I am making a bold attempt to describe how a more than 3,000 year old tradition of medicine works in our modern era. Please know this is a general description of how a complicated and sometimes mysterious system is working.
    First there is an energy force in the body called Qi or Chi. It runs along 12 main vertical lines or meridians running from head to foot.
    The old joke about putting a needle in someone’s foot to help a toothache is not so strange when you consider the stomach meridian runs from the toes to the head and circles around the mouth.
    This energy or Qi is mostly electrical and also chemical. Studies have been done to show that acupuncture does indeed set off endorphins for an analgesic effect. It has also been proven that electrical energy runs through the body in these channels or meridians. The book Vibrational Medicine (Richard Gerber, M.D.) reports evidence of a secondary electrical effect that takes place. That’s the mystery that no one can quite put their hands on.
    Patterns with certain signs and symptoms, for example headache and nausea, can be treated by needling specific points on a meridian. When those points are treated, signs and symptoms can be alleviated. With continual treatment of the underlying cause of the condition, acupuncture can have a cumulative effect. It is not just the treatment you are receiving at the time, but the culmination of 10 or 20 treatments that gets to a real underlying level, e.g. the cause of the headache and nausea.
    One treatment is better than none and 6-10 treatments can really get at the symptoms at hand. When patients make a longer commitment of three months or more, we can get to the underlying cause and some real significant changes can take place. The length of time will depend on the severity and duration of the problem. Those who choose to stay in acupuncture for maintenance (about once a month) can see some really deep underlying changes occurring in their lives. Patients can go from darkness and deep depression to taking control of their lives and a feeling of joy with the people around them. Others may experience significant pain relief that allows them to participate in activities of life more easily. Patients can also feel the affects of giving up addictive behaviors such as smoking, alcohol, drugs and even ways of reacting to situations. Yes we all have these behaviors. When we break this pattern of addiction, amazing possibilities can come into our lives. 
    I see acupuncture as clearing the window. Once the window is clear, we look at life differently and see we truly do have choices about how we are in the world. With time and commitment, and the willingness to take the leap, acupuncture can bring an incredible richness to our lives. Take the step and dive in. There is a point on the stomach meridian called “abundant splendor.” Take the leap to allow acupuncture to bring the abundant splendor to your life.