Your body is an amazing, adaptable, deeply wise and self-organizing field of bioelectricity and biochemistry that’s changing all the time.
Having osteoarthritis doesn’t mean you have to have joint pain.
Having a disc degeneration or herniation doesn’t mean your back has to hurt. (Most people over 50 do!)
Having a rotator cuff tear doesn’t mean you can’t have full range of motion and strength in your shoulder. (You can.)
Your body is constantly creating cells and destroying others, regulating a symphony of neurotransmitters as it strives for homeostatic balance.
How you nourish, move, rest, think, and interact with your body will impact how it feels.
While diagnostic labels can be useful in helping us care for ourselves, they can be dangerous when we think of them as deterministic and limit what we think is possible.
Acupuncture excels at helping your body maintain itself optimally.
When an acupuncture needle is inserted, your body releases
- Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide, the strongest vasodilator in the body, which stimulates growth of new blood vessels and increases circulation to speed the healing process.
- Nerve Growth Factor to support and repair nerves
- White Blood Cells to combat infection
- Red Blood Cells to supply nutrients and produce energy
- Stem Cells to regenerate and repair tissues
- Serotonin to downregulate pain
- Glutamate to repair cell damage
- Prostaglandins to reduce inflammation
- Substance P to signal to the brain to direct resources to the area
- Natural Opioids: beta-endorphins, enkephalin, and dynorphin that not only relieve pain but enhance gene expression so that more and more opioid peptides are manufactured and stored with repeated treatments
People who get acupuncture harness these amazing benefits to turn the volume down on pain and maximize well-being. After an initial series of visits to solve a specific problem, monthly-ish “maintenance care” acupuncture visits are a powerful way to support your body and defy your diagnosis.
If you’re due for a tune up, give us a call at 541-757-4868 or book online if you’re a returning patient.
(Grateful for the biochemistry information gleaned from a series of continuing education classes on “Neuropuncture” by Dr. Michael Corradino.)