Does Acupuncture Work for Addiction?
What Is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is a holistic treatment method that uses thin needles placed in key sensory points of the body to relieve stress and tension. Acupuncture is an ancient practice of Traditional Chinese medicine. Practitioners believe the human body has more than 2,000 acupuncture points connected by pathways or meridians.
Five elements are the foundation of this theory of Qi: wood, water, fire, earth, and metal. A blockage or excess of any disrupts this vital energy. Acupuncture aims to open the blockage or reduce the excess of Qi flowing through specific channels in the body, known as meridians.
What Is Acupuncture Used to Treat?
One of the main focuses of acupuncture treatment is the reduction of pain and improvement of overall health. It may be used to reduce pain after surgery or medical and dental treatments. Patients with chronic headaches and migraines can also benefit greatly from acupuncture treatment, and it is commonly used for muscle and back pain, stress relief, and overall wellness. Patients with neurological conditions also report relief after acupuncture treatments.
Acupuncture can also help support better immune and nervous system function. This, in turn, promotes improved overall wellness and helps the body heal itself naturally when illness or injury occurs.
Acupuncture is a nonpharmacological treatment option for multiple diseases and symptoms.
Most patients feel pleasantly relaxed and refreshed after an acupuncture treatment. Patients who were experiencing pain before the acupuncture session are often pleasantly surprised to find their discomfort greatly reduced after the treatment.
Does Acupuncture Work for Addiction?
Acupuncture is a supporting or aggregate treatment commonly used in substance addiction recovery programs. As a supporting treatment, it is used together with traditional addiction treatment, such as psychotherapy and behavioral therapies, to treat the whole person.
Acupuncture can be used to aid in the treatment of addiction and to help patients to reduce prescribed medications that are difficult to withdraw from. Acupuncture treatment reduces withdrawal symptoms, aids in relaxation in cases of anxiety, improves sleep, and reduces cravings for drugs. It has been used for withdrawal from drugs of abuse such as heroin and methamphetamine; cigarettes and alcohol; and prescribed medications such as pain medications, benzodiazepines, and antidepressants.
Acupuncture’s utility for treating drug abuse and dependence is best shown in opioid-dependent patients experiencing withdrawal. Over the past 40 years, acupuncture and Electro-Acupuncture (EA) have been applied with great success to attenuate behavioral signs of opioid withdrawal in addicts.
The effects of acupuncture on drug addiction have also been verified by animal experiments. It has been well-proven that acupuncture suppressed morphine withdrawal syndrome and alcohol-drinking behaviors in rats.
How to Find Acupuncture for Drug Addiction in Woodland Hills, CA
Harmony Place, located in Woodland Hills, California, is a Los Angeles drug rehab center for individuals with substance abuse and co-occurring disorders. The holistic program includes acu-detox, individualized treatment, yoga, acupuncture, individual counseling, group therapy, and more.
Are you or your loved ones battling with addiction? You can take comfort in finding holistic rehab treatments in Southern California. Visit Harmony Place’s residential rehab facility to get Acupuncture treatments and begin your recovery journey.
