What to Expect at Your Visit
Before:
After booking your acupuncture treatment, you will be emailed an intake form to complete before our session via a secure, online charting platform.
Before your visit it is best to eat a small meal or snack, and arrive well hydrated.
Please avoid the consumption of caffeine and alcohol prior to your appointment.
If you intend on exercising this day, try to do it in the morning before your appointment.
If possible, it is best to wear comfortable and loose-fitting clothing. If this is not possible, not to worry, we will use draping techniques
During:
Our first acupuncture session together is 90-minutes. We will get to know how you are doing, what your current concerns are, and what your goals for treatment are. We will discuss your lifestyle habits, how you are sleeping, what your emotional state is, how your bowel movements are, and more. Seemingly unrelated information is often intimately connected to your chief concern in Chinese medicine. This means if you come in for reoccurring headaches, I may inquire about your digestion or your menstrual cycle.
Then Chinese medical diagnostic procedures will occur, such as feeling your pulse, observing your tongue, and palpating your acupuncture channels.
We will discuss your current state of health under the lens of Chinese medicine, and outline a treatment plan. This includes what we will do together such as acupuncture, massage, cupping, and/or gua sha. It also includes what you may do on your own, such as adopting dietary and lifestyle suggestions.
This is followed by an acupuncture treatment. You will rest and relax for approximately 30-minutes once the needles are in. Most people find this time very relaxing, and often have a little sleep.
60-minute follow-up visits are similar with a briefer check-in about any changes, and then an acupuncture treatment.
After:
Because an acupuncture treatment will take place during our first visit together, it is ideal to schedule some time for yourself after the treatment, if possible. This allows you to integrate the treatment, and elongates the feelings of deep relaxation one typically feels after an acupuncture treatment.
Drink plenty of warm fluids, take a gentle walk if the weather permits, and be mindful of any mental stimuli you engage with.
Number & Frequency of Treatments
The number and frequency of treatments an individual requires varies depending what we are working on, how long it has been present, and an individuals constitution. Generally, we can say the following:
Acute conditions: 3 - 5 treatments is ideal.
Chronic conditions: 6 - 8 treatments is ideal.
*Because some chronic conditions cannot be cured, the goal of treatment is to help support one's condition with ongoing treatment.
The benefits of acupuncture treatments are cumulative, therefore it is ideal to begin by seeing each other twice per week to gain momentum, for one to two weeks. As we see improvements, we space the treatments out to once per week, then once every two weeks, until we get to once per month for maintenance. The goal is to gain forward momentum instead of having the appointments spaced too far apart, resulting in a regression. Part of our treatment plan will include what you can do between treatments to support your body's healing process. Part of this includes trusting your bodies innate healing wisdom, and it's own timing for healing.
