What Is Acupuncture?
We often times are asked what acupuncture is and how it works. Acupuncture is a component of Traditional Chinese Medicine that originated over thousands of years ago. Traditional Chinese Medicine is based on the belief that living beings have a vital energy, called "Qi". Qi circulates within the body through twelve invisible energy lines known as meridians, which are associated with different organ systems such as the liver, kidney, stomach and so on. Each organs’ system has its own Qi and runs within its own meridians. We will discuss this in detail in the section Yin, Yang, and the five elements. We believe that an imbalance in the flow of Qi throughout a meridian is how disease begins. Think of Qi and meridians like cars (Qi) on high ways (meridian). When cars move smoothly on the highway, there is no problem and everything flows well. What if a car accident happens somewhere on the highway? What if too many cars are on the highway? Or what if there is sudden narrow down of width of the highway due to construction or some other reason? What if it starts raining? Yes, traffic jams occur and the cars stop moving smoothly. These problems lead to other issues if it is left unresolved. You’ve heard that there are generally more car accidents when it’s raining. You’ve heard that one accident can cause another accident. You’ve experienced being irritated when you are stuck in a traffic jam. The same rule applies to our theory. When there is an imbalance within the body, Qi does not flow well. If it’s left unresolved, these problems reflect as your symptoms.
