Entries by Steve Hoffman

Acupuncture & The Mouse?

July 9, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , /by
Acupuncture and the Mouse

Wait, is this about veterinary acupuncture? Nope. So, what does acupuncture have to do with mice you are asking? Take a few minutes and find out!

Saving Up

I owned a house in Boonton New Jersey and one fall I went to get my work boots out of the closet to do some yard work. I put one on no problem but when I went to put the other one on, I couldn’t get my foot in! I look in the boot and it is FILLLED with dog kibble!! I look at my dog...she looks at me and we both shrug our shoulders. I lived in a wooded area and after thinking about it, I realized that it must have been mice who moved the food from the dog bowl to the boot for storage! Thinking about it further, I realized that there was enough food in the boot for 10 mice for 10 lifetimes. Why the heck didn’t the mouse take a look, realize that he or she was set for life and kick back with a mai tai.

Survival Instinct

I since spoke to a physiologist friend and related the story and they said that the behavior was driven by a primitive portion of the brain that has to do with survival. Humans still have this portion of the brain, but we also have higher level functioning that lets us look at this behavior or drive and shut it off. In essence, say enough is enough, I’m going to relax. The mouse didn’t have this ability and therefore couldn’t stop the behavior. Silly mouse. I often think about this with people who have more money than they could possibly spend in 10 lifetimes yet continue to work 80-hour weeks to get more. Ostensibly, they are working for their security and maybe the security of their family but at what cost. How much time do they get for their own pleasure and how much time are they sacrificing with their family, the things in life that really matter! Silly human.

Umm, What About Acupuncture?

I’m getting there. Whether we work 80 hours a week or not, this instinctual drive can cause things like anxiety, and depression on the flip side. By using acupuncture in conjunction with electrical stimulation, we can induce the brain and body to produce certain neuro-chemicals that relax the central nervous system, engage the parasympathetic nervous system (you can read about the divisions of the nervous system and how they affect you in my 2 part blog ​Are You Sympathetic Part 1 and ​Are You Sympathetic Part 2) disengage your adrenal glands, giving them a much needed rest and reduce stress hormones. These are powerful treatments that work with your body to reduce anxiety and depression and give you much needed sleep to recover from the rigors of your life! When I relate this story to my patients, I tell them “Don’t be like the silly mouse”!

​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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​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Can Acupuncture Cure Your Neck Pain?

May 8, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , /by

If you’ve read any of my blogs, you probably know the answer I’m going to give, so say it with me: It Depends! And what does it depend on? Mostly it depends on the cause of the neck pain along with your definition of “cure”. If by cure, you mean gone, never to return, yes acupuncture can do that in most instances, but the cause will determine the length of treatment and how much maintenance acupuncture you may or may not need.

Neck Injury & Acupuncture

Acute injuries respond very well and very quickly to treatment. Of course, the severity of the injury is also a determining factor. A neck strain, sprain or sport injury can be resolved in rather short order. Severe trauma, be it from sports, car accident or a fall can take much longer and may not ever be cured if your definition is back to 100%. That does not mean that acupuncture is not worth the time or money in these instances. We can give patients improved range of motion and more complete healing then they would otherwise achieve without treatment. These cases also typically require maintenance treatments.

Neck Pain from Stress

I would say about 90% of my patients have some type of neck pain or discomfort, even if it is not their chief complaint. Most of these cases are stress related. The body tends to store tension in this area, and this is really a good thing since it is better than storing tension in your organs. After all, this can result in issues ranging from stomach problems to heart disease. These cases typically need longer courses of treatment and more maintenance treatments than acute injuries. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, I tend to see patients when the problem becomes unbearable and impacts their everyday lives. Most people can ignore occasional neck discomfort or self-medicate with pain relievers for years before they get to the breaking point. The longer the problem has been there, the longer treatment will take. Secondly, most people are unwilling or unable to make the changes in their lives that caused the problem in the first place. These are tough changes, lifestyle changes. Diet, exercise, stress reduction techniques, these are the things that can reduce or eliminate stress induced neck pain by themselves! When coupled with acupuncture, even modest changes can have a big impact.

At Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, we offer individualized lifestyle modification advice that can get you back to normal fast and keep you neck (along with the rest of your body) in peak condition. Call today for a free 30-minute consultation!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Acupuncture & The Magic Wand

April 29, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , /by

Um...what. The magic wand! Everyone has heard of acupuncture’s magical healing powers, why not a magic wand. Totally joking but there is something I ask all my patients when they first come in and that is: If you had a magic wand and could make one thing go away, what would it be. Often patients come in with a litany of health complaints and many other times just one or two, but their intake reveals that they are struggling with many issues. What I want to know is, what is the thing that is bothering them the most, what is affecting their lives on a day to day basis. This lets me home in on the main problem and tackle that problem first. And you know what, when that one problem gets better, many of the patient’s other complaints get better as well. Almost as if...by magic!

One problem affecting many things

Take back pain for example. This can have a huge impact on someone’s life and is something I commonly treat. But once the patients back pain starts to get better, they start to sleep better, they have more energy, they can exercise, they don’t have those few drinks at the end of the day, and they find they are making better food choices. This is a huge shift in someone’s life and can have a huge impact on their health. All from one problem.

Acupuncture affects the body globally

The other piece of this is that acupuncture can affect the entire body. So, while I may be treating and targeting the low back for a patient, the treatment will reduce inflammation and increase circulation in the entire body. The endorphins that are stimulated will circulate through the entire body. So, while there are “ancillary” effects due to the reduction of back pain in our example, acupuncture treatment can have a primary effect on symptoms other than the chief complaint.

So, bring me all of your problems, I’m ready with my magic wand! Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine offers a free 30 minute, no risk, no obligation consultation. We can even do it from the comfort of your own home, over the phone or via video conference.

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Pain, Age & Acupuncture

April 19, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , , , /by

Everyone knows that little aches and pains start to creep in as we age. They become part of everyday life and something that most feel that they just have to suffer through. I often wonder though, if you woke up one day when you were 18 years old with all of the aches and pains that you deal with when you are 40, 50 or 60, would you feel like a Mack truck hit you. Would you think “Holy crow, what just happened!” You would probably go to the doctor and try to find out what went wrong and what you could do to fix it.

How Did I Get Here?

But these thing creep in slowly, a knee that bothers you once a week, a back that goes out occasionally, neck pain that crops up every now and again. You ignore these things, take a pain reliever and say oh, it’s just part of getting older. Five-or ten-years pass, and you can’t exercise like you used to, your back is affecting your work and your neck bothers you and keeps you from sleeping well. How did you get here? By ignoring the signs your body was sending you. If you broke your leg, your body would send you such strong pain signals that you couldn’t ignore them. But the aches and pains associated with aging come on over years and you make accommodations, especially when we are taught to “toughen up” and “push through it”. Don’t wait until these aches and pains become so deep seated that they are hard to deal with. Listen to your body and get the help that it is asking for.

How Acupuncture Can Help

If patients would come in for treatment when these aches and pains start, they are easy to deal with the use of acupuncture. Treatment plans are short, and some changes can be made to prevent the problems from recurring. The longer a pain syndrome has been present, the harder it is to correct, the longer it takes to treat and the higher the cost. When patients wait until they are older and the problem has been around for decades, the body’s natural healing abilities are not as robust and even with treatment, it is more likely that the situation will be one of pain management rather than complete healing and recovery.

Pain is not an inevitable byproduct of getting older. It is your body telling you something is wrong. Listen and get help. Acupuncture is a great way to reduce or even eliminate pain. Call today for a free 30-minute consultation!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Acupuncture & How the Body Heals

April 2, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , /by

Your body needs some basic things to heal itself and acupuncture can help provide all of them regardless of whether your injury is acute or chronic. So how exactly can sticking a needle in your body help you heal, it seems kind of counter intuitive. Read on to find out!

Acupuncture & Blood Flow

Without blood flow, your body quite simply cannot heal. Blood flow brings oxygen, nutrients, enzymes and other basic building blocks that make up our cells and our body. When the body is injured, blood flow is required to repair, rebuild and remove damaged tissue to get you back to normal. Insertion of acupuncture needles in to the body cause several reactions. One of those reactions is to build new blood vessels and bring vital nutrients to the area. Acupuncture not only increases blood flow but decreases pain and inflammation.

Acupuncture & Nutrients

Without the basic nutrients and building blocks, no amount of blood flow will help your body heal. If you are not ingesting the right nutrients your body will have a hard time healing. This is something you can help with. If you are not digesting properly, the best nutrients in the world are not going to do you any good. This is what acupuncture can help with. If the stomach is not producing strong enough stomach acid, the foods that are eaten are not broken down properly. Thing like protein and gluten need to be broken down before they reach the lower digestive tract and if they are not, they interfere with nutrient absorption (and can cause IBS, Crohn’s disease and even auto immune disorders). Acupuncture can help the digestive system work properly and even mitigate things like stress that affect digestion.

Acupuncture & The Body Electric

The human body runs on bio-electricity. Cells normally function in an environment of -20 to -25 millivolts. To heal and repair, cells require an environment of -50 millivolts. If you read my blog on EARTHING you know that the earth is negatively charged and that when the body is removed or isolated from this charge, the body become positively charged. Not a good environment for healing. Earthing is one way to restore the bodies negative charge. Acupuncture is another. Using electric stimulation devices, negatively charged electrons can be introduced in to the body in either a targeted fashion (directly to the area of injury or dysfunction) or more globally to help the entire body perform better.

Chronic injuries are always due to a deficiency in one or likely all of these areas (especially proper electric charge). After all, if the body had all three of these components, it would heal itself. Acupuncture can help you get all three. Three for one! That sounds like quite a deal. Call today to set up your free 30-minute consultation and we can discuss your individual problem and find the proper solution for you.

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Acupuncture & Pain: Is Maintenance Enough

March 21, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , /by

Just about every patient asks me the same question when starting treatment: “How many treatments will this take.” I hate to say it because it sounds like a cop out, but it depends. And it depends on a variety of factors. One of those factors is how long the pain has been there. Typically, it takes one month of treatment for every year the problem has been there. So, if your problem has been around for 20 years, buckle up, you’re going to need almost 2 years of regular treatment. Another major factor in treatment planning is what your treatment goals are.

Treatment Goals

Your goals can be to eliminate the pain, or to reduce the frequency and severity of the pain (maintenance). After all, if someone is suffering from debilitating migraines twice a week that cause them to miss work and limits their ability to function, a reduction to twice a month would be considered maintenance. But that may be a huge win and enough for some patients. Will they have to continue with maintenance treatment to keep things under control? Yes, but one to two treatments a month should suffice.

Your Commitment to Healing

This may be the biggest factor in determining how long treatment will take and will factor in to your goals for treatment. It will also factor in to how often maintenance treatments are required. Are you willing to leave behind the things that made you sick in the first place? If you live the life of a Yogi or a Daoist priest, you are likely to lead a long, healthy life with few, if any, trips to the doctor. Our modern lives, however, are filled with stress, time pressures, too little exercise, too much crappy food, increasing isolation and poor coping mechanisms. All these factors can contribute to poor physical and emotional health and ultimately result in pain. Unless you take steps to leave behind the things that caused your pain in the first place and incorporate healthy habits, your treatment time will be longer, and the maintenance required to keep you feeling good will be more frequent. This is like owning a high-performance sports car, paying top dollar to get it running at peak levels and then taking it 4 wheeling. Odds are pretty good that you are going to have to take it right back to the mechanic. With acupuncture, if you change your habits and live a healthier life, maintenance treatments can be few and far between. Hey, I’ll be glad to take your money and treat you once a week if you are unable to make those changes, but I would much rather see you around town than see you in my office!

Elimination of Pain

Is it possible to eliminate pain? Depending on the cause, pain can be eliminated but this takes an even bigger commitment to incorporating changes into your life. So how long will treatment take? I tell all my patients that if I could get them better in one treatment I would. Some say that’s bad for business but if I could really eliminate pain in one treatment, I would have a line out the door from my office to Texas!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Earthing & Acupuncture

March 12, 2019 /0 Comments/in , /by

Wait, whating? Earthing or grounding is the practice of putting the body in direct, uninterrupted contact with the ground. This means direct skin contact with the earth. And why would you want to do that, the ground is icky after all. Well, studies have shown that direct contact with the ground can provide real, measurable and sustainable health benefits. Earthing or grounding can provide:

​Reduced inflammation

Reduced chronic pain (or even elimination)

Improved sleep

Reduced stress and stress hormones

Normalized blood pressure

​Reduced muscle tension

Reduced menstrual and female hormone symptoms

Improved healing

Reduced recovery time from sports activities

Supports adrenal health

​How Does Earthing Improve Health

The earth has a negative charge to it. Injury, stress and modern life cause our bodies to become positively charged. This positive charge can also lead to disease. Contact with the earth and its negative charge reduces this positive charge and allows our bodies to heal themselves. If you think about it, during most of our development as a species, we walked the earth in bare feet (or used natural materials on our feet that did not insulate us from the earth’s negative charge). We slept on the ground, we worked in the ground, hunting, gathering, farming. What do you suppose happens when, over the last 200 years or so, we have become completely disconnected and insulated from this negative charge that our bodies evolved with? Look at the list above and replace “reduced” with “increased” and you get a pretty good idea. Do you think it is a coincidence that you feel better when laying on the beach or camping or gardening? These activities get us back in touch with earth and bring us back in balance.

But the Ground is Icky

Yes, yes, it is. And it is not too much fun to go out in your bare feet and relax with a nice cup of tea when there is snow on the ground! Fortunately, there are several ways to mimic the effects of earthing in the comfort of your home. Earthing mats, sheets and bands are available that will provide the benefits of sticking your feet in the sand. These devices are attached by a cord to the ground port of an electric outlet. This leads to a grounding rod that is...well, grounded. This feeds your body the negative charge that it needs to balance and heal.

Acupuncture

So, what does any of this have to do with acupuncture. Well at Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, every patient is offered the use of grounding bands. Not only does this give you the negative charge your body needs but it potentiates your acupuncture treatment making it that much more effective! Come in today, get acupuncture, get grounded and get better!!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

These 5 Acupuncture Points Target Headaches

March 5, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , /by

Headaches come in all shapes and sizes. Migraine, tension, cluster and sinus are four broad categories. These categories can be broken down by location to frontal, temporal, occipital, vertex and whole head. There are also a few different kinds of migraine headaches. Just like headaches come in all shapes and sizes, there are different acupuncture points that will address each of type and location. Choosing the right points for your specific headache takes training and clinical experience, however, there are some points that are so effective, that they can be used for almost any type.

How acupuncture helps headaches

Most headaches happen in the nerves, muscles and blood vessels that cover a person’s head and neck. Tightness, restriction and impingement on nerves and blood vessels cause the pain that is a headache. Acupuncture reduces inflammation, increases circulation, relaxes muscles and even causes the body to produce powerful pain-relieving hormones and neurotransmitters. All of this not only relieves the pain of the headache but also helps the body retrain itself and heal. Some of the most commonly used acupuncture points for headaches are listed below.

Large Intestine 4 for general headaches

This acupuncture point, shown below, excels at treating almost any type of headache. This point travels up the neck and to the face and will increase blood flow and help reduce inflammation.

Liver 3 for general headaches

Located on the top of the foot (shown below) this point is often used in conjunction with Large Intestine 4 and is the number one point on the entire body for extinguishing pain. Since Large Intestine 4 targets the face and neck, when this point is added, it works synergistically to increase the effectiveness of the pain relief.

Gallbladder 41 & San Jiao 5

These two points are used together to address temporal headaches (sides of the head). Both points travel to the sides of the head and will relax the muscles in this area.

Bladder 60 & Small Intestine 3

These points are also used together but help with the back of the neck and head (occipital area). These are areas that are affected by stress and too much visual stimulation.

Stomach 36 & Large Intestine 4

Large Intestine 4 shows up again but this time in conjunction with Stomach 36. These two points alleviate frontal and sinus headaches.

If you are suffering with a headache, these points can be stimulated with medium to heavy pressure with the tip of your finger to help reduce and eliminate the headache. If your headaches are chronic or if you get more than one a week, it is a signal from your body that something is wrong, and you should seek help. At Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, we offer a free, no obligation, 30-minute consultation. Stop suffering and listen to your body, acupuncture can help!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

Acupuncture for Insomnia

February 26, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , /by

A patient that I am treating for insomnia recently told me that her doctor said that her body will force her to get enough sleep to survive and that she shouldn’t worry about a lack of sleep. While the doctor was technically correct let me ask you: can you survive with two broken legs. Can you survive on a diet of Doritos and Soda? You certainly can but it is also certainly not optimal. In order to be healthy, vibrant and to thrive instead of just survive, you need sleep.

What Happens While You Sleep?

Just about every cell in your body is replaced every seven years. Some, like white blood cells in just a few days, others, like red blood cells, every few months and still others, like fat cells, take years. And when does your body regenerate and replace all the cells. That’s right, when you are sleeping. This is because a part of your nervous system, known as the parasympathetic nervous system (or the rest and digest part) is engaged when you are sleeping. This is the only time your cells regenerate. This is when your immune system is regrown, your organs are regenerated, and wounds and injuries are healed. What happens when you sleep...think about what doesn’t happen when you don’t sleep!

Why You Can’t Sleep?

There is another part of your nervous system known as the sympathetic nervous system (or the fight or flight part). This is a survival mechanism that gets us ready to fight the bear or run away from the bear and is also known as your adrenal response. When this part kicks in, blood flow is shunted to your muscles, your heart rate accelerates and lung capacity increases, all things that will help you survive a life-threatening situation. This also shuts down the parasympathetic nervous system. Many of us are stuck or locked in sympathetic dominance due to high levels of stress, overstimulation, lack of exercise and more mindful, grounding activities. Therefore, many of us do not get enough restful, quality sleep.

How Acupuncture Can Help?

At Princeton Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine, we use specific protocols that will help your body engage the parasympathetic nervous system. We also have protocols that will “switch off” your adrenals, giving them a much-needed break and stopping them from producing stress hormones that will affect your sleep. Diet, lifestyle and other factors can also affect your sleep and we will give you a comprehensive plan to help you break the cycles that have put you on the path to poor sleep. Using this multi-pronged approach, we help your body do what it is supposed to do and help you make the changes that will enable you to get deep, restful sleep on a regular basis. Just think about what doesn’t happen when you don’t sleep and decide if you want to survive or thrive!

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.

4 Migraine Triggers and How Acupuncture Can Help

February 18, 2019 /0 Comments/in , , , , , /by

Migraine headaches can be debilitating. Even if you suffer from only occasional migraines, they can affect your work, your home life and your quality of life. They are also an indicator from your body that something is wrong. Let’s look at some of the causes of migraines.

Causes

Unfortunately, the causes of migraines are simply not well understood. It is thought that imbalances in brain chemicals may be involved. A neurotransmitter called serotonin, drops during migraine attacks and this may cause the release of other chemicals that result in the pain and other symptoms. The great news is that with acupuncture we can specifically dial in and induce the body and brain to produce serotonin.

Acupuncture

By using acupuncture on certain points on the body and then introducing electric stimulation at very specific frequencies, the body will produce chemicals, such as serotonin, and this will reduce or eliminate symptoms. It often takes some time and frequent visits (at least initially) to “retrain” the body to produce these substances. The good news is, that once the body starts producing the substances at higher levels it takes fewer and fewer treatments to maintain this higher level.

Migraine Triggers & Acupuncture

There are several known triggers for migraines that acupuncture can also help with.

Hormonal changes in women - Fluctuations in estrogen have been implicated in migraines in many women. Once again, acupuncture can help regulate hormones, helping to eliminate this trigger.

Drinks - Alcohol and caffeinated beverages may also trigger migraines. Acupuncture can help reduce cravings and increase energy so that patients are not as reliant on these beverages.

Stress - Work and/or home stress can trigger migraines and acupuncture has been clinically proven to reduce stress markers in the body and even make changes in the brain.

Insomnia - Too little or even too much sleep may trigger migraines in some people. Acupuncture can help with insomnia and help regulate your body so that you get more restful sleep in a shorter time.

If you or someone you know suffers from migraines, please reach out, we offer a 30-minute free consultation, there is no commitment, no cost and nothing to lose.

​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!


​Contact

​Traditional cultures have known for centuries the myriad benefits of drinking bone broth. This is something that has been lost in modern times but now you can return you and your family to this time-honored tradition of both maintaining health and even healing yourself simply by nourishing yourself properly.