The Community Difference
If you’ve had acupuncture before, and it wasn’t community style, it was probably really different from what we do here at Calm Community Acupuncture.
It was probably a one on one treatment, in a private room, with patient and practitioner only. The Acupuncture Physician likely spent up to a half an hour, or more, just asking you questions and attempting to make a diagnosis through a long drawn out process of inquiry. After this long session of talking, you were given acupuncture and probably had about 20 minutes to rest, with the needles in. Then, maybe a timer went off or the practitioner came back into the room and the needles are removed and you head out. This is a typical set up for privatized acupuncture, we don’t do that, we are community style.
After nearly 15 years in practice, I’ve found that it’s not the questions or the privacy that make acupuncture successful! The success of acupuncture is due to the acupuncture itself, how long the needles are left in, and how often the patient gets treatment.
I accept a sliding scale payment, just $30-$55 per treatment ($10 extra for an administrative fee the first time). YOU, the patient, decide what YOU want to pay on our sliding scale. It is your choice of what to pay on the sliding scale, no questions asked. Community Acupuncture allows the patient to afford treatment more often AND it uses the treatment time wisely. There is also no alarm going off, you can rest as long as you want.
It’s different, I know, but I think you’ll like it and your bank account will definitely appreciate it!
Here’s how it works…
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I will ask you basic questions like, “why are you here for treatment?” I will check your pulses and look at your tongue, traditional Chinese Medical diagnosis. When you come in for your first treatment, I will get some more specific information, but when you return for consecutive treatments, I will get just the basics!
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You will be told which room and which chair to rest in.
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I will use points on your hands, arms, legs, feet, and possibly your head, face and neck in order to access all areas of the body. This way, you stay fully clothed for the treatment, which saves time and is so much more convenient.
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You can lay in your chair for as long as you need to. I’m not going to rush you out, especially if you’ve fallen asleep! The best healing happens when you’re sleeping.
Acupuncture has almost always been a community based medicine in China. In order for acupuncture to be most effective, patients need to get treatments often and regularly — far more frequently and regularly than most insurance plans will pay for and far more than most Americans can afford in a private setting at up to $100 per hour!
Check out the People’s Organization for Community Acupuncture (POCA) for more information.