This is an excerpt from an article published by The Two River Times.
Sitting in a dark room on a heated bed, I found myself having needles inserted into my forehead, hands, neck, feet and ear by Tan Wai Hui, a licensed acupuncturist. This is my first experience with acupuncture, and the visit proved both therapeutic and educational.
Hui’s clinic is part of Eastpointe Integrated Healthcare in Atlantic Highlands. He primarily sees patients for pain and recounts many successful cases.
Acupuncture has its roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and involves inserting thin needles into the skin at strategic points on the body. As Hui described, this is a way of balancing “chi” or energy throughout the body. “The Chinese believe that energy and blood is necessary for proper movement for life force in the body,” he explained.
“When you have an injury, such as whiplash, blood accumulates in that area, and there’s inflammation. The cells are stuck there, and you have pain. Then heat comes because things aren’t moving well. Acupuncture helps disperse things that are stuck, called stagnations.” Hui continued by describing how they use needles on specific acupuncture points to move stagnation away, break up adhesions and scar tissue, and bring new blood to the area.
Many people may have fears about acupuncture, especially around needles. Hui displayed the needles, showing that some are very thin, about 1-1.4 inch long and about 0.16mm in diameter. He placed these side by to side to bigger needles used for larger parts of the body, such as the glutes or hip.
