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Dr. Maryam Mahanian, DTCM, RAc
Treating Soreness, Pain and Injury with Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine
Dr. Maryam uses acupuncture and a number of other modalities under the umbrella of Traditional Chinese medicine to treat pain – effectively, naturally and without side effects.
How does Dr. Maryam treat Pain?
The modalities used for pain treatment include acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, cupping, moxibustion, acupressure with medicinal topical oils with Acupuncture being the most commonly used. Acupuncture is time-tested and has been used successfully for pain for literally thousands of years.
How Does Acupuncture Relieve Pain?
So how does acupuncture relieve pain? Acupuncture involves the insertion of fine needles into the body. By inserting these small needles into specific sites on the body, the needles trigger a response from the nervous system. This response from the nervous system leads our brain to:
release a cascade of natural painkillers (endorphins and enkephalins),
increase blood flow to the painful area,
relax the muscles in the surrounding area.
A simple way of understanding how it works is that when the needle penetrates the skin, the body sees it as a form of an injury. The body then responds by sending blood and other nutrients to that specific area to speed healing. In my opinion, this is the best way to explain how acupuncture improves blood circulation.
Cupping
Cupping can be magical for the treatment of muscle tension, aching and musle soreness. It brings more blood to the surface and helps with detoxing the lymphatic system.
Moxa
Moxibustion (called moxa for short) is effective as an added tool in Dr. Maryam’s clinic for pain treatment. Moxa warms up the channels of the body to promote better blood circulation in the muscles & joints. So it’s create for muscle soreness treatment. Dr. Maryam can teach you how to administer moxa on yourself and send you home with moxa sticks.
Acupressure & Topical Liniments
Dr. Maryam will often follow an acupuncture treatment with brief acupressure using topical Chinese medical oils and liniments. Containing key Chinese medicine herbal ingredients, these topicals are helpful in aiding blood circulation and easing muscle tension. They are available for purchase in clinic or on the online shop.
TDP Heat Lamp
The TDP lamp uses infrared heat and is placed over the painful area. The purpose of the heat is to warm and relax the area, move blood towards the needles and make the treatment more effective and more relaxing. You’ll love this part!
Acupuncture helps any sort of pain ranging from neck and shoulder tension, headaches and migraines, arthritis pain, lower back pain and sciatica and even menstrual cramps.
Neck & Shoulder Tension
Who doesn’t experience neck and shoulder pain? With high amounts of stress, sedentary lifestyles, being behind a computer constantly, or that long commute to work, the neck and shoulders can often be in need of tension relief.
Dr. Maryam has had tremendous success over the years with resolving neck and shoulder pain. Acupuncture relaxes the muscles and gets rid of tension – it can make a dramatic difference and works for the vast majority of cases.
Headaches and Migraines
Chinese herbal medicine can be combined with acupuncture to provide fast and effective relief of headaches/migraines and to also prevent the headaches from recurring. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine aim to treat the underlying cause of headaches and migraines – whether it be a hormonal issue, tension, stress, a previous injury or any other factor. This combination provides fast and effective relief during episodes of headaches/migraines and also prevents headaches from recurring.
Arthritis Pain
For arthritis pain, I combine acupuncture with Chinese herbal medicine as the two modalities work well together providing faster and more effective pain relief. I may also recommend specific vitamins and supplements to support your overall wellness.
Lower Back Pain
Acupuncture is wonderful in the treatment of lower back pain – whether it be an acute sprain or chronic pain. The needles are typically placed in the lower back/lumbar region to relax the area and stimulate better blood flow.
Sciatica
Acupuncture is also effective in resolving sciatica. For sciatica, I do gentle needling in the lower back/lumbar region to relax the muscles and I also place needles along the pathway of the pain in the leg which relaxes the nerve and regulates blood flow along the pathway.
Menstrual Cramps
See my article on how acupuncture & Chinese medicine can help menstrual cramps here.
Does Acupuncture Hurt?
A very common question that’s asked in my clinical practice is “does acupuncture hurt?” What I tell people is that acupuncture will be a very comfortable experience…and very relaxing. Many people find it so relaxing that they even fall asleep. We call this the “acu-nap”!
When the needle is inserted, on some sensitive areas of the body, you may feel a slight sensation. However, this is not something that people describe as painful but rather just a slight prick, tingle, pressure or dull ache. You can check out a previous article on this here.
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