Notice: March 11, 2020
Due to recommendations for social distancing to reduce the spread of COVID-19, we have suspended Thursday Group Acupuncture until further notice. Follow us on social media and sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know when we are able to reopen this valuable service. In the meantime, we are open for private appointments in Montpelier and Williston, for patients who are not experiencing acute symptoms of flu.
Integrative Acupuncture is committed to providing accessible treatments to everyone. For a treatment at a reduced rate, consider Group Acupuncture in Montpelier, Vermont. Acupuncture therapy offered in the group setting is effective in reducing pain severity, pain interference, and depression in patients with chronic neck, back, or shoulder pain or osteoarthritis. A study showed benefit persisted through a 24-week measure despite no additional treatment.
How Do Our Sessions Work?
Group Acupuncture sessions are offered once per week, on Thursdays at our Montpelier office. Thursday’s sessions begin at 6:00 pm and patients will be treated on a first come first served basis. All treatments conclude at 8 pm, you must arrive before 7:30 pm to have a full treatment.
Treatments are about 30 minutes each. The cost is $10 per treatment. There is no need to book an appointment, this is a walk-in only service. Your treatment will be conducted in a group setting. Treatments are all auricular acupuncture, all points chosen will be in the ears.
Group Acupuncture is recommended for many conditions including:
- Stress and Anxiety Management including PTSD
- Addiction Management- Alcohol, Nicotine, Drugs, Sugar
- Sleep issues
Guidelines for Group Acupuncture
This service is available so we can provide discounted treatments. All treatments are provided by a licensed acupuncturist, however a private consultation with an acupuncturist may not be available. Your treatment will be in a group setting, but the environment will be quiet.
Please refrain from cell phone or headphone use during your treatment. Reading is permitted. Loud talking will be discouraged. If your acupuncturist feels your condition may best be treated with individualized treatment we will recommend this, but you are welcomed at Group Acupuncture if you find it helpful.
History of Group Acupuncture
Acupuncture in a community setting has been the traditional method of treatment in China for thousands of years. In the late 1960’s in the Bronx, NY a group of people went in search of an economical treatment for people addicted to heroin. Auricular, or ear, acupuncture was discovered in Chinatown and brought to the Bronx.
The Lincoln Recovery Center and Dr. Michael Smith began offering acupuncture treatments for addiction management in 1969. To this day, the Lincoln Recovery Center continues to see hundreds of patients per day in a community setting for addiction management.
Kerry Boyle of IAOM trained with Dr. Smith at the Lincoln Recovery Center in the N.A.D.A protocol for detoxification and is a certified Acupuncture Detoxification Specialist. In addition to addiction management, auricular acupuncture has been shown to reduce stress and benefit sleep.
Acupuncture Without Borders is a non-profit group who treats trauma victims in a group acupuncture setting, including Haiti and New Orleans post Katrina. Their work and research on PTSD for their Military Stress Recovery Project has been influential for IAOM’s Group Acupuncture. Kerry donated her acupuncture services during the 2011 Hurricane Irene recovery in Waterbury and Northfield to help Vermonters deal with stress and trauma.
Speak With An Expert
Research:
Acupuncture for PTSD: A Randomized controlled pilot trial; Hollifield M, Sinclair-Lian N, Warner TD, Hammerschlag R. June 2007 The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
Acupuncture Diagnosis and Treatment of DSM-IV Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; Nityamo Lian
Acupuncture Helps Fight Cocaine Addiction; Editorial Staff, Acupuncture Today
October, 2000, Vol. 01, Issue 10
Canadian Researchers Find Ear Acupuncture Effective in Treating Drug Addictions; Editorial Staff, Acupuncture Today, September, 2005, Vol. 06, Issue 09
Sources:
Benjamin Kligler, Arya Nielsen, Corinne Kohrherr, Tracy Schmid, Eve Waltermaurer, Elidania Perez, Woodson Merrell, Acupuncture Therapy in a Group Setting for Chronic Pain, Pain Medicine, Volume 19, Issue 2, February 2018, Pages 393–403, https://doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnx134
Testimonials:
