As a holistic medical modality, acupuncture treats the whole person. Prior to your initial visit, you will fill out a thorough health history form. Your initial exam will include a comprehensive verbal intake in order for your practitioner to identify and assess symptoms, medical history and lifestyle. Your acupuncturist might also check your pulse and examine your tongue, and take other vitals such as blood pressure and temperature. Feel free to ask questions at any stage of this process!

Acupuncture needles are far different from the hypodermic needles used to give injections. They are solid and hair thin (about 40 or so can fit into a hypodermic needle!), as well as pre-sterilized and disposable to insure any kind of contamination. They are usually painless upon insertion, but you may feel a slight pricking, numbness, heaviness, or distended sensation in the area around the needle which only lasts a few moments. Sometimes you feel nothing at all. People typically will drift off into a meditative state or fall asleep during their treatment. We want you to feel comfortable, so please let us know if we can adjust anything to make that happen!

Your initial treatment should last about 75 minutes as we will be going over your health history in detail and performing your acupuncture treatment. You can expect follow-up treatments to last an hour.

Some patients notice immediate effects while others see changes over the course of a few days. Be sure to pay attention so that you can report back to your practitioner during the following visit. Treatment plans vary depending on the nature of the condition you are seeking treatment. Acute conditions may only take a few visits while more chronic conditions may take 8-10 visits (or longer) to see any noticeable changes.