The difference and connection between the effects of acupuncture and massage

Acupuncture and massage both belong to the external treatment system of traditional Chinese medicine. The underlying logic relies on stimulating the meridians and acupuncture points to regulate the movement of qi and blood, and there is no absolute distinction between superiority and inferiority. The core difference in the effectiveness of the two lies in the depth of action and adaptability to the scene - acupuncture penetrates into the skin and can reach deep muscles, fascia and even nerve nodes, and is better at solving old congestion, organ imbalance, and neurogenic problems; massage acts on the body surface, relaxing soft tissues through mechanical stimulation, and is better at relieving acute muscle fatigue, sorting out superficial muscle knots, and improving local circulation. The two are often used together in clinical practice. Different schools have different practical tendencies for the priority of the two, and there is no unified "optimal solution".

Last week, a young man with a stiff neck came to the clinic. When he walked in, his neck was so crooked that it looked like it was fixed, and he was in so much pain that he had to struggle to drink water. I first asked him to lie down on the treatment bed and rubbed his stiff upper trapezius muscles with the heel of his hand for seven or eight minutes. After the tightness in his shoulder and neck was mostly relaxed, I took two 0.25*40 filiform needles and inserted them into the Houxi point on his hand. After twisting until he was breathless, I asked him to slowly turn his neck. , in just two minutes, his eyes lit up: "Huh? It doesn't hurt anymore?" This is the most typical scenario of combining the two - massage first loosens superficial muscle tension, and acupuncture then unblocks deep-seated meridian blockages. The combined effect is much faster than using either method alone.

I have been doing this for almost ten years, and I am often asked by patients, "Do I need acupuncture or massage for this problem?" In fact, there are not so many either/or rules. If you have just climbed a mountain the day before and your thighs are so sore that you are shaking when you go down the stairs, then find a masseur to rub your legs for twenty minutes. The lactic acid will dissipate and you will be relieved the same day. Of course, acupuncture is also useful at this time, but after all, you have to disinfect and get pricked. People who are afraid of needles are simply suffering unnecessarily. But if you have been suffering from knee pain for three or four years, and the X-ray shows that you have osteoarthritis, medial collateral ligament adhesion, making it difficult to walk, and you still feel pain when you touch it after half a month of massage, then the advantages of acupuncture will be revealed - the needle tip can accurately penetrate the adhering fascial layer and loosen the twisted fibers in a few seconds. This force cannot be penetrated by pressing with your hands, and if you press too hard, it will easily cause edema in the uninjured superficial muscles.

Some people must have different opinions when it comes to this. I have actually met many masters of different schools who have their own insistence: Many doctors of the traditional acupuncture school believe that the efficiency of acupuncture in regulating qi and blood is incomparable to massage. For example, when you have stomach pain or dysmenorrhea, insert Zusanli and Sanyinjiao. If the qi is released quickly, the pain can be relieved in one minute. Massaging these acupoints is also useful, but you have to continue pressing for several minutes. If the force is not enough, it will not be effective. But the masters of viscera massage disagree, saying that they have been doing abdominal massage all their lives. By putting their hands on the belly, they can feel the bloating nodules and spasmodic intestinal tubes. By pushing along the meridians for three to five minutes, dysmenorrhea and stomach pain can be relieved on the spot. There is no need for needles and there are no wounds. It is especially suitable for the elderly, children and people who are afraid of needles. Both sides are supported by clinical cases, and no one can convince the other. The paths are different, so long as they can solve the problem.

After so many years of clinical practice, I rarely use any one method alone. Two years ago, I met an aunt who had peripheral facial paralysis. When she first came into the acute phase, half of her face could not move at all and she could not drink water. In the first week, I mainly relied on acupuncture to penetrate the acupuncture points of Cuanzhu and Dicang to reduce the edema of the facial nerve first, and wait for her to be able to lift her head a little after a week. I massaged her face for five minutes after each acupuncture, especially the knots in the masseter muscles that were as hard as pebbles, and slowly rubbed them away. It took her less than 20 days to fully recover, which was almost a week faster than the patients I treated with acupuncture alone. Nowadays, the same idea is used in the rehabilitation departments of public tertiary hospitals. For example, patients with lumbar protrusion are so painful that they can't get out of bed in the acute stage. They first use acupuncture to reduce the edema in the nerve roots, and the pain is relieved. Then they use massage to relax the deep psoas muscles and adjust the position of the pelvis. The recurrence rate is much lower than using one method alone.

Nowadays, many people on the Internet say that "massage is only for relaxation and cannot cure diseases. Only acupuncture can cure diseases." This is actually quite one-sided. You see, pediatric massage has now entered the paediatrics of many hospitals. Many children have food accumulation, fever, and diarrhea. They can be cured in three to five days without taking medicine or acupuncture. This is all supported by clinical data. But why do people have this misunderstanding? The main reason is that many masseurs in health care centers have only scratched the surface of their knowledge. They can only relax the superficial muscles, but cannot regulate the meridians and tendon knots. Naturally, they can only have a relaxing effect. Some people say that acupuncture is more dangerous than massage, as they are afraid of piercing the lungs or internal organs. In fact, as long as it is a formally trained medical practitioner who is very familiar with the anatomy, such problems will hardly occur. On the contrary, if you find an unprofessional person to massage, there are many cases of cervical vertebra damage and lumbar disc herniation aggravated by pressing the waist. The risk has always been related to the level of the operator, and has nothing to do with the method itself.

Speaking of which, I usually sit in the clinic for a whole day, and my shoulders and neck are often stiff and painful. If I am still free that day, I will give myself a needle in my shoulder. I will leave the needle for 15 minutes and it will loosen up quickly. If I'm too lazy to get needles at home, I can just ask my spouse to massage my shoulders and neck for ten minutes, and I'll be mostly comfortable. To put it bluntly, these two are a good pair passed down from our ancestors. There is no saying that one is superior to the other. When you really feel uncomfortable, just find a regular doctor to choose the most appropriate method based on your situation. There is no need to fight over which one is better.