Acupuncture reduces postsurgical pain by improving circulation, reducing inflammation and speeding recovery. At Raleigh Acupuncture we treat pain following all types of surgeries including joint replacement (knee, hip, shoulder), cancer surgery (tumor removal, mastectomy), broken bones, back and neck surgery (bulging disc, spinal fusion), and laparoscopies, to name a few.
Common Postoperative Pains
Muscle pain is very common following surgery. You may feel pain in the back, neck, shoulders, or chest from lying on the operating table for a long period of time in a cold room. Muscles that have been cut will also hurt, easing as they heal. You may also have movement pain, especially around the incision site. Nerve pain is also common after surgery,and can be felt anywhere in the body.
Acupuncture reduces postsurgical pain. While pain medications are necessary to provide temporary relief, acupuncture promotes the body to heal after surgery, speeding up recover, resolving pain at the root. It accomplishes this feat in three ways.
Improves Blood Circulation
First, acupuncture improves blood circulation. The process is simple. Acupuncture moves Qi (energy) in the body. Qi is the force in all living things, created by the food we eat and the air we breathe. Acupuncture prompts Qi in the body to move, nourish the organs and circulate the blood. It is this last function, circulating the blood, that comes in so handy in postoperative patients.
Our bodies heal from traumatic injury when blood arrives at the scene, nourishing organs, muscles, tissue, ligaments and tendons. Acupuncture activates this blood-healing cycle naturally and efficiently. Acupuncture points like ST36, SP6 and SP10 build and circulate blood all over the body.
Reduces Inflammation
Secondly, acupuncture reduces postsurgical pain by reducing inflammation. Again, Qi gets all the credit for this. Good qi circulation provides a better healing environment for the body, enabling it to recover faster and more completely. Surgery causes trauma to the body, which often will result in local inflammation and pain. Activating the Qi “system-wide” strengthens our bodies to promote healing, while stimulating Qi “local to the injury site” allows our bodies to focus healing energy at the source of the problem. The result is reduced inflammation, which translates as happy body.
Speeds Recovery
Third, acupuncture speeds up recovery time. Acupuncture drains stress from the body, like wringing water from a sponge. Surgery is stressful to our bodies. We are given medicines and anesthesia, placed scantily clothed in freezing cold surgical theaters, and often awkwardly positioned on a hard table sometimes for hours without moving. We are cut open, sliced, diced and stitched back up again. All of these things tax our body, causing stress.
There are two types of stress. The first is stress that we feel as an emotion. “I’m stressed out” is an emotional stress. But there is another kind of stress. It’s the stress we hold in our bodies. It is the tension in your shoulders at the end of a long day, the stiff low back in the morning after sleeping all night, the stomach pain common in IBS and the migraine headache. Put another way, stress in the body is Qi stagnation, stuck energy.
Acupuncture is a miracle worker when it comes to moving stuck Qi. Acupuncture points like LV3, Li4, GB34 and BL18 all move stuck Qi in the body, reducing pain and relieving stagnation. Points like these enable a postsurgical body to clear out the trauma-induced stress, to allow for less pain and faster healing.
Acupuncture Reduces Postsurgical Pain
Many of our patients come for acupuncture to address their postoperative pain. It helps them get off their pain medicines faster, and helps them return to daily functioning sooner. In addition, acupuncture helps with their sleep, digestion and mood. All in all, acupuncture is the best therapy for postsurgical pain.
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Acupuncture reduces postsurgical pain.
What our Clients are Saying
I’m a golfer and started having trouble with my left shoulder over a year ago. My doctor wanted to do surgery, but I wanted to try other alternatives first. So I tried acupuncture. The folks at Raleigh Acupuncture were very professional, reasonably priced and did excellent work. They resolved my shoulder pain completely. I use them now for other pains in my post-50 body! Thank you Raleigh Acupuncture.
I’m a dentist and over the last 20 years the nature of my work and positions required by my work had resulted in chronic neck pain. It affected my sleep, limited my ability to exercise, and was just a real pain in the neck! A friend at church recommended Raleigh Acupuncture and I gave it a try. I have to say that I was a bit skeptical, but gave it a try because I had tried a number other therapies with no success. I’m glad I did. They resolved my neck pain completely!
All of my joints were hurting. I’ve got fibromyalgia and it effects me by making my joints hurt. The pain would move around from place to place, first the hip, the next day the shoulder, then the knee, etc. The practitioner at Raleigh Acupuncture explained that the best way to treat my kind of moving joint pain was to treat me holistically. Instead of treating the hip one day, the shoulder the next, they treated the root of the pain. They said this type of treatment would also improve my mood and my sleep. Right on all counts. I started feeling better after the second treatment. It’s like all of the joints just settled down and stopped giving me trouble. I had less flares and the intensity of the pain went way down. My sleep is better, not just because I have less pain. I’m more relaxed and less stressed. I’ve made this treatment a regular part of my life. I’m very grateful.
I suffered from low back pain for years and tried many different remedies. When I came to Raleigh Acupuncture, they really listened to understand my issues. I can honestly say that they cured my chronic back pain. I didn’t think it was possible, after all these years. I highly recommend this practice. The doctors take the time and do good work.
