Welcome to the West Village Acupuncture-- NYC Acupuncture For Headaches
West Village Acupuncture
4 Milligan Place
Suite 1F
New York, N.Y. 10011
6th Ave btwn 10th & 11th
917.968.2854
On this NYC Acupuncture for Headaches Webpage I hope to provide you with some basic information about the oriental medical diagnostics and treatment of headaches.
The traditional chinese medical (TCM) diagnostic approach does not view all headaches as being of the same origin. There are many different types of headaches recognized by oriental medicine. Each type can occur in combination with one another and thus there are a myriad of possible headache types. Here I will discuss a number of common types of headaches recognized by TCM.
In TCM the approach for treating any disorder is to identify the disease and then identify the subtype of the disease. The different types of of a disease are known as patterns and the general disease classification is usually descriptive of the primary or chief symptom. In this case the disease is that of headache. There are innummerable possible sub-types or patterns.
Because each headache is of a distinct variety, effective treatment requires a distinct treatment plan. As such, a proper and accurate diagnosis is essential. If the diagnosis is not accurate, then even though a headache treatment is used, the results will not be particularly effective.
I will discuss eight different patterns, one of which has its own sub-patterns. The patterns I will address are:
Some of these patterns are deficiency types and others are excess types. The Liver Fire, Damp, Blood Stasis and Food Retention are excess types. This means that there is too much of a substance in the body. Descriptions of these headaches often include words such as stabbing, throbbing or pounding - Terms that imply an excess state.
The other patterns are deficiency types. These of course are the result of too little of a particular substance in the body. These are commonly described as nagging, gnawing, tight, dull ache, or empty. While the Liver Yang Rising pattern by its very name would seem to be an excess patttern, it in fact is not. The rising is the result of a deficiency of other substances which would normally anchor the yang. Because it is not appropriately unachored it floats upward resulting in a headache.
Each of these patterns has its own distinct set of symptoms, and it is through close analysis of these symptoms that the practitioner can determine which pattern of headache the patients has.
Diagnostic Considerations
A diagnostic session will start at the most basic place -- the identification of the disease. The next step is to determine which particular variety of headache the patient is suffering from. This is known as the pattern level of diagnosis. Once this is accomplished, the practitioner will design a treatment plan specifically targeted to address the specific disease pattern.
The treatment plan will consist of a selection of acupuncture points, which will often vary from treatment to treatment. It will often will include an herbal formula to supplement the acupuncture treatments. Other aspects of the treatment plan might include dietary modifications, exercise and lifestyle considerations.
For more information on the diagnosis and treatment of specific headache patterns, visit my other headache webpages.
I hope this page has been informative and encourage you to seek treatment if you suffer from headaches. Acupuncture can be a very effective solution for many headache sufferers.
For further information or make an appointment, please contact us at 917.968.2854.
West Village Acupuncture
4 Milligan Place
Suite 1F
New York, N.Y. 10011
6th Ave btwn 10th & 11th
917.968.2854
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