Acupuncture: Not just for chronic pain!

August 18, 2015

Most of my acupuncture patients are being treated for chronic pain, often due to arthritis. But did you know that acupuncture can be used to help speed recovery from acute injuries as well? My dog Squash gave me a good reminder about this last weekend.

Because I do some dog sports with Squash, we regularly work on a variety of strength and balance exercises. Over the weekend, he balked at doing a very simple exercise he has done many times before where he puts both of his back feet up on a balance ball. Instead, he did this:

At first I thought he was just being silly, but when he continued to balk I realized that something was wrong. It turned out he had a very painful muscle spasm in his lower back on the left side. I started an anti-inflammatory and did some massage and stretches, but also did an acupuncture treatment.

Dog receiving acupuncture

While he would have recovered either way, he obviously felt much better after his acupuncture treatment and was back to his normal self the next day. Although Squash is at home so he is especially relaxed, this picture gives you an idea of how well our pets tolerate acupuncture. Acupuncture helps increase blood flow through injured areas, relieve pain, and release spasms or trigger points. It is a great alternative for short term injuries and wound healing as well as chronic pain. If you have any questions, please feel free to call and ask!

Written by: Karen Christopherson, DVM CVA