Frequently Asked Questions
About Acupuncture and NECA
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Most people find acupuncture very comfortable and relaxing. The needles are very thin and usually provide little to no sensation upon insertion.
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NECA only uses disposable, sterile, stainless steel acupuncture needles.
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Loose comfortable clothing. Easy access to the arms and legs is essential. Please avoid wearing any strong-smelling cologne, perfume or other body products. (Many patients suffer from sensitivity to these smells)
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Most visits last approximately one hour. Your initial office visit may be 1.5 hours.
What is “community style” acupuncture?
Community style acupuncture (CSA) refers to the actual layout and design of the treatment facility and not to a specific style of acupuncture. For chair treatments, you’re in a large room with multiple chairs that you share with other patients. For table treatments, there are curtains surrounding each massage table to allow for privacy during your treatment session. CSA clinics such as New England Community Acupuncture believe affordable access to treatment allows for the most benefit from treatment. The 2000 plus years of clinical history of acupuncture sites numerous examples of consistent treatments to maximize the patient’s success.
Why are NECA’s rates for treatment less expensive than most other clinics?
NECA is a unique clinic design that allows the acupuncturists greater flexibility in treatment options. This gives NECA the ability to see a larger number of weekly patients, which translates to less expense for each patient.
What conditions can you treat?
Chinese medicine treats a very wide variety of conditions. Patients come to NECA for treatment of pain conditions, digestion disorders, women’s health, emotional issues, and many other disorders. You can see a more thorough list of conditions and disorders that we treat below!
How many treatments will I need?
At your initial office visit we perform a thorough health history of your case. After this evaluation a treatment plan is discussed. Many patients begin their course of treatment with multiple sessions per week. Most conditions begin to respond in the first few sessions but stability in chronic health conditions is only achieved over time. With the numerous variables of each individual and each health condition it is not possible to give a specific number of treatments needed.
(NOTE: patients are NOT required to make any long-term commitment to treatment. Each patient pays for treatment on a per-session basis and does NOT need to provide a deposit on future treatments)
What is Chinese herbal medicine?
Chinese herbal medicine is a major aspect of the tradition of Chinese medicine. Through analysis and diagnosis, NECA can fill a custom-made herbal formula to treat your specific health concern. An herbal formula consists of multiple different herbs combined to treat a wide variety of conditions.
NECA has a fully stocked, herbal pharmacy so prescriptions are filled in-house at our Woburn location. Your practitioner may discuss the use of herbal medicine in addition to acupuncture to help decide the best approach for treatment. Access to herbal medicine is only available to current acupuncture patients of the clinic and used at the discretion of your practitioner.
The herbal formula prescriptions are administered in a powdered form which is taken with water. (Specific instructions are given to patients receiving prescriptions.)