This is the most commonly asked question from a client about to receive his/her initial acupuncture session in an inpatient addiction treatment facility, and this article is the second in a series of three that examines how acupuncture can be a successful adjunctive therapy in the treatment of addictions.

The previous article discussed how the use of auricular acupuncture, which is the placement of ultra-fine needles into specific spots of the outer ear, could easily be implemented into an inpatient setting. Because it is cost-effective, standardized (which makes it easy to learn), and has the ability to be administered to a large group in a relatively short period of time, this procedure is utilized by hundreds of facilities worldwide.

In contrast, the more traditional approach to acupuncture and addictions is practiced by a fully-trained and licensed Doctor of Oriental Medicine* (DOM), who diagnoses and treats the entire body. The DOM creates an individualized treatment plan by observing the tongue, pulse, skin, body movement, strength and quality of the voice as well as many other factors. As much of an art as it is a science, its general principles are based upon a philosophy that is thousands of years old.

The primary theory in all of Traditional Oriental Medicine (TOM) is called Yin and Yang. Pronounced Yin (rhymes with “win”) and Yang (rhymes with “gong”), these are two halves of the same whole, which divide the entire universe into two dynamic polarities as noted in a brief comparative list of Yin and Yang:

Yin (listed first) vs. Yang (listed second) are as follows:

Sunny side of the Hill vs. Shady Side of the Hill
White vs. Black
Heaven vs. Earth
Fire vs. Water
Hot vs. Cold
Male vs. Female
Outside vs. Inside
Too much vs. Too little
Energy vs. Substance
Above vs. Below
Protective vs. Nurturing
Creative Force vs. Manifestation

It is the acupuncturist’s job to decide which predominating Yin/Yang characteristics are out of balance for a client. These presenting symptoms, whether subjective or objective in nature, will be examined from this perspective and applied to all of the body, mind and spirit’s functions and abilities.

After determining the client’s imbalances, the DOM then establishes etiology by relating this information to another foundational TOM theory. This model states that all disease comes from only seven external and seven internal factors. There are seven External and Internal Devils. The External Devils include: cold, wind, heat, damp, dryness, summer heat, and other lifestyle factors from the exterior. Internal Devils include: fear, anger, joy, worry, grief, sadness and fright from the interior. These factors in and of themselves are not good or bad, rather, it is their state of balance within the body that makes the difference between pathology and health.

To illustrate this philosophy, let us use insomnia as an example in two different heroin addicts. Besides difficulty with sleeping, Client #1 also complains of anxiety, constipation and muscle cramping. After being examined, we determine that all of these symptoms, including the chief complaint of insomnia, are due to an “excess of internal heat.” Using the Yin/Yang chart above, we can say that he has “too much” (Yang), “internal” (Yin), “heat” (Yang).

This condition of pathological internal heat would manifest these complaints by burning up the natural flow of the body’s vital fluids. In TOM, this is a type of fire that agitates the mind, causing insomnia and anxiety; dries up the intestines, resulting in constipation; and stagnates the muscle’s flow of fluid absorption and release. This client would be treated with the principle of “draining excess internal heat.”

Heroin Client #2, who also complains of insomnia, anxiety, constipation and muscle cramping, is diagnosed with “too little” (Yin), “internal” (Yin), “heat” (Yang). This would be categorized as a deficiency of internal heat and would be treated by the principle of building up this fire, or what is called Tonification of the Yang.

This pathology, called Yang deficiency in TOM, would manifest its complaints by not having enough strength to perform normal body, mind and spirit functioning. Client #2 does not have enough internal energy to “hold the mind and spirit” within the heart (TOM states that the heart houses the mind and is the residing place of the spirit), causing insomnia and anxiety; or to carry out digestion and elimination, which results in constipation; and is too weak to simply exercise the muscles, which stagnates the energy and gives rise to the cramping.

Although both Clients #1 and #2 have the same list of western complaints, holistically, we see two totally different pathologies to be treated in completely opposite ways. Instead of receiving a different medication for each complaint, these clients receive one comprehensive TOM diagnosis and treatment plan, respectively. With improvement of their overall physical condition, the client is naturally more available to other therapies during their inpatient stay. For when the patient is relieved of their focus, upon symptoms of withdrawal and/or chronic pain, then examination of their core beliefs and central issues relating to the addiction can be more fully comprehended and internalized. This is one of the obvious benefits of incorporating holistic therapies such as full-body acupuncture into a synergistic treatment plan for the recovery from addiction.

*Doctor of Oriental Medicine is a state title given to licensed acupuncturists in Florida and New Mexico. Each state determines its own licensure titles.

Randal Lyons has been practicing Traditional Oriental Medicine for the last 17 years. He is a licensed Doctor of Oriental Medicine in private practice in Boynton Beach, Florida and works as a consultant to several inpatient addiction treatment facilities.

This article is published in Counselor,The Magazine for Addiction Professionals, April 2006, v.7, n.2, pp.58-59.

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