Sherry Chang Acupuncture Studio Greenpoint Williamsburg
Acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese Herbs.
My office has reopened. I am so looking forward to seeing you all again in person. The set up for the office will be little different as I am adjusting to reopening guidelines advised by NY state and the NY acupuncture board (ASNY).
COMING INTO THE OFFICE CHECKLIST:
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Take your temperature the night before your appointment and email it to me, I will also take your temperature upon entering the office. You cannot be treated if your temperature is above 100.4
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If you are exhibiting any symptoms of Respiratory infection (fatigue, shortness of breath, fever, chills, cough, loss of taste/smell, body aches) please do not come into the office. I will work with you via Telemedicine, ship herbs to your home and arrange for curb-side pick up. Most people with Covid19 with mild illness can and will recover from home. If you are having trouble breathing, please contact your medical provider, I can call for you if you need me to.
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https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/steps-when-sick.html
OFFICE SAFETY MEASURES:
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You will be asked to wash your hands or use hand sanitizer before and after the appointment
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Please come alone for your appointment, anyone accompanying you will not be permitted into the office
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Patients will be scheduled per hour, rooms will be ultra sanitized with CDC recommended cleaners. Treatment rooms will also be used every other patient allowing the space to air out
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I’ve added air filters to each room to enhance circulation and ventilation during your treatment
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Windows will remain open during the appointment
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Checkout will take place in the treatment room
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When your appointment is over, you will be asked to leave the office as soon as possible to allow for efficient cleaning and sanitizing
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The waiting area will be closed, all personal belongings will have to be taken with you into the treatment rooms
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There will not be any more than 2 people in the office, ME and the PATIENT
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I will be wearing a mask the entire time for every patient.
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Please bring your own water as the Brita will not be in used at this time
What are trigger points and why do I have them?
If you've been in physical therapy in the last 10 years, you've heard of trigger point therapy. And if you have muscular pain and knots, then you most likely have trigger points. Trigger points are hyper irritable spots in the muscle that's associated with hypersensitive palpable nodule in a taut band. The "spot" is very sensitive to touch and pressure. It can also give rise to referred pain, muscle motor dysfunction and muscle weakness. When the patient comes in with PAIN as their chief complaint, I first check to see where the muscle dysfunction is located, palpate the area, do a few orthopedic tests and start treatment based on those findings.
When trigger points are treated with acupuncture, the immediate response is a fasciculation in the muscle, like a crazy cool twitch response. I wouldn't say it is painful, I'd describe it as a release in the muscle and it feels unexpected, maybe a little weird. The pain relief should be immediate but that can vary depending on each patient. Some patients really enjoy trigger point acupuncture because it is very effective in pain relief and restoring muscle function, but some may find it too aggressive. Once you have started trigger point acupuncture treatments, its important to come in weekly to keep the momentum going for a short time (treatment schedule will depend on the severity of the injury). We will also address neighboring muscles that were probably effected from the injury too. It never really is just one muscle.
What's actually happening physiologically to the muscle?
- acupuncture needle insertion creates a micro-irritation the ischemic tissue
- this irritation creates a local histamine response (like a mosquito)
- blood flows to the area bringing an increase in fresh blood (nutrients and oxygen) to the nutrient starved tissue, which then cause vasodilation in the tissue
- an involuntary contraction of the affected muscle takes place, forcing the soft tissue to take a breath and relax! The muscle is then returned back to its normal state.
How do trigger points form?
All kinds of reasons, there are many different ways to injure soft tissue, but I've listed the bulk of the causes:
- overwork (poor posture for you 9-5ers)
- repetitive motion
- direct trauma
- structural imbalances
- poor nutrition (hydration!)
- mental or emotional stress
Post acupuncture trigger point therapy
- drink a lot of water
- use a topical muscle pain reliever such as arnica, tiger balm, po sum on
- heat pack
- epsom salt bath
** take it easy for the rest of the day, I'd stay away from working out especially in the area where we just treated