A Light Bulb Moment!
Most of the time, I place acupuncture needles on the arms and legs, away from where the pain is actually felt. Many of my patients wonder why I place acupuncture needles where I do when the pain is somewhere else on the body. The reason is that acupuncture points act like electrical switches that turn on or turn off energy to different parts of the body.
Think of your body like a house. In the house, there are different light bulbs that turn on and off. The electricity is energy that runs throughout the house, just like the energy that runs throughout your body. However, in order to turn on or off the light bulb, we do not actually touch the light bulb. Instead, we flip a switch on the wall that is away from the light bulb. There is usually circuitry in the house that runs from the light bulb to the switch that controls whether or not the energy flows to the light bulb.
This is how acupuncture works. Our body has complex circuitry that allows the skilled acupuncturist to increase or decrease the energy juice that runs throughout the body. This is how the acupuncturist is able to help keep a body balanced.
All Energy is Not the Same
In Asian medicine and Asian philosophy, everything and everyone is influenced by two complementary energies, yin and yang. Yin energy is more subdued, demure, dark, calm, passive, feminine, small, cold, wet, and downward. Yang energy is more radiant, vibrant, bright, active, aggressive, masculine, large, hot, and upward. Yin and Yang are always present together for dynamic energy in the same way that mankind is propagated by both the male and female species. One cannot exist and continue without the other.
For example, let us think about a growing plant. It starts off as a seed and the roots grow down into the cold and damp ground. This is the yin energy at work. Yet the stalk and leaves grow upward toward the hot sunlight. This is the yang energy at work. When there is perfect balance, the plant grows healthy and strong. However, too much yin energy and not enough yang energy could cause the roots of the plant to rot and the plant will die. Conversely, too much yang energy and not enough yin energy could cause the plant to shrivel up dry and die.
The human body works in the same manner. Perfect balance is what helps a growing baby turn into a healthy adult. Even within the human body, our organs have to balance yin and yang energy to develop and work properly. For example, internal organs must have balanced nutrients and circumstances to develop properly. If one type of energy outweighs the other type of energy, then you have imbalanced development that leads to health issues later in life.
Why is it that two people could eat the same exact foods and yet have different digestive consequences? This is because they have different energy balances at work on the internal organs, such as the stomach, small intestine, or large intestine.
The skilled acupuncturist will consider all of your symptoms and exacerbating circumstances to determine factors that are contributing to your health ailments, then develop a plan of action to bring all your energies back to balance.
Balancing Yin and Yang Energies
When your health seems out of balance, the skilled acupuncturist will zoom in on which side the imbalance tilts and then figure out a strategy to return to equilibrium. For example, imbalance could be either too much yin energy and not enough yang energy. It could be the opposite: too much yang energy and not enough yin energy. When treating a patient, a skilled acupuncturist is attempting to either increase one energy or reduce another energy in hopes of striking the right balance. When the right balance is reached, your unwanted physical symptom will naturally disappear.
The imbalance could be limited to your kidney function or your liver function. It could be your stomach function or your intestine function. Whatever is going on inside your body will be revealed by the clues your body gives by reacting to specific conditions. That is why the acupuncturist is always asking about the details of your physical body functions. We want to know how your body reacts to heat and cold. What kinds of foods do you digest well and which do you have a difficult time? What happens after you have a night of gluttony?
Your acupuncturist will become more intimately aware of your poop and pee than your own mother has ever been. You will learn to appreciate the finer details of how your body expels human waste, including the color, texture, and time. Why? Because this information will enlighten the acupuncturist as to which way the imbalance of your energies tilts.
Once the acupuncturist has figured out which organ is imbalanced and which way the imbalance tilts, then the acupuncturist can turn on and turn off the switches that allow the yin and yang energies to flow to the specific internal organs.
Balanced energies can be more quickly reached by hastening the effectiveness of acupuncture by supplementing diet with traditional Asian herbs (usually in the form of a tea or granules). The acupuncturist who is also skilled in oriental medicine will know which herbs have the right type of energy balance to assist in getting to your right energy balance.
Just like staying physically fit, the road to balancing yin and yang energies is a lifelong process. Healthy people know that exercising one time will not make a fit person of you for the rest of your life. You must make it part of your lifestyle to incorporate physical activity to stay fit. Similarly, reaching a balance of yin and yang energies at one point in your life does not mean you will stay balanced for the rest of your life. You must maintain this balance by getting regular checkups with your acupuncturist and addressing the dynamic changes that influence your health.
Enjoy the journey!
Family Acupuncture Clinic, Inc.
3525 Lomita Blvd., Suite 101
Torrance, CA 90505
E-mail address:
torranceomd@gmail.comOur mission is to help as many people as possible to get well naturally and to educate them about Acupuncture and Asian medicine, so they in turn can educate as many people as possible!
