Acupuncture, Dry Needling, Acupressure?

I got a call this weekend from a potential patient asking a great question!

What is the difference between Acupuncture, Acupressure and dry needling. I could answer this question in so many different ways, here is one response.

In the state of Colorado in order to practice Acupuncture you have to have a Master's degree and a license in Chinese medicine, which means we use the deep roots of Chinese medical theory to view, diagnose and treat the body. (this kind of practitioner is obligated to include L.Ac. after their name so that you know they passed all of the board exams in the state they are practicing in).

Needles are our tools to communicate and interact with the body. Dry needling is a technique in which an acupuncturist can find what we refer to as "Ashi" points or pain points on the body to treat musculoskeletal issues. We have different needle techniques that we use based on the diagnosis and the patient's constitution. One is called sparrow pecking, which is often what people think of when they say the term dry needling. Sparrow pecking is inserting the needle, and then drawing it slightly out of the tissue and then back in, this technique can release an excess and create a pretty big De Qi sensation in the area of the tissue being needled. We incorporate channel points that are distal to the needle to open up the entire line of facia and blood flow. Finally we retain needles so that the energy and blood flow has the opportunity to circulate throughout the system.

Patients can use acupressure at home on themselves. There is no licensing necessary to incorporate acupressure, in part because a lot of what licensing and board exams are about is safety. If we use needles to puncture skin and go into tissue, it is vitally important that we have thousands of hours and education on the structures that are around and underneath these needles.

Here is another way to describe what acupuncture is:

Acupuncture was originally a form of ecological surgery that regulated the vascular watersheds of the body to allow the illumination of the blood to flow to all parts of the body. - Dr. Edward Neal