I'M WONDERING IF YOU'VE HEARD OF EAR ACUPUNCTURE?
IT'S AN AMAZING THERAPY SUITABLE FOR EVERYONE NO MATTER HOW SMALL THEIR WALLET
That's what drew me to this practice initially!
I love all kinds of alternative therapies and would like nothing better than to be able to treat myself and my family to them from time to time, when we are in need, but let's face it, I can't afford it. How many single parents out there can?
I don't like the exclusivity of only rich people being able to heal themselves naturally. So, when I heard about this form of acupuncture, I was intrigued, because it was refreshingly sold to me as being available to everyone on a donation basis.
I'm sure there are practitioners out there who do charge set rates, but not ones who are trained using the NADA protocol.
Ear acupuncture involves inserting needles into specific points on the ear and stimulating those points promotes healing elsewhere in the body. Largely based on traditional Chinese medicine it was developed in the mid 20th century by French scientist, Paul Nogier.
It is designed to improve the bodies flow and vital energy (chi ) and restore a yin/yang balance in our internal organs.
In the West we use it for allergies, anxiety, arthritus, chronic pain, headaches, insomnia and menstrual and menopausal issues. We also use it for addiction and trauma.
OK, so this is where it gets interesting for me.
It has become popular as something that can be used in 12 step recovery clinics, in homeless centres, for people in the health service and fire service who are involved in directly traumatic situations. It was used with firefighters after 9/11. It has been used with refugees.
Ordinarily groups of people sit together for twenty minutes or so undergoing the treatment. They don't have to talk or explain anything. They don't have to support anyone else. It is simple and self healing, relaxing and stimulating.
And anyone can train! It is not exclusive to acupuncturists. It is not exclusive to people who identify as therapists. It can be done by anyone who takes a short course. It can be done and shared.
So I did it! I took the course and became a practitioner.
Well, what a great feeling it is to have a simple therapy that you can offer to others! I was very excited when I trained and couldn't wait to get my hands on friends and family and share the newly found knowledge. Needless to say, they were't as excited as me to have needles stuck in their ears. I guess it's an aquired taste. I'm just not the sort of person who has any problems with needles, so I was perhaps a bit unsympathetic.
Perhaps I am a person who has had to deal with quite a bit of pain in my life and so I'm not really bothered by the tiny prick of a very thin, stainless steel needle.
Better to help people who want help.
I joined a local clinic that offers acupuncture twice a week. Perhaps the people who have had most success have been the ones treating themselves for addiction and drug dependancy. I think it helps anyone who has any blockage of any sort. I can't really describe the calm feeling there is in the room. It's like meditation, but without the shuffling about and coughing. It's incredibly simple.
I would love to take this to refugees or to people who have experienced enormous, ongoing trauma. I think it's so helpful to sit with others, under no obligation to be anything or do anything, just to sit together and calmly ease a bit of physical pressure.
I'm not saying it's the answer to everything in the Universe, but it's a tool for our therapeutic toolkits. A way to help ourselves in quite an immediate way with quite immediate results.