Ancient Wisdom for our Modern Age
As the pharmaceutical and medical insurance industries tighten their control over how conventional medicine is administered, many are becoming more and more dissatisfied with conventional healthcare. As we are bombarded by pharmaceutical ads on the television that disclose a host of side effects that sound far worse than the condition being treated, we rightfully pause to consider why, with all of our modern technology and medical advances, we don’t have a healthcare system that actually supports our overall health and well-being, is gentle with low to no side effects, and treats the underlying cause of our ailments rather than simply masking our symptoms with toxic drugs. These are the very reasons why more than 15 million Americans have turned to Oriental Medicine as a compliment to their conventional healthcare. Let’s take a look at how Oriental Medicine views illness, and the many treatment methods it offers.
How Oriental Medicine views Illness
The energy or Life Force that animates our physical form is referred to as “Qi” or “Chi” in Oriental Medicine. It is a core tenant of Oriental Medicine that disease first starts as energetic imbalances or blockages to the proper flow of this Life Force or Qi throughout the body, and eventually manifests as physical symptoms and diseases when these imbalances and blockages persist and remain untreated. Treatments that correct these energetic imbalances or Qi blockages are treating at a deeper, more causative level, rather than merely focusing on symptoms. This Life Force, or Qi, circulates in the body through well-defined channels or pathways called meridians. These channels are separate from nerves, blood vessels and lymph channels. Acupuncture points are places along these energy pathways where the Qi is more accessible, and can be used to clear the channels of blockages and re-balance our Qi. Rather than diagnose and treat “diseases,” Doctors of Oriental Medicine diagnose and treat energetic imbalance patterns. When our energy pathways are balanced and healthy, our physical form follows suit and also manifests optimal health.
Finding Balance in a Distressed World
In our modern, high stress world, Oriental Medicine offers ways to combat much of the unbalancing effects of modern life. Ideally, a healthy diet and lifestyle is the best preventive medicine, but for those who are coping with existing illness, Oriental Medicine offers a time-tested system using many healing modalities, including acupuncture, to restore balance and optimal health. Oriental Medicine practiced in our modern western culture has incorporated many healing modalities and medical technologies beyond acupuncture. Let’s take a look at some of the treatment modalities Dr. Webb uses to help relieve pain and inflammation and help restore optimal health.
Acupuncture/Acupressure
Acupuncture, having been used for at least 5,000 years, involves the insertion of ultra-thin needles through the skin at strategic points on the body to balance the body’s vital energy circulation, thus restoring optimal health and vitality. By restoring balance to the body, acupuncture is used to effectively assist your body in healing a wide array of acute and chronic conditions by improving blood flow and tissue oxygenation, boosting production of healing biochemicals in the body, and powerfully activating the body’s innate self-healing capacity. Dr. Webb only uses the highest quality, single-use, disposable needles, but also offers several non-needle treatment methods, including acupressure and stimulation of acupoints with cold laser or the pure frequencies from tuning forks.
Auriculotherapy/Auricular Medicine
In addition to body acupuncture, auriculotherapy (or ear acupuncture) is another way to perform acupuncture to treat particular complaints. Discovered in 1956 by French neurologist Dr. Paul Nogier, this system uses acupuncture needles, electrical stimulation, cold laser, magnets and acupressure to stimulate reflex points/zones in the ear to stimulate a healing response in the corresponding body part or internal organ. In 1966, Dr. Nogier also discovered a pulse reaction, called the Vascular Autonomic Signal (VAS) that is caused by a reaction of the autonomic nervous system to information presented to the body’s EMF (electromagnetic field). The VAS allows the practitioner to “ask” the body where the source of dysfunction is and what particular acupuncture points are the ones needed to correct this dysfunction. This system, auricular medicine, takes the guess work out of treatment, allowing for complete personalization of treatments. Auricular medicine also has protocols for determining food, chemical and environmental sensitivities and allergies, as well as determining if a medication or supplement you are taking is well tolerated or is having an adverse effect on the body.
Chinese Herbal Medicine
Usually prescribed as complex mixtures of many complimentary herbs balanced together, herbal formulas are the pharmaceuticals of Oriental Medicine. There are hundreds of formulas recorded in the classical literature of Oriental Medicine, prescribed for every complaint from pain to trouble sleeping, and may be taken both internally and externally. Even if you choose not to take herbs internally, Chinese herbal liniments are often used as a part of your acupuncture treatments, and can assist in the healing of many acute and chronic complaints. Formulas are taken as either tablets, capsules or liquid tincture 2-3 times daily, and are prescribed individually based on your medical history, symptoms, and other diagnostic information. When formulas are prescribed based on your unique energetic imbalances, adverse reactions are kept to a minimum.
Biopuncture
Biopuncture, or Acupuncture Injection Therapy, is an injection technique that uses ultra-low dose, FDA-approved homeopathic remedies, derived from plant and mineral sources, injected into muscles and just beneath the skin to reduce pain, accelerate the healing of orthopedic injuries, and even assist your body’s healing of many chronic health conditions. Homeopathic remedies contain diluted natural material, chosen specifically for their ability to detoxify, decrease inflammation, decrease muscle and nerve pain, and promote tissue repair. Professional athletes are embracing Biopuncture as a safe alternative to NSAIDs and steroids, because it rapidly eliminates inflammation and pain with no known side effects, while protecting the natural healing response. Homeopathic injectables are safe to use with other medications, since there are no known instances of drug interaction.
Cupping
A traditional component of Oriental Medicine, cupping has been gaining popularity due to its use by some celebrities. It involves the placement of glass or plastic cups under pressure onto the body for the purpose of dispersing blocked or stagnant Qi that is causing pain and/or congestion. Cupping is great for helping clear lung congestion due to a chest cold, and applied to the back is very effective in releasing muscle knots, trigger points and tight bands of muscle due to injury.
Microcurrent and FSM
Microcurrent refers to a type of ultra-low intensity electrotherapy used to promote rapid healing. FSM, or Frequency Specific Microcurrent, is a remarkable new therapy that utilizes electrical current that is 1,000 times less intense than the more commonly known TENS devices. Because current intensity is ultra-low, you don’t actually feel the current during treatment, therefore it is completely painless. In contrast to the high intensity of a TENS unit, low intensity microcurrent quickly and dramatically reduces inflammation and activates the rapid healing and repair of damaged and diseased tissue. In fact, FSM has been found to consistently reduce inflammation by 62% in only 4 minutes, a benefit that even the most powerful anti-inflammatory pharmaceutical medications can’t match. FSM uses combinations of electrical frequencies to affect body tissues and biochemicals. There are FSM treatment protocols for every type of pain and injury condition, as well as for internal organ support, like adrenal support, and for many psycho-emotional complaints like anxiety and depression.
“In my 20 years in medicine, I have never experienced any treatment or therapy that provides relief and results as quickly as Frequency Specific Microcurrent. I have been amazed and pleased.”
- Robert Lerman, MD, PhD
Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique (NAET)
A revolutionary new approach to alleviating allergy symptoms, NAET (Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Technique), is non-invasive, painless, drugless and highly effective.
This powerful technique is effective in eliminating both immediate and delayed allergy and sensitivity symptoms. Most patients can expect to obtain relief from a wide variety of seasonal, environmental, chemical, animal, and food allergy and sensitivity symptoms.
Typical allergy symptoms such as hives, itching, sneezing, runny nose, watery eyes and congestion are greatly reduced and in many instances completely eliminated following NAET treatments. Many people, though, are unaware that they experience delayed sensitivity reactions to common everyday foods. In fact, some medical professionals believe that as much as 95% of the population may suffer from delayed food sensitivities. Delayed food sensitivities can be the cause or a contributing factor in up to 80 different medical conditions, including:
- Arthritis
- Asthma
- Autism
- Insomnia
- Diabetes
- ADHD
- Migraines
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Anxiety & depression
- High blood pressure
- Fibromyalgia
- Addiction
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Weight problems
The reason that NAET has become as popular as it is today, and why it could revolutionize allergy care, is because NAET actually reprograms your body to once again respond in a normal, healthy way to substances around you that once left you feeling miserable. You no longer have to permanently avoid foods, animals, pollens, molds and chemicals that once left you feeling sick. With NAET, you can enjoy life again!
