Acupuncture Nashua, Nashua Acupuncture & Chinese Herbal Medicine

	Nashua Acupuncture of Nashua, New Hampshire (NH) Welcomes You to Our Site: Nashua Acupuncture & Chinese Herbal Medicine Michael O’Brien Sarah Barlotta Licensed Acupuncturists Masters of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine
Home Page Recommended Reading In the News Watch 10 min segment as seen on WNDS - The Everything Show Watch 30 second mini movie Infertility Nutritional Balancing Hair Analysis Low Back Pain / Sciatica Research Abstracts Hematology Cancer Research Low Level Laser Therapy Recent Articles Testimonials Speaking Engagements Acupuncture Moxabustion Cupping Chinese Terminology Health History Directions FAQ Related Links Click here to buy products.	"When your heart is pure, the needle will be guided by your spirit" 3E Taggart Dr Greenridge Office Park Nashua, NH 03060 Tel. 603-598-1515 Fax 603-598-0909 EMail Address: info@nashuaacupuncture.com "I am happy to say that after a few months of religious acupuncture and herbal treatments my menstrual cycles were regulated, the cyclic pain subsided, and I was finally able to become pregnant!!" Tamara C. "The acupuncture I received from Sarah has relieved a significant amount of my head pain, especially the day-to-day headaches I was experiencing. During the treatment, you get a sense of relaxation and peace, which of course helps relieve any tension you may have prior to the session. I now have fewer, less severe headaches and have totally stopped one prescription. THIS HAS ALL HAPPENED WITHIN FOUR WEEKS!" Carla As a member of the medical profession I have to say that I was very skeptical of alternative therapies and acupuncture in particular but after hearing that my husband and I had a less than one percent chance of becoming pregnant on our own and not being a good candidate given my age (44 at the time) for traditional medical therapies like IVF we decided to give it a try! The rest is history, 5 months after starting treatment we became pregnant and our daughter was born nine months later, perfect in every way. Thank you Michael and Sarah for believing that the "impossible" can happen and helping us to achieve it with your innovative and supportive therapies. Dianne K.

How does acupuncture work?

Eastern Model:
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) style acupuncture, diagnosis and treatment is based on the Chinese concept of qi (energy) flowing through specific pathways in the body. Any imbalance or disruption in this flow can result in illness. An important point to this concept is that body and mind are intimately connected. Through a thorough intake, exam, pulse and tongue diagnosis, the acupuncturist can determine the nature of the disharmony. Very small disposable sterile needles are then inserted at precise locations to help the body restore its natural state of health.

A Western view:
TCM uses many terms that those of us who grew up in a western society may not relate to or understand. Here are a few examples of how the effects of acupuncture can be explained in western terms:
Specific points on certain pathways have shown very specific effects on bodily functions. When points on what is known as the heart meridian are needled there is a calming effect on our nervous system. When certain stomach points are needled digestive fluids and peristalsis are affected. Some points have a stimulating effect on our hormones. And other points stimulate uterine contractions. A point named guang ming (bright light) has been shown through brain imaging to stimulate the same brain area as the optic nerve. And some points have an immune boosting effect raising our white blood cell count.
These examples help give us an idea of why acupuncture can help restore health simply by the insertion of needles.

Chinese Herbal Medicine?

Diagnosis and treatment for Chinese herbal medicine is based on a similar model to that of TCM style acupuncture. The Chinese explanation of how herbs work uses terms that are unfamiliar to us in this society, such as sedating rebellious qi, drying damp, tonifying qi, nourishing yin and clearing heat.

While it is best to stick to the Chinese model for diagnosis and treatment, we can step outside this model for a moment to look from a western point of view. Keep in mind that not long ago most western drugs were extracts, isolated compounds from plants or animals. What makes western medicine so powerful is this focus on the specific active compound. This is a double-edged sword; the downside to such powerful medicine is the side effects it has on the body as a whole.

This is where the beauty of Chinese herbal medicine steps in. Individuals are evaluated for how a certain disharmony presents in their body, then a unique prescription of usually around a dozen herbs is used. As in western medicine, there are specific active ingredients that focus on treating the pathology. However, herbs retain the active compound in its natural state, therefore, having few, if any, side effects.

In certain cases of serious disease such as cancer, it is often best to use a combination of both western and Chinese treatment. In other cases Chinese herbal medicine can be quite effective on its own.

Who can benefit from Acupuncture?

The World Health Organization recently listed four categories of diseases and disorders for which acupuncture may be considered to be effective. This report is entitled 'Acupuncture: Review and analysis of reports on controlled clinical trials'.

Click to Download report (pdf format - 87 pages, 2 meg file!)

Category 1:
Diseases, symptoms or conditions for which acupuncture has proved through controlled trials-to be an effective treatment:

adverse reactions to radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy
allergic rhinitis (including hayfever)
biliary colic
depression (including depressive neurosis and depression following stroke
acute bacillary dysentary
primary dysmenorrhea
acute epigastralgia (in peptic ulcer, acute and chronic gastritis, and gastrospasm)
facial pain (including craniomandibular disorders)
headache

essential hypertension
primary hypertension
induction of labor
knee pain
leukopenia
low back pain
correction of malposition of fetus
morning sickness
nausea and vomiting
neck pain

pain in dentistry
(including dental pain and temporomandibular dysfunction)
periartthritis of shoulder
postoperative pain
renal colic
rheumatoid arthritis
sciatica
sprain
stroke
tennis elbow

Category 2:
Diseases, symptoms or conditions for which the therapeutic effect of acupuncture has been shown but for which further proof is needed:

abdominal pain (in acute gastroenteritis or due to gastrointestinal spasm)
acne vulgaris
alcohol dependence and detoxification
bell's palsy
bronchial asthma
cancer pain
cardiac neurosis
chronic cholecystitis with acute exacerbation
cholelithiasis
competition stress syndrome
closed craniocerebral injury
non-insulin-dependant diabetes mellitus
earache
epidemic haemorrhagic fever
simple epistaxis (without generalized or local disease)
eye pain due to subconjunctival infection
female infertility
facial spasm
female urethral syndrome
fibromyalgia and fasciitis
gastrokinetic disturbance

gouty arthritis
hepatitis b virus carrier status
herpes zoster (human (alpha) herpesvirus 3)
hyperlipaemia
hypo-ovarianism
insomnia
labour pain
lactation deficiency
non-organic male sexual dysfunction
meniere disease
post-herpetic neuralgia
neurodermatitis
obesity
opium, cocaine,and heroin dependence
osteoarthritis
pain due to endoscopic examination
pain in thromboangiitis obliterans
polycystic ovary syndrome (stein-leventhal sysndrome)
postextubation in children
postoperative convalescence
premenstrual syndrome

chronic prostatitis
pruritus
radicular and pseudoradicular pain syndrome
primary raynaud syndrome
recurrent lower urinary-tract infection
reflex sympathetic dystrophy
traumatic retention of urine
schizophrenia
drug-induced sialism
sjogren syndrome
sore throat (including tonsillitis)
acute spine pain
stiff neck
temporomandibular joint dysfunction
tietze syndrome
tobacco dependence
tourette syndrome
chronic ulcerative colitis
urolithiasis
vascular dementia
whooping cough (pertussis)

Category 3:
Diseases, symptoms or conditions for which there are only individual controlled trials reporting some therapeutic effects, but for which acupuncture is worth trying because treatment by conventional and other therapies is difficult:

chloasma
central serous choroidopathy
colour blindness

hypophrenia
irritable colon syndrome
neuropathic bladder in spinal cord injury

chronic pulmonary heart disease
small airway obstruction

Category 4:
Diseases, symptoms or conditions for which acupuncture may be tried provided the practitioner has special modern knowledge and adequate monitoring equipment:

breathlessness in chronic obstructive pulmanary disease
coma
convulsions in infants

coronary heart disease (angina pectoris)
diarrhoea in infants and young children

late stage viral encephalitis in children
progressive bulbar and pseudobulbar paralysis

Call for a Free consultation to see if Acupuncture and/or Chinese Herbal Medicine are right for you!
603-598-1515

Frequently asked questions:

Does it hurt?

Acupuncture does not hurt! Almost all of my patients find the treatments very relaxing, some even fall asleep during treatment. Now, that being said, there are different sensations that may be felt when getting treatment. These depend on the acupuncturist and his/her unique style of treatment and the individual being treated. These sensations range from heat, cold, tingling, numbness, heaviness, distension, and a feeling of floating. You may feel a sense of the energy moving along the meridians in the body. All of these sensations are considered good and acceptable, what we do not want, is the patient to feel as though they are being stabbed by the needle. This feeling can happen, it is easily resolved by a quick twist of the needle. Continuous open communication helps make the treatment process go smoothly.

Do I need to believe in acupuncture for it to work?

You do not need to believe in it, for it to be effective. Many acupuncturist's use the example of how effective acupuncture is in treating animals. I will tell you that I have had a number of patients that have come here as a 'last resort' on the advice of a friend. They came reluctantly, and still got better, though even after getting better, some still had trouble believing in such a system! While acupuncture is thousands of years old, there is much we still do not understand about how or why it works from a Western perspective.

How many treatments do I need?

This is a very difficult question to give a straight answer to. The rule of thumb is, that for acute problems you may only need a few treatments and for chronic problems you may need a few months of treatments. In China, 10 treatments constitutes one course of treatment. When treating women's health issues, related to menstruation, generally it is best to treat through 3 complete cycles. I generally tell my patients that if you do not feel some results after having 6 treatments, then either acupuncture is not right for your condition or perhaps you and I are not a good fit and you should seek out another acupuncturist.

Is it safe?

Yes! Acupuncture is very safe. As one of teachers would always say, "acupuncture heals, it does not hurt". The majority of practitioner's use pre-sterilized disposable needles. The needles are used only one time and then properly disposed of as bio-hazard medical waste.

Can I have acupuncture if I am pregnant?

Absolutely, acupuncture can be very helpful for a number of the complications that are associated with pregnancy. Women who have habitual mis-carriages can benefit from acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine during pregnancy. Acupuncture is also good for morning sickness, low back pain, correcting a breech position, and for those interested, it can help with delivery.

Other sites of interest:
Information about Genetically Modified Foods
Resolve - site for infertility
Taking charge of your fertility
Fertility Network
East Winds Acupuncture, Colorado Springs, Co.
Acupuncture Today
New England School of Acupuncture
Acupuncture.com
Complements For Health
Alternative resources - directory of Alternative related websites.
Cityreview Nashua
Enhanced Healing - Enhanced Healing Through Relaxation Music
TCM Directory
Health and Goodness.com
uscity.net directory

Serving the New Hampshire communities of Nashua, Hudson, Amherst, Hollis,
Bedford, Manchester, Litchfield and Merrimack.

Serving the Massachusetts communities of Tyngsboro, Westford, Chelmsford, Pepperell and Dunstable.