After years of thinking about it, I gave acupuncture a try. I found a highly recommended doctor in my little town and made an appointment. My 10-year-old was completely mind blown that I would voluntarily have needles stuck in my skin.
What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is a Chinese Medicine that uses very small needles to stimulate different points within the body to balance Qi (pronounced Chee) or energy. When energy is blocked, pain or sickness can occur. Acupuncture releases the blockage and helps the body heal naturally. Qi flows through the body in meridians. It was explained to me like water flowing through a river. Certain parts of the river may be more likely to collect or pool, so the water doesn’t flow as well. Acupuncture clears these areas so the energy flow is not blocked. Acupuncture is an ancient practice – dating back thousands and thousands of years. Anything that has been around that long has a good enough rep for me!

My first 4 visits
The first appointment was a holistic evaluation -basically an in-depth consultation. The doctor asked me A LOT of questions, some of which surprised me. I was expecting physical questions but instead they were mostly emotional and relational. After talking for 30 minutes, he felt my pulse on my wrists. He did this for about 20 minutes, making notes as he felt different points. (Without a previous Ayurveda experience, I probably would have been freaked out by this.) He also had me stick out my tongue and made some notes about the appearance. After all of this, he explained a little bit about acupuncture and told me my primary energy is fire. This lines up with my Pitta dosha in Ayurveda. I believe he said my secondary energy was water, but it might have been air. Sometimes I focus so hard on what the doctor is saying that I don’t listen if that makes any sense.
A week later I went for my first treatment. After getting my weight and blood pressure the doctor came in to talk with me about anything new going on in my life since my last appointment. After a quick conversation, he explained the first treatment like this – think of your mind like a circle. Various emotions are constantly bouncing around the circle, sort of like a ping-pong ball. This particular treatment helps to slow down those bouncing emotions. So far I liked what I was hearing. I have my fair share of ping-pong balls in my circle.

I undressed from the waist up, put on a gown, and laid face down on the table. For this treatment, all the needles went in my back along-side my spine, but he said each treatment will be different. A total of 12 needles were inserted. He gave me a warning before he poked, starting at the top and working his way down one side, then starting back at the top on the other side. The first few near the top were more noticeable than the ones near the bottom. There were a few that I couldn’t feel at all! At no time was it painful – just a quick poke and that was it.
I was doing great until half way down the right side of my back. I started to feel anxiety creep in & I got hot. I was on the verge of a full-blown panic attack, but thankfully that only lasted about 30 seconds and then I was fine.
Once they were all in I laid face down for about 30 minutes, with the nurse or doctor checking on me every 10 minutes, waiting for the redness around the needles to disappear. I felt very relaxed. One of the needles toward the top was noticeable, but otherwise I honestly forgot I had 12 needles sticking out of my back. Removing them was painless also.
When I got up, I felt like I had just woke up from a VERY long nap. I had a little bit of a headache which got worse as the day went on (I had not eaten anything yet) My eyes were having a hard time focusing. Super weird. I think everyone at the checkout desk might have been looking at me funny. Despite the weird sleepy/drunk feeling, I did feel calm. He suggested I sit in my car for a couple of minutes before I start driving to make sure I feel ok, then pay attention to how I feel the next few days. He said I would notice a very subtle difference, not a thunderbolt. Over the next few hours I felt very calm and a little tired. I took some Motrin to help with the headache and ate some lunch.
Two weeks later I went for my second visit, which was different from the first. He felt my pulse and said it was very irregular and jagged. This particular treatment would make it nice and smooth. I would notice myself being less reactive to things that happen around me. If something happened that bother me, I would recognize and let it go as opposed to over-reacting. This treatment involved 3 needles in each wrist. 2 went at the base of my hand on each side and one in the middle underneath my forearm. After he put the needles in, he twisted each one a little bit to grab the Qi (pronounced CHEE – another name for Energy) Weird. Totally weird sensation but it only lasted a few seconds. Once that was done I couldn’t feel a thing and I laid and relaxed for 15 minutes. I wanted desperately to take a picture of this. But it’s hard to hold your phone and take a selfie when you have needles sticking out of your wrists. So I didn’t. L After this treatment I felt like I had taken a nap, but didn’t have the weird eye focus problem. No headache. Felt great. We happened to be leaving for a road trip later that day. I packed a pillow in the truck and the next thing I knew – 45 minute had passed! It is common to be tired after acupuncture. From what I’ve read, the more tired you are afterward, the more your body needed the treatment? I have no idea where I read that but it was on the internet so it must be true… The benefit of this treatment lasted much longer & was much more noticeable than the first one. Expect for one slight freak out (which I’m totally blaming on the heat and a cranky 5-year-old) I felt calm, less reactive, and overall happier. My kids even made a comment about my good mood and it lasted for days.
My third visit was similar to the second.  It was meant to smooth out my pulse even more. He put a needle near each collarbone (LU 1 Central Treasury point) and again in my wrists, twisting after each one was inserted. He asked me to pay special attention to my reactions over the next few weeks. The Central Treasury is a lung meridian point. This can be used to treat breathing problems and help with blocked emotions and depression. Compared to my second treatment, this one seemed less effective. I wasn’t beaming rays of sunshine like I was last time. I would describe the next week as neutral – not super happy and not super sad.
My takeaways
*It’s painless and relaxing, despite having needles sticking out of my body (they are very thin)
*I find it fascinating to learn about the body’s energy, but it’s not for everyone. Have an open mind.
*Find a doc you like. Mine is a “regular’ doctor that incorporates alternative options which makes me feel like I’m getting the whole package. He is very thorough and takes his time which can be hard to find these days!
*Rest afterwards (I find I am always tired after my appointment) Maybe it’s a coincidence but my most effective visit so far was the appointment that I followed up with a long nap!
*Keep notes on how you feel after your appointments so you are better prepared for the next visit because they will want to know how you have been since your last visit.
I’m sure each experience will vary based on the practitioner, but this how it went for me and I am excited to see how I respond to the next three treatments. I will update in a later post!