Acupuncture for Holiday wellness

December 2022 edition

The holiday season can place additional demands on us and if we push on without paying attention to our health and wellbeing, we can be more susceptible to getting sick. Acupuncture can help alleviate stress, strengthen your immune system, and improve sleep and energy levels, so you can do and cope with more during busy periods.

Five Element Acupuncture follows nature’s ‘laws’ to re-establish and/or maintain balance. What happens in nature also happens in us because we are part of nature. For example, during winter, nature rests and we must too. So, increased activity needs to be balanced with more ‘yin’ restorative time—being with friends and family, curling up on the sofa and watching a good movie, resting. Sometimes we need a little help to stay balanced because we don’t get enough ‘yin time’, and acupuncture is great for this.  

We are used to going to the doctor when we are sick, but acupuncture has traditionally been used as a tool for staying well. In ancient China, people would pay their acupuncturist to keep them healthy and if they got sick, the acupuncturist would not get paid!

Acupuncturist Kate Mansfield says, “Physical issues can be a sign that our mental and emotional health needs support, and our mental and emotional well-being can be affected when we suffer from physical pain and discomfort. By paying attention to what we are feeling, we can catch things before they really make us sick.”
Your first acupuncture appointment involves a traditional diagnosis or TD. Kate will ask you questions about your general health, lifestyle, habits, etc. to understand how to best support you and to develop a treatment plan specific to you. Also, at this first appointment you will receive a generic treatment to release any ‘toxic qi’ that your body has held onto that may prevent you from getting well. People often report feeling lighter and sleeping better after this. 
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If you are seeking acupuncture to help resolve health issues, it is a good idea to commit to a few consecutive treatments initially because the effects of acupuncture are accumulative. It can take several sessions for issues to resolve, and longer for chronic complaints. The aim is always to get you to a place where your body can maintain balance without the need for acupuncture; however monthly sessions are the best way to keep you well, not just physically but in spirit also. Imagine having a way to get more energy or motivation to deal with a particular project, help you worry less and feel more joyful.

- Kate Mansfield, LAc