Moxibustion
Acupuncture originated in China around 2,500 years ago. The idea is that there are different energy pathways, or meridians, in the body. Stimulating certain points along the meridians helps energy, or chi, flow better along the pathways. Each point corresponds to different parts of the body, so if you have back pain, for example, you might stimulate points in the ear.
Korean acupuncture uses micromeridians in the hands that are supposed to link to the bigger meridians in the body. Last weekend we went to an acupuncture thing with one of Joel's friends who's licensed in Korean acupuncture. He took a group of people to provide free acupuncture at a senior citizens center and we got to tag along.
Moxibustion is a kind of acupuncture where the acupuncture points are stimulated with heat. The little clay things contain moxa, an herb that comes from mugwort. In the old days, they used to put the herb directly on the skin and allow the skin to burn, but now they use these little clay things and put a barrier between them and the skin.
They light the herb and as it burns, it warms the little clay bottom. It gets quite hot for a bit, but not so that it burns or anything, and eventually the heat fades away, maybe after five minutes or so. Moxibustion was my favorite part of the clinic. It feels super nice--I would love to get the full-body treatment with this!
Of course, the most famous acupuncture stimulation is with needles (hence 'puncture'), which we also got to try. More on that later!
Korean acupuncture uses micromeridians in the hands that are supposed to link to the bigger meridians in the body. Last weekend we went to an acupuncture thing with one of Joel's friends who's licensed in Korean acupuncture. He took a group of people to provide free acupuncture at a senior citizens center and we got to tag along.
Moxibustion is a kind of acupuncture where the acupuncture points are stimulated with heat. The little clay things contain moxa, an herb that comes from mugwort. In the old days, they used to put the herb directly on the skin and allow the skin to burn, but now they use these little clay things and put a barrier between them and the skin.
Joel getting moxibustion. The placement of the heat is supposed to improve energy flow in the internal organs.
They light the herb and as it burns, it warms the little clay bottom. It gets quite hot for a bit, but not so that it burns or anything, and eventually the heat fades away, maybe after five minutes or so. Moxibustion was my favorite part of the clinic. It feels super nice--I would love to get the full-body treatment with this!
Of course, the most famous acupuncture stimulation is with needles (hence 'puncture'), which we also got to try. More on that later!
posted by AJ at 8:36 PM
1 Comments:
I've always thought that acupuncture was the coolest thing ever. But I've never had the opportunity to get it. Sounds like fun!
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