I’ve never been afraid of needles. Even during my childhood years, I couldn’t recall a specific time when I gave my parents a hard time for an injection appointment. I’m good with needles as long as there’s only one at a time that goes inside my body. So when I learned that acupuncture uses multiple needles for its procedure, I thought to myself, “no way!”
Although I’ve been curious about acupuncture for quite some time now, it was only this year that I have finally convinced myself to try it. What made me do so? A huge part of my lifestyle change for the past years is because of my consistent yoga practice.
More often than not, when I practice Yin yoga which is the complete opposite of an intense physical exercise, some traditional Chinese medicine practices are always mentioned by my teachers, such as ventosa or cupping therapy and acupuncture. I’ve done ventosa in the past, so I figured it was time for me to benefit from acupuncture this time around.
In the Philippines, there are only a select few wellness centers that offer acupuncture. And one of the most trusted and established ones is Centro Holistico, an integrative health and wellness clinic that offers complementary and alternative medical treatments. Some personalities who frequent this clinic are Miriam Quiambao, Lauren Reid, Jessica Yang, Derek Ramsay, and Ellen Adarna.
Centro Holistico branch in Quezon City
When I visited Centro Holistico for the first time, the initial procedure was a holistic medical consultation with live blood analysis (P2400). The doctor on duty during my visit was Dr. Venisse Valdez, a certified functional medicine practitioner.
The consultation did not revolve only on my possible existing diseases but also on various lifestyle factors affecting overall health. After I told Dr. Ven about my sleeping pattern, stressors, eating habits, and workout regime, she evaluated my lifestyle and dietary habits through live blood analysis.
Live blood analysis with Dr. Ven
Not going to lie, I got so disappointed with myself when I learned that my blood is not very healthy at the moment. But I soon realized the importance of these types of consultation to adjust what needs to be done to achieve my optimal health.
After my consultation, I went straight to the therapy room for my acupuncture session (P1600). I was nervous at first because I honestly didn’t know what to expect.
Acupuncture is one of the oldest forms of medicine. Originating from China, this ancient practice has been present for more than 5,000 years. This treatment modality uses needles to stimulate specific points in the body to address a wide range of conditions such as migraine, stress, anxiety, insomnia, and even infertility.
Before Dr. Ven inserted fine needles into my body, she reminded me that some parts would feel numb and heavy while some insertions would just feel like an ant bite. Genuinely, one factor that made me calm during the procedure was Dr. Ven. She was very accommodating to my questions and calm during the entire process.
After she inserted more or less 20 needles in my entire body, I instantly felt relaxed, like I got massaged. This feeling surprised me the most because I thought lying down for 30 minutes with needles inserted into my body would make me uncomfortable, but I was wrong.
The writer during her acupuncture session
Halfway through the procedure, all my fears for acupuncture were gone. All I was thinking about were the years I was missing out by letting my fear take over. I didn’t feel any pain at all, only ant bite-like during insertion, just like what Dr. Ven described. In the latter part of the therapy, I fell asleep for more or less fifteen minutes, and I felt well-rested.
Until the moment I stepped out of the therapy room, I was still in disbelief at how long I’d been avoiding this procedure. No thanks to my fears, but it was actually not scary or painful at all. In the end, I was just happy to finally take this path and continue the procedure for as long as I felt that it would benefit me.
After a few days of my acupuncture therapy, I already felt significant changes. For example, I usually get headaches or migraines when I spend my time in front of my laptop or phone, but to my surprise, I haven’t gotten any migraines recently. I also noticed that my sleeping pattern improved. Note that these changes are only after one acupuncture session and based on my personal experience alone, so imagine how much more it can improve my health if I maintain it? It amazes me even as of this writing.
To sum up my visit at Centro Holistico, the clinic emailed me a healthcare plan to address the concerns that were discovered during my consultation with Dr. Ven. Here’s a portion of the plan.
So, to answer the question of whether or not you should be afraid of needles, without batting an eyelash, I would say no. Needles appear to be an enemy for most people, but the more you get to know them, needles are actually your friends, not enemies.
In conclusion, I highly recommend that you try acupuncture and see how it could benefit you in your daily life. I may be one person speaking from an experience, but sometimes, it only takes one person to convince you otherwise.
Have you tried acupuncture before? Let us know your experience in the comments below!
