Anyone who is hooked on smoking cigarettes and has attempted to quit would tell you that stopping that unhealthy habit is one of the most difficult things to do. Fortunately, these days, smokers who want to quit can avail of several tools to help them achieve their goal. One of these is acupuncture which is very effective in helping break the addiction to nicotine.
What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is a 4,000-year old Chinese therapy that uses extra-fine needles inserted into strategic points in the body known as acupoints to help heal certain health conditions. The needles stimulate a neural response that causes the vital energy of the person (chi or qi) to restore its normal movement in and regulate the normal functions of the various organ and other body systems of the body. Since acupuncture involves the use of needles, a lot of people are reluctant to try it out. The truth is, acupuncture needles are extremely thin, they are as thin as the hair in your head and you can barely feel a sensation when one is inserted into the skin. What’s more, the needles usually are inserted superficially in the skin unlike the hypodermic needles that go deep down into the skin to inject vaccines or draw blood. After a little while, the needles generate a calming and relaxing sensation that helps the patient relax and even fall asleep during the treatment. As mentioned, acupuncture helps restore the normal functions of the organ and other systems of the body as well as improve the flow of energy. This helps lessen the cravings for nicotine and mitigates the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. As a result, anxiety is eased, the mind is calmed, the lungs are strengthened, and the lungs are cleared of phlegm and tar and nicotine residue.
People usually smoke in order to cope with stagnant energy in the body that may manifest in strong emotions such as grief, anger, tension, or anxiety. Cigarette smoking draws warm air deeply into the lungs and the nicotine enters the blood stream where it travels to the brain causing moments of emotional release and relaxation. In acupuncture treatment, the stagnant energy is normalized making it move normally in the same way that a few moments of quiet meditation or deep breaths can do.
Because it enables us to relax, smoking is a false benefit. It has considerable harmful side effects that are worse than the anxiety it is trying to relieve. According to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the emotion of grief is closely associated with the lungs. Grief is a stuck, sad, and heavy energy that can be cleared by the movement of the lungs with a few puffs of cigarette.
Acupuncture, especially auricular or ear acupuncture can aid in the reduction of nicotine cravings by stimulating brain receptors that the molecules of nicotine usually bind to and this helps break the cravings. Auricular acupuncture can be performed by an acupuncturist or you can use ‘ear seeds’ that are taped on specific acupoints on your ear to generate the same therapeutic effect that an acupuncture procedure gives.
Acupuncture’s most potent benefit is its ability to ease your anxiety and calm your mind. Smoking is usually a sign of people masking their feeling that they do not want to face or feel head on. In the safest way, acupuncture helps you remove these feelings out of your mind and body. After a session or two, most people state that they are able to fall asleep easier, sleep much better, and sleep for a longer, quality time.
With acupuncture smokers can detoxify their body off nicotine and tar residue. The lungs are cleared and feel much lighter. As a result, people can breathe much better. Digestion also improves, coughing is halted and the voice sounds less grave.
Chinese herbal formulas are oftentimes added to the treatment to help prevent the recurrence of the cravings and to repair the lungs. A particular formula known as “yang Yin Chin Fei” makes it easy for smokers and ex-smokers alike to refrain from smoking. This formula also helps treat sore throat and coughing and helps clear out the lungs as well. It also addresses lung dryness by helping increase moisture in the body.
Ultimately, the one thing that guarantees your success in stopping smoking permanently is your heartfelt desire to quit. As with most types of addictions, the need to admit that you have a problem is the first step to a cigarette-free life. Sometimes, an acupuncturist may ask his patient why he/she wants to quit. If the patient has a sincere desire to change his/her life for the better as the main drive for quitting, the outcomes are more often than not far better than patients who say they wish to quit because their doctor ordered them to or it is what their wife wants. However, good these reasons are, the fact is it ultimately will depend on the patient’s own desire to change his/her life.
This personal desire sets the person on the right path to quitting smoking. Positive consequences such as an improvement in health follow after. You need to remind yourself everyday why you made this choice. Make a list of the reasons and put it in a spot in your home where you can easily see and read it. No amount of hypnotic therapy, nicotine gum, or acupuncture treatment can help you stop smoking unless you are resolved and committed to stick to your decision. Since you are only human (and humans tend to ‘slip up” from time to time) and find yourself smoking once again, go easy on yourself since the healing process takes some time. Do not load yourself with unreasonable expectations.
Nicotine addiction is a very hard habit to break as some studies show. Studies reveal that people who have stopped smoking for a quarter of a century can still have a desire to smoke! Instead of thinking that permanent smoking cessation is impossible, consider cutting back and slowly modify your lifestyle in order that one day you discover that there is no more room or reason in your life to smoke. Addictions happen because they are pleasant experiences that our brain record and these positive feedbacks make us want to experience them over and over. Cigarette addicts may appear to have weaker self-control than other people who don’t smoke; that is not true. These addicts usually are endowed with stronger functioning memory feedback loop and in order to break this vicious loop, acupuncture is used to generate a positive and new sensory feedback loop for your brain.
Jacksonville Acupuncture Clinic
8855 San Jose Blvd
Jacksonville , FL 32217
Phone: (904) 260-2598
www.jacksonvilleacupunctureclinic.com
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