule the next acupuncture treatment as soon as the pain symptoms start to return. That way you aren't riding the pain rollercoaster. For example, let's say that you come in with neck pain and it is at a 10 out-of-10 on the pain scale. I treat you with acupuncture and your pain subsides. If the pain starts to come back and we waited then it could get back to being a 10 but, if we don't wait and you come in as soon as it starts to hurt again then you can decrease the intensity and increase the length of time that the pain relief lasts longer so that you can eventually get out of pain & discomfort altogether. Unless there is something underlying that is physically inhibiting the healing process for example a bone spur, etc.

It is not recommended to do acupuncture after a long strenuous travel or right after working out. It is better to not be hung over or not use recreational drugs or alcohol prior to acupuncture treatment. You should eat something before your treatment because it is not advisable to get acupuncture if you are too hungry or if your blood sugar is low or if you have been fasting. Use the restroom before your treatment so that you don't have to go while the needles are being retained during your treatment. Well loose clothing so that the acupuncturist can access the points below your elbow and knees. Avoid working out or doing anything too strenuous right after your acupuncture treatment. And, avoid going into water or taking a shower for about an hour although it is ok to drink water after.

Yes, massage after acupuncture is a great combination! If your acupuncturist or a massage therapist who is a holistic health practitioner (HHP) does the massage then it may even be billed to your insurance as 'myofacial therapy' CPT code 97140.