According to a recent study done by the Centers for Disease Control, nearly 60% of Americans have been prescribed some sort of pain medication. Did you know that pain affects more Americans than heart disease, diabetes, and cancer combined? Modern day medicine includes many prescription drugs. What if you could be treated for pain without the cost and side effects of prescription narcotics?
Luckily, there is such treatment. Auriculotherapy is used in many cases to help manage and reduce pain. Auriculotherapy is a form of acupuncture used within the ear. There are over 200 pressure points within the ear that can target multiple organs within the body. When pressure is applied to these points, the central nervous system is stimulated. Once these nerves are activated, the body begins to pinpoint issues and begin correcting them naturally. When pain or other health issues occur, blocks can form within the central nervous system. But, when the central nervous system is stimulated, it begins removing these blocks, and your body will literally heal itself. Now, these “blocks” may take multiple treatments to remove, but natural relief is possible.
Auriculotherapy is significantly less expensive than prescription painkillers, especially for those without health insurance. Many painkillers also come with negative side effects from long term. These side effects can include decreased liver function, decreased kidney function, fatigue, dizziness, drowsiness, and even addiction or dependency. There are people who cannot even drive because they’re taking prescription medications that may cause them to fall asleep behind the wheel or slow their motor functioning within the brain. On the contrary, there are people who cannot afford these medications, or do not want the negative side effects, so they do not do anything for their pain and are unable to do simple things in life that they want to, such as playing outdoors with their grandchildren, or even getting out of bed.
Auriculotherapy is a natural treatment for pain that doesn’t come with all the horrible side effects or the large bill. Auriculotherapy works by inserting small needles into these points of the ear to stimulate the central nervous system and in turn reduce pain. Now, you may be thinking of how much you hate needles and how this form of treatment must hurt. That is not the case. Most of our patients don’t even feel when the needle is inserted. Those who do feel the needle, report only a slight tingling sensation. The diameter of the needle used for auriculotherapy is a quarter of the diameter that is typically used for ear piercings. Additionally, acupuncture needles are very different from typical needles used to draw blood or administer medication. First, acupuncture needles are much smaller, not only in diameter but overall size. Secondly, the needle is enclosed in plastic, so patients can not even see the needle. Third, acupuncture needles are inserted by lightly tapping the needle, rather than forcefully inserted into the skin as they are when receiving a shot or getting blood drawn. Lastly, these needles are inserted only 1-3 mm into the skin.
To see how we can bring relief to your life, or to schedule an appointment, call us today. 816-584-0444.
Attributions: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3110838/
https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/prescribing.html