Bodywork
There are many forms of Chinese manual therapy that can either go along with an acupuncture treatment or be used instead of needling. I've included here the ones that I use in treatments. There are more!
Tui Na
The name of this form of massage therapy translates as
"pinch and pull". Differing from its Western counterpart, it's used for therapeutic benefits but not relaxation, and its application tends to be faster and more vigorous. There are many strokes and techniques used in tui na, but what truly sets it apart is that it is based in the diagnostic principles of Chinese medicine for correcting imbalances, and that it follows acupuncture channels and uses acupuncture points.
Gua Sha
Literally translated as "scraping sand", gua sha is a manual therapy that's similar in intention to cupping. In gua sha, the skin and superficial fascia are gently scraped with the flat edge of a tool to help move blood and fluids and to release stagnation. The "sha", or sand, are the small, temporary red bumps of petechiae which last for a few days and signify the released stagnated areas. While the petechiae produced may look fairly hardcore, the treatment feels very soothing and relaxing. I find gua sha to be great for occipital, neck, and shoulder tension, and have even had success using it on the scalp for neurological issues.
E-Stim
E-stim, or electronic stimulation, is just that: the stimulation of acupuncture needles with an electric current. The e-stim machine connects to the needles by tiny alligator clips. The machine can be set to deliver different types of waveforms, and the intensity of each connection can be individually adjusted. Depending on the waveform selected, the current can either unwind tense muscles, stimulate nerve conduction, or both. This is another treatment that looks intense to the eye but feels very soothing E-stim is my go-to treatment for myself: I've had great success treating chronic muscle guarding and nerve damage from a motor vehicle accident I was involved in a decade ago.
More Modalities
And there are still important treatments to consider: from seven star or plum blossom needles, to bleeding, to medicated plasters that I can do for you, and activities that you can do for yourself like diet therapy, Qi Gong, or Tai Ji!
Cupping
Cupping is a form of therapy in which suction is created from the skin surface to a few inches into the tissues to activate and clear the veins, arteries, capillaries and the lymphatic system. Cupping can also loosen muscles, clear lung congestion and other stagnations, and sedate the nervous system to lower blood pressure. Suction is created in the cups either by fire for the glass cups, by pump for the plastic ones, or by manually squeezing out the air in silicone cups, which can also glide over the skin and be used in massage. The glass and plastic cups are stationary on the body, and the suction they create leaves temporary marks on the skin which can be used to diagnose levels of stagnation by the intensity of their colour. Cupping can also be combined with needles, herbal infusions, and bloodletting. The feeling cupping imparts is one of relaxation and release. You may want to plan your wardrobe to coneal the octopus tentacle-like cupping marks for the up-to-a-week that they can last, although these days, cupping marks are kind of an alternative medicine badge of pride!
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Moxibustion
Moxibustion involves burning cones of dried mugwort on the skin: either directly, on top of another medium, in stick form held close to the skin, or on top of acupuncture needles. Mugwort is the Chinese medicinal herb Ai Ye, whose major use is for warming the body's channels, dispersing cold, and stopping pain. If burned on a slice of ginger on the abdomen, moxa can help with cold digestive issues. If burned on top of salt in the belly button, moxa can help alleviate severe Yang deficiency. If burned on an acupuncture needle, Moxa will heat the metal to target a very specific area for warmth. If burned in stick form held over an acupuncture point or moved along an acupuncture channel line, Moxa can bring both warmth and movement of Qi to the area. Moxa has a very distinctive smell that people tend not to be neutral over, and the Chinese herbal belief is that mugwort has the ability to penetrate the depths of skin into the body with warmth like no other herb.
Ear Seeds
Ear seeds are also exactly what they sound like: they are the ripened seeds of the Vaccaria plant (Wang Bu Liu Xing in Mandarin), which are placed on the ear with adhesive squares, and are used to stimulate acupuncture points over the course of a few days. In TCM theory, the ear is an image of the entire human body upside-down, and treating points on the ear can have significant effects throughout the whole body. A great use of ear seeds is at the end of an acupuncture treatment where ear points are selected to reinforce the treatment just given. You go home wearing them and can gently press them throughout the course of the day to continue receiving the benefit of the acupuncture treatment. They generally fall off by themselves within four days, and are easily removed afterward if they don't come off by themselves. The photo above shows you how they look; it's actually more effective (and more discrete) to place the seeds on the back of the ears.