Japanese Acupuncture for Stress and Neck/Shoulder Pain
Most people ignore tight neck/shoulder, but it leads to high stress, and other health issues. Ai Kakuta, Principal Acupuncturist at Boulder Japanese shows the steps she takes at Boulder Japanese Acupuncture to help patients with stress and neck/shoulder pain all together.
How is Japanese acupuncture different?
Ai explains the philosophy that Japanese acupuncturists believe and how they are trained in this video.
"Painless"
"Precision"
"Self-healing power within"
How we treat Pain
Pain is the sign that the circulation is blocked from the traditional asian medicine perspective. We first diagnose what is involved in the whole body.
1) Is the nervous system overacting?
2) Which specific muscle is associated with the pain?
3) Is it a fascia that needs to be released?
4) Any issue with blood flow or lymph drainage?
5) Which meridian (energetic pathway) and acupuncture points are involved?
6) Are there other health issues that are causing the pain?
A well-trained acupuncturist uses pain as a roadmap to find what is really happening in the body and addresses these items causing the pain all together, and that is the main difference from the dry needling only at the local pain area.
Frequency-specific Microcurrent Acupuncture
The research shows the frequency-specific microcurrent acupuncture is associated with endorphins at specific frequency to relieve pain. It mimics what the body naturally makes to heal the injured cells and increases ATP creations for faster recovery.
The Yojo Acupuncture System
The eminent 17th century practitioner Kaibara wrote a book on Yojo. Yo 養 means nourish and cultivate something precious. Jo 生 is your life and body. The Yojo system is to regulate three key areas: stress, digestion, and blood circulation. The simple approach activates a self healing power within.
Playlist
Stress
How many times a week do you feel stressed? Do you have chest tightness? What is your quality of sleep?
Stress contributes to many health issues, so keeping stress under control is one of the most important steps to achieving health goals. Kaibara wrote in the book of Yojo that one of most important things is to cultivate 心気(Qi of Heart) so you can maintain a calm state.
Prolonged disturbance in Qi of Heart causes many imbalances in the body. Acupuncture treatments and self-care routines are very effective at managing stress.
Digestion
Does your stomach bloat easily? Do you often have constipation or loose stool?
Bad digestion can lead to low quality of sleep, and low quality of sleep contributes to stress. This works in reverse as well, as stress can also cause digestive issues. Gut microbiota influences stress levels through vagus nerve and neurotransmitters. Regulating imbalances in the gut regulates hormones, which is essential for well-being.
Acupuncture and herbal medicine are very effective in addressing the digestive issues, that may be causing other health issues in the body.
Blood Circulation
Are your shoulders or neck tight? Do you have cold hands or feet? Do you have high blood pressure?
How is pain related to blood circulation? Almost 2,000 years ago it was written as “客於脈中則氣不通，故卒然而痛”, which explains when a channel in the body doesn’t circulate, it causes pain. In my experience treating patients with pain, improving circulation always improves pain levels. The pain can return if something in the body continues to create a blockage in circulation, such as stress or poor digestion.
Regulating the blood circulation has a tremendous effect in reducing pain and improving the overall health. Foot soaks, acupuncture, and herbal supplements greatly improve blood circulation in the body
Ai Kakuta
Principal Acupuncturist
Herbal Medicine Practitioner
Ai Kakuta is the principal acupuncturist and herbal medicine practitioner at Boulder Japanese Acupuncture clinic. She practices the Japanese philosophy of Yojo, first created by Kaibara in the 17th century. The Yojo acupuncture system uses the ancient wisdom of acupuncture to regulate three key areas: stress, digestion, and blood circulation. The simple approach activates a self-healing power within. In her practice she has found that the Japanese method of taking pulse, Hara diagnosis, and treating patients with hair-thin needles gently is a very effective and painless approach to acupuncture.
Location
Address:
5603 Arapahoe ave, Ste 5
Boulder, Colorado 90303
Serving Boulder, Denver, Lafayette, Louisville, Erie, Niwot, Superior, Gunbarrel, Longmont, Lyons, Broomfield, Golden, Ward, Gold Hill, Nederland
