Acupuncture
Acupuncture is the most popular element of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and is therefore one of the oldest and most widespread healing methods in the world, having contributed to healing many diseases for over 2000 years.
The basic idea of acupuncture (and TCM) is that a human being has to be considered holistically – as an integrated complex system. A central assumption of acupuncture is that life energies circulate along so-called meridians in the body. Normally these life energies control all body functions, but if the flow of energy is disturbed, acute or even chronic pain can arise, for example in the back, joints, or muscles.
The energy flow can be brought back into balance through acupuncture, which simply involves stimulating the acupuncture and acupressure points situated at various points on the meridians.
Acupuncture can help a wide variety of problems, e.g. back pain, irritation of the sciatic nerve, lumbago, shoulder pain, knee complaints, pain of the Achilles tendon, arthrosis pain, headaches or even rheumatic pain.
A daily acupuncture session is recommended for acute diseases, but a one to two week rhythm is typically the best for longer term treatment. A session usually lasts 20 minutes, but can be as long as 40 minutes. Depending on the issue, 6 to 10 sessions are normally sufficient, but occasionally 12 to 20 sessions may be required. Due to the absence of side effects, acupuncture is also a very good long-term therapy, depending on the type of complaint.
