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How Does Acupuncture Work?
By Peter Games, L. Ac.
Years ago, while working as an engineer in Boston, I received acupuncture treatments aimed at reducing the high level of stress in my life. I had been on a very taxing project at work and after hearing a co-worker rave about an acupuncturist, I became curious enough to begin weekly acupuncture treatments. I found the treatments to be incredibly relaxing. Though difficult to describe in words how I felt physically or emotionally after a treatment, I was certain that I wanted to experience that physical and emotional state at all times, one of extreme contentment, comfort, and awareness.
It was apparent to me that acupuncture treatments brought about a change, but as an engineer, I sought a logical explanation and became curious about how acupuncture could elicit such a response in a patient. It seemed implausible that inserting about ten extremely thin needles into a patient’s body for approximately twenty minutes could result in such a dramatic change, and yet that is precisely what was happening. The more I received treatments, the more I was able to feel the therapeutic effects, and the more fascinated I became with acupuncture.
During these treatments, I was frequently frustrated when I asked the acupuncturist to explain how acupuncture worked. The acupuncturist would state tersely that unbalanced energy was being balanced. Each subsequent question seemed to be met with a similarly brief, matter-of-fact response. I assumed that my acupuncturist was actually avoiding my questions. I got the impression that he couldn’t really explain how acupuncture worked, so instead he filled the air with incomprehensible, new-age jargon. I just wanted an answer to my question.
Several years later, while living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, I met a student who was studying at a local acupuncture college. She had studied acupuncture for two years and would be graduating in another year. Now, I could surely get an answer to my question. I asked her very specifically, “How can a needle inserted here”, pointing toward my wrist, “bring about change in a completely different part of my body? What is physiologically, or even chemically, happening to explain that phenomenon?” She didn’t hesitate at all before responding. “I don’t know. I have no idea.” Again, I found this answer very unsatisfying. Wouldn’t her education, an accredited Master’s Degree program, focus on that very topic? How could she be incapable of answering these questions after two years of studying acupuncture?
By Peter Games, L. Ac.
Years ago, while working as an engineer in Boston, I received acupuncture treatments aimed at reducing the high level of stress in my life. I had been on a very taxing project at work and after hearing a co-worker rave about an acupuncturist, I became curious enough to begin weekly acupuncture treatments. I found the treatments to be incredibly relaxing. Though difficult to describe in words how I felt physically or emotionally after a treatment, I was certain that I wanted to experience that physical and emotional state at all times, one of extreme contentment, comfort, and awareness.It was apparent to me that acupuncture treatments brought about a change, but as an engineer, I sought a logical explanation and became curious about how acupuncture could elicit such a response in a patient. It seemed implausible that inserting about ten extremely thin needles into a patient’s body for approximately twenty minutes could result in such a dramatic change, and yet that is precisely what was happening. The more I received treatments, the more I was able to feel the therapeutic effects, and the more fascinated I became with acupuncture.
During these treatments, I was frequently frustrated when I asked the acupuncturist to explain how acupuncture worked. The acupuncturist would state tersely that unbalanced energy was being balanced. Each subsequent question seemed to be met with a similarly brief, matter-of-fact response. I assumed that my acupuncturist was actually avoiding my questions. I got the impression that he couldn’t really explain how acupuncture worked, so instead he filled the air with incomprehensible, new-age jargon. I just wanted an answer to my question.
Several years later, while living in Santa Fe, New Mexico, I met a student who was studying at a local acupuncture college. She had studied acupuncture for two years and would be graduating in another year. Now, I could surely get an answer to my question. I asked her very specifically, “How can a needle inserted here”, pointing toward my wrist, “bring about change in a completely different part of my body? What is physiologically, or even chemically, happening to explain that phenomenon?” She didn’t hesitate at all before responding. “I don’t know. I have no idea.” Again, I found this answer very unsatisfying. Wouldn’t her education, an accredited Master’s Degree program, focus on that very topic? How could she be incapable of answering these questions after two years of studying acupuncture?
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