CHRONIC PAIN

Chronic pain is rarely just about where it hurts. When pain persists, the body can begin to compensate, creating patterns of tension, weakness, restricted movement, and fatigue that can continue to feed the problem.

Traditional acupuncture takes a different approach from simply treating the painful area. Rather than treating a diagnosis or symptom in isolation, I look at the whole person and the patterns that may be contributing to your pain.

A TRADITIONAL APPROACH

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, pain can have many different causes and presentations. Treatment is based on your individual pattern, not simply the location of your symptoms.

During an acupuncture treatment, I consider your pain and injury history alongside things such as energy levels, sleep, digestion, stress, circulation, temperature, menstrual health, and overall constitution. I also assess the quality of your pulse and other traditional diagnostic signs to help determine what patterns may be contributing to your symptoms.

This allows treatment to be individualized from one person to the next. Two people may have similar pain in the same part of the body but require very different acupuncture treatments.

TREATING THE WHOLE PERSON

I may use acupuncture points locally around an area of pain, while also using points elsewhere on the body to address the underlying pattern. In traditional acupuncture, the goal is not only to move pain, but to help restore balance and support the body's ability to regulate, recover, and function.

Depending on what I find, treatment may focus on moving stagnant circulation, supporting deficiencies, regulating the nervous system, reducing tension, strengthening the body's underlying resources, or addressing other patterns that may be contributing to persistent pain.

I also incorporate modern approaches when appropriate, including electrical stimulation, motor point and trigger point needling, cupping, guasha, and manual therapy. These can complement traditional acupuncture and allow treatment to address both the immediate symptoms and the larger pattern.

YOUR TREATMENT IS INDIVIDUALIZED

Chronic pain can be complicated, especially when it has been present for years or when multiple factors are involved. My goal is to understand your experience as a whole person rather than reducing it to a single diagnosis or painful body part.

Treatment is designed around you, your history, your body, your goals, and what you need to move forward.