Austin Japanese Acupuncture specializes in Sesshoku-shin, or “contact-needle” style Japanese acupuncture. In Japan, this method of treatment has been well established since the 17th century. Masako Wada has studied this unique technique under acupuncture master Dr. Anryu Iwashina (a.k.a. Dr. Bear) of Morioka, Japan.

Contact-needle technique uses gold and silver Teishin (needles) with rounded tips which contact acupuncture points on the skin. Since Teishin needles are not inserted into a patient’s body, the patient does not experience any pain or discomfort associated with the regular needling method. Although regular acupuncture techniques are already relatively painless, the Teishin method is particularly suitable for adults who are very sensitive, whose immunity is compromised by serious disease, or suffer from depression and anxiety. It is also suitable for children who are afraid of needles.

Benefits of Acupuncture

• ALLERGIES/ASTHMA
• ANXIETY/DEPRESSION
• ARTHRITIS
• NECK/SHOULDER/KNEE/BACK PAIN
• COMMON COLD/FLU
• CONSTIPATION/DIARRHEA
• DIABETES
• GYNECOLOGICAL DISORDERS
• HEADACHES
• IMPOTENCE/INFERTILITY
• INSOMNIA
• LOW ENERGY
• SCIATICA
• SKIN PROBLEMS
• SMOKING SECESSION
• STRESS
• WEIGHT LOSS …. and many more


Unique Contact Needle Style

Acupuncture points are located on the skin, not within the muscles or internal organs. Thus, acupuncture treatments can be effectively performed by gently stimulating those acupuncture points located on the skin. Patients experienced remarkable healing by using this Contact Needle Technique, with results comparable to conventional acupuncture.

One explanation for how the Contact Needle Technique works is the use of gold needles. In a recent study by skin scientist Dr. Mitsuhiro Denda, it was revealed that the electromagnetic field of skin changes just by contact with gold, speeding up the recovery of the skin's electromagnetic barrier. He thinks 'the electrical condition of the skin' may induce 'an effect deeper down to the peripheral nerves and the circulatory system'. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes the use of acupuncture in the treatment of a wide range of medical problems.

Moxibustion

Moxibustion is also an essential part of Japanese Acupuncture that involves the burning of mugwort, a small, spongy herb, to facilitate healing. Moxibustion has been used throughout Asia for thousands of years; in fact, the actual Chinese character for acupuncture, translated literally, means “acupuncture-moxibustion.” The purpose of moxibustion, as with most forms of traditional Oriental medicine, is to strengthen the blood, stimulate the flow of qi, and enhance the immune system.

How does moxibustion work? Does it hurt?

There are two types of moxibustion: direct and indirect. In direct moxibustion, a small, cone-shaped amount of moxa is placed on top of an acupuncture point and burned. This type of moxibustion is further categorized into two types: scarring and non-scarring. With scarring moxibustion, the moxa is placed on a point, ignited, and allowed to remain onto the point until it burns out completely. This may lead to localized scarring, blisters and scarring after healing. With non-scarring moxibustion, the moxa is placed on the point and lit, but is extinguished or removed before it burns the skin. The patient will experience a pleasant heating sensation that penetrates deep into the skin, but should not experience any pain, blistering or scarring unless the moxa is left in place for too long.

This photo demonstrates the moxibustion over salt placed in umbilicus to treat diarrhea.

What is moxibustion used for?

In traditional Oriental medicine, moxibustion is used on people who have a cold or stagnant condition. The burning of moxa is believed to expel cold and warm the meridians, which leads to smoother flow of blood and qi. In Western medicine, moxibustion has successfully been used to turn breech babies into normal head-down positions prior to childbirth. A landmark study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 found that up to 75% of women suffering from breech presentations before childbirth had fetuses that rotated to the normal position after receiving moxibustion at an acupuncture point on the Bladder meridian. Other studies have shown that moxibustion increases the movement of the fetus in pregnant women, and may reduce the symptoms of menstrual cramps when used in conjunction with traditional acupuncture.

Why do acupuncturists use mugwort? Why not use some other herb?

Mugwort, also known as artemesia vulgaris or ai ye in Chinese, has a long history of use in folk medicine. Research has shown that it acts as an emmenagogue that is, an agent that increases blood circulation to the pelvic area and uterus and stimulates menstruation. This could explain its use in treating breech births and menstrual cramps.

    • (*) “Conversation with Skin Scientist Denda Mitsuhiro – Part 3” pp.19, vol. 17, No. 48,

North American Journal of Oriental Medicine

  • Mr. Mitsuhiro Denda, born in Kobe, Japan, a skin scientist, an author of “Hifu-wa-kangaeru (The Skin Thinks) 2005” and Daisan-no-Noh (The Third Brain). He discovered that receptors found in the brain also exist in the epidermis and received recognition in Japan and abroad.