Acupuncture: Beyond the Pain 

 March 29, 2018

By  Steve Hoffman

Pain syndromes can range from annoying to debilitating. From an injury that will heal, with thing eventually return to normal, to chronic problems that are a constant source of discomfort. These issues can affect everything from the quality of your life to your mental health. Acupuncture can safely and quickly reduce or eliminate most pain syndromes. The problem is that the pain will return. So how do we get the pain to go away permanently. The answer will often depend on the cause of the pain.

Pain due to an injury that your body is healing from will typically reduce over time (which can be dramatically decreased with the use of acupuncture and herbs) until you are back to 100% (or close to it, depending on the nature and severity of the injury). Chronic pain, that has no specific origin can be a different story. Where did the pain come from? Often, there are a variety of factors that will contribute to pain syndromes. Diet, weight, posture, stress, exercise (lack of and improper), simple aging, immune factors. One, many or all can be factors in pain. Acupuncture can not only directly address the pain but also the underlying causes. Here’s the catch: if you go back to habits that led to the pain in the first place, it will always come back. I see many patients who get better after a course of treatment. I don’t see them for six months and suddenly, they are back in my office, with the same severity of pain that they started with.

The key to obtaining lasting pain relief is twofold when it comes to acupuncture. Firstly, the corrective care phase of treatment is super important. After the acute care phase, when the pain is under control, a second phase of treatment is started called the corrective care phase. Treatments are normally less frequent, but we work on “constitutional” issues that cause or contribute to pain syndromes. Improvements in symptoms will be far less dramatic in this phase (I think that is why some patients stop treatment) but this phase of treatment is crucial to getting lasting relief. The second key to getting lasting relief? Changing some of the habits and mitigating some of the factors that caused the problem in the first place. At Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, we can help you with dietary and exercise plans and suggestions that will help you maintain the relief you have achieved.

Call us today for a consultation and we can tell you how we can help you get beyond your pain!


Princeton Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine

Our patients know just how effective treatments are for these and a host of other problems. Steven Hoffman, a New Jersey Licensed Acupuncturist and Diplomate in Oriental Medicine, will provide you with a thorough intake and evaluation and a clear, comprehensive diagnosis and treatment plan that will insure that your goals are met or exceeded. Do you want to move past these or other problems? We will help you thrive not just survive!

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