Does Acupuncture Work Above 17,000′?

Does acupuncture really work?!

Quick story: while hiking up to Everest Base Camp last year, I found myself struggling with knee pain near the top… Since stretching and icing didn’t work, I reached into my huge backpack to find my medical travel kit for my acupuncture needles. Yes, at Gorak Shep, not far from Everest Base Camp, I did an acupuncture treatment on myself at over 5000 meters. Crazy? It helped!!!

You may be noticing that more and more people are talking about acupuncture treatments to help manage their injuries. In recent years, increasing numbers of healthcare practitioners (chiropractors, physiotherapists, doctors…etc) are using different forms of acupuncture, such as, dry needling, IMS, and medical acupuncture as a tool to promote natural healing and reduce pain. I have to admit, like most people, I was quite skeptical at first about the whole thing! I mean, how could inserting needles when you’re already sore help decrease pain? Well after taking the Acupuncture certification and practicing it for 7 years, I can safely say that I have seen remarkable results!

Although it has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for over 2500 years, the western “more medical” approach only gained popularity in the 1970’s. There have been countless studies and research using acupuncture (for those interested, visit the Acupuncture Foundation of Canada Institute website: afcinstitute.com). As a physiotherapist, I use it mainly to treat musculoskeletal problems such as sports injuries, low back pain/sciatica, whiplash, arthritis and tendinitis. Of course results vary from person to person depending on the severity/complexity of the injury, but with very few side effects, it’s definitely worth giving it a shot!!!

Stephanie Gales, B.Sc.P.T.