Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese treatment that can be used to improve anxiety, chronic pain, and other physical and mental problems. If you are a veteran who is experiencing any of these issues, you should consider receiving this treatment from 1st Choice Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine in Bellevue, WA.
Is Acupuncture Covered Under the Veterans Choice Act?
The Veterans Choice Act is a law that allows veterans to receive medical treatments from a wide variety of healthcare providers. In general, veterans will benefit from this law if they live at least 40 miles away from a VA hospital or are unable to obtain a timely appointment at a nearby VA hospital. However, the VA does not employ acupuncturists. As a result, the Veterans Choice Act will cover the full cost of veterans’ acupuncture treatments.
To receive coverage for your treatments, you will need to get a referral from your doctor before you go to your initial appointment. You should tell your doctor that we are your preferred acupuncture treatment facility.
What Issues Can This Treatment Be Used To Improve?
This ancient medical technique can treat many mental and physical issues that veterans are likely to experience. In fact, the National Library of Medicine determined that veterans received 185,000 acupuncture treatments in 2017. Further, many veterans who participated in studies conducted by the National Institutes of Health said that these treatments improved their health and reduced their symptoms.
Treating Chronic Pain
Chronic pain can make it difficult for you to perform household tasks, exercise, and enjoy social outings with your friends. You might feel aches, numbness, and other problems when you walk or move your arms. In addition, your chronic pain may worsen during the night time. This issue can prevent you from obtaining adequate amounts of sleep.
Our treatments are especially good at improving lower back pain. In addition, we can treat acute types of pain that have not responded to medications or other interventions. Further, we can improve the symptoms that are associated with a variety of musculoskeletal issues.
Improving Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Many veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, commonly known as PTSD. In fact, experts estimate that 11% to 20% of veterans have this syndrome.
This mental condition can cause you to experience flashbacks, anxiety, depression, and other problems. In addition, you may have difficulty sleeping and controlling your emotions. Our treatments can reduce the severity of your symptoms and help you become calmer and more balanced.
Treating Amputation Neuroma Pain
If you received an amputation during your military service, you might develop amputation neuroma pain. This problem can develop when the nerve cells near your amputation site become damaged. You might begin to feel discomfort and tingling sensations when you use the affected area. In addition, this issue can prevent you from using a prosthesis.
This type of pain can be very difficult to improve with medication. Fortunately, our treatments can reduce your pain and improve your functionality.
Improving Addiction Issues
If you are going through a substance abuse recovery program, you might benefit from receiving this ancient medical treatment. Our sessions can be used to reduce the severity of your withdrawal symptoms and decrease your cravings. In addition, the calming effects of this treatment may increase your ability to stop using these harmful substances.
It’s common to use this treatment to reduce the effects of withdrawing from alcohol or tobacco. In addition, we can use these treatments to address addiction issues that are related to your use of opioids.
Decreasing Your Anxiety Levels
Although prescription medications can be an effective way to manage mental health issues, you might have difficulty using these pharmaceuticals to fix your anxiety. Your medications could make you feel tired or irritated. In addition, you might develop indigestion or other physical symptoms.
Our treatments can be used to improve panic disorders, anxiety problems, and other mental challenges. Generally, you will see the biggest changes in your anxiety after you have been receiving treatments for at least five weeks.
Improving Your Sleep
Suffering from insomnia and other sleeping issues will negatively impact your health. In addition to feeling tired during the day, you may have memory issues and mood changes. Further, receiving inadequate sleep can damage your immune system, cause you to gain weight, and change your hormone levels.
Our treatments can improve the quality of your sleep by reducing your anxiety levels. As you continue to receive treatments, you will have an easier time falling asleep and obtaining high-quality rest throughout the night.
Treating Your Arthritis
Arthritis is a term that is used to describe many different types of joint diseases and joint problems. This issue can cause you to experience pain in your hands or other parts of your body. In addition, your affected joints may become inflexible and stiff.
If you suffer from arthritis, you are likely to feel discomfort when you exercise or complete household chores. You might struggle to treat this condition by taking medications or receiving invasive procedures. Fortunately, we can address this problem by using our needles to stimulate your muscles, tissues, and nerves. These sessions can improve your aching joints and enhance your mood.
Relieving Your Headaches
Headaches are a very common health problem. In fact, more than 45 million people in the United States have sought treatment for painful headaches. This problem can be caused by allergies, tension, and other problems.
Fortunately, you don’t have to take habit-forming medications to fix this issue. Our treatments use muscle relaxation techniques that can create significant improvements in your headaches. These treatments can reduce your symptoms and improve the imbalances that are causing you to experience headaches and migraines.
Improving Your Energy Levels
Many veterans suffer from chronic fatigue and other energy issues. These problems can make it difficult to engage in regular exercise, complete household tasks, and attend social activities. This type of health issue can be very challenging to improve with medications and other conventional medical treatments.
Fortunately, our treatment can improve your energy levels and allow you to be happier and more productive. In addition to experiencing fatigue, your energy challenges may cause you to have feel pain and develop sleeping problems. Improving your energy levels is likely to minimize your discomfort and enhance the quality of your sleep.
What Steps Should I Follow Before My Appointment?
You should dress comfortably on the day of your appointment. Although you won’t need to remove your clothing during your treatment, we may need to put needles in your arms or legs. To help us access these areas of your body, you may have to roll up your pants or sleeves.
In addition to wearing loose clothing, you should make sure that you eat a meal or a snack before you arrive at your appointment. If you do not eat, you might become lightheaded during your session or feel very tired after your treatment is complete.
What Should I Expect During My Treatment?
After we have looked at your body and talked about your health, we will ask you to lie down on a padded table. When you are in position, we will gently insert five to 20 needles into your body. Depending on your health problems, we might place these needles into your legs, arms, back, and other places on your body.
A Relaxing Process
The needles will typically remain in place for up to 20 minutes. During this time, we might adjust the needles or send heat or electrical energy into your body. This process will be very relaxing, and you should feel free to take a nap or close your eyes while we move your needles.
Completing Your Treatment
After a sufficient amount of time has gone by, we will carefully remove your needles. You’ll be able to leave our Bellevue office and return to your normal routine once we have finished removing all of these needles.
Will the Needles Be Uncomfortable?
It’s normal to feel a bit apprehensive when you realize that we are going to insert needles into your skin. Fortunately, we will protect your comfort by using hair-thin needles during your session. Although you will feel a very mild sensation when we insert these needles into your body, you won’t need to use medication or numbing agents during your treatment.
If needles make you very anxious, we can use special techniques during your sessions. For example, we can use Japanese Serin needles with a small gauge during your appointment. In addition, we might be able to improve your mental or physical issues by using a laser to give you a needle-free treatment.
What Will My Treatment Schedule Be Like?
In general, we will advise you to begin your treatment by attending two weekly sessions. Having frequent appointments at the beginning of your treatment plan will help us stabilize your mental or physical problems. Once your symptoms have improved, we will probably advise you to begin receiving one treatment every week.
How Long Will My Appointments Take To Complete?
During your first appointment, we will need to talk about your health problems and discuss the symptoms that you are experiencing. We will also examine your body and talk about the medications and supplements that you are taking. If you are dealing with multiple problems or have very complex health issues, your first appointment might take up to 90 minutes to complete.
To ensure that you are relaxed during this session, you should schedule plenty of time for your first visit to our office in Bellevue. Your subsequent appointments will take less time to complete. In general, these treatments will usually last for about 30 to 45 minutes.
Am I Eligible to Receive This Treatment?
This is a very safe treatment that can improve a wide variety of mental and physical conditions. However, we will need to review your medical background before we begin to insert our needles into your body. For example, you should tell us if you have a pacemaker or other implanted devices in your body. If you have one of these devices, we may adjust the techniques that we use to treat your injuries or other issues.
Improve Your Health
Our treatments can be used to improve chronic pain, headaches, arthritis, and many other physical problems. In addition, these treatments may improve PTSD, anxiety, and other mental health issues. If you are a veteran who is interested in using this ancient technique to enhance your wellbeing, contact us today at 1st Choice Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine in Bellevue, WA.
