I Was Expecting A Lot Worse From Acupuncture As Someone Who's Afraid Of Needles
I am what many call "the fainter."
For those who do not know, acupuncture is one of the oldest forms of medicine that is still widely practiced today. Started in ancient China, it is now widely practiced around the world. It is also practiced a thirty minute drive from my house, one in which I was going to for the first time.
I didn't know a lot about acupuncture before I went into my appointment. All I knew was that I would be getting multiple needles put into my back to help my lower back pain that has been constant for a good five months now. The biggest thing on my mind? The thin short and sharp bit of metal that would be going straight into my back. Also known as...the needles.
Now, a lot of people are surprised when I say I am utterly terrified of needles. It can be because I had a terrifying doctor who gave my flu shot for too many seconds or it can because needles simply lead to pain. The surprising part is that I have eight piercings all on my ears. You would think I would be used to the feeling of needles going into my body, right?
Very very wrong.
I am what many call "the fainter." If I get blood drawn I cannot be sitting in a chair otherwise I would faint. I can't get my flu shot standing or sitting up because I would collapse to the floor in seconds. Every single time a needle has gone through my body since my first fainting session, I have gotten it laying down. Call me extremely over-dramatic.
That is until you see me pale and fall to the ground unconscious.
Now fast forward to the day I agreed to get acupuncture for my lower back pain. The only thought going through my head was..."I'm crazy for willingly allowing someone to put multiple needles in me." Shots are different and so are piercings. They go in and the pain is gone. Generally speaking, it's only one needle, not ten.
So as I walked into my appointment my nerves grew a bit. That is until my acupuncturist explained to me what acupuncture is.
The needles are thin and sterile that go into multiple areas over the body. People express the feeling as a quick pinch and a slight amount of pressure. People generally do not feel the needle after it has been inserted into the body. She also told me that the needle really doesn't go that far into the skin. This allowed me to calm down because I've pricked myself with a sewing needle more times than I can actually count.
My acupuncturist also told me she is terrible with needles as well. She explained that acupuncture was nothing to be afraid of since she also did not enjoy needles going into her. I instantly related to her, and I instantly calmed down.
As I sat in the chair to talk about my back pain it was finally time to start the acupuncture procedure. She instructed me to remain seated, but I didn't question it. It wasn't until she used the light switch and the light as a figure of speech that had me worried. "The light may be on the ceiling, but the light switch is on the wall. The body is the same way. It can have the switch on the head to relieve the pain on the lower back."
Then she proceeding to put four needles into my head. I instantly got tensed.
When I felt no relief or change she put another needle into the skin right above the top of my lip. No relief and she took that one out. If there was no relief from those switches on my body, then the switch was on my back. Then I laid on my back and waited for the needles.
I couldn't necessarily keep track, but I believe she put about ten in my lower back.
Then she made sure I was okay, turned on some meditative relaxing music, put on a dim orange light, and left.
I laid on the bed for a good half hour. During that time I was doing my best to relax and not think. As someone who is more of an overthinker, trying to relax is a little difficult. Acupuncture has a lot to do with the Qi (pronounced chi), or our life force. It is believed that when an illness occurs, the life force is not balanced. Acupuncture is designed to regain that balance. I tried to think about that as I laid on my stomach with ten needles in my back and four in my head.
Prior to getting acupuncture I only knew one person my age who had ever gotten it. He told me it wasn't as terrifying as I was making it out to be. He had gotten acupuncture young, and now here I was nineteen-years-old getting acupuncture.
When I finally got to relax, I actually felt very calm. We live in a society where moving and stressing is a norm. It felt nice to just lay down, with my own calming thoughts, and relax. It felt like I was floating, practically on a cloud when I had finally relaxed. My phone was in my purse, turned off, and my watch was off my wrist so there were no distractions. All I had was a quiet room with soft instrumental music, and myself. Not only was I getting treated for my back pain, but I felt like I was getting a small little treatment on myself.
I soon realized that even when I'm laying in bed or sitting on the couch claiming to be relaxing, I still have my phone in my hand, the television was on, or I'm listening to music. I've always been a person who needs to be doing something. Whether it's writing, playing music, watching TV, or doing homework, I've come to realize that I've hardly taken a moment out of my day to just sit and relax.
Acupuncture provided a moment of my time to relax, take care of my body, and finally get to breathe. When I finished with my acupuncture session, I felt more refreshed but also a little delirious. I never relax, and it definitely felt like I needed it. I felt like I had just woken up from a dream as I drove back, after my session feeling less pain and full of more energy.
The total opposite I feel when I'm getting a shot and proceeding to faint. I call this an enlightening moment.
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