A lot of people who have not tried acupuncture will think that it is a painful type of treatment since it requires the sticking needles into some parts of the body. For others who have tried it, they know there is much more to the treatment than the mere insertion of needles. The traditional form of acupuncture involves the precise placement of needles into parts of the skin to treat sickness and/or relieve suffering and pain. So where did the notion of inserting needles in a person’s body come from?

In any part of the globe, one can now receive acupuncture. However, it was in China that this treatment originated thousands of years ago. Before England or France was even formed, long before the scientific method was invented, and thousands of years before people knew about cells in the body, acupuncture had already been developed and used. The ancient Chinese believed in the concept of Qi, Yin and Yang, and the meridians and they discovered that sticking of needles into certain parts of the body to stimulate these concepts led to the healing of pain and several other ailments and disease.

During those times, they developed a theory that still is maintained by some practitioners today. That is that disease arises due to an imbalance of Yin and Yang inside the body. To treat the disease, the Yin and Yang imbalance needs to be corrected. One way to achieve this is to release Qi, the energy that each of us possesses that flows throughout our body. Qi is believed to flow through energy pathways known as meridians. By inserting needles into the meridians affected by the condition, Qi is released and is able to flow freely once more.

While this belief has been replaced with more plausible scientific theories, acupuncture still is one of the most trusted and popular forms of alternative medicine today. Whether or not you believe in the theory explained above, the fact remains that acupuncture has helped thousands of people to feel and live better. The needles indeed may be a cause for concern for some people, but these days, there are now other forms of acupuncture treatment that are less invasive and less painful which produce the same incredible results as the traditional form of acupuncture.

Christina Prieto, is a licensed acupuncturist in Orlando, FL, and the founder and clinical director of Harmony Wellness Center.