Who would benefit the most from attending ‘Integrative Acupuncture Level 1’?

This course is appropriate for any physiotherapist who has completed at least a two-day dry needling course.

It is an introductory, Level 1 course that will focus on the integrative acupuncture management of musculoskeletal conditions and on understanding their sequelae.

What can participants expect to take away with them and apply in everyday practice?

Unlike dry needling, where the focus is primarily on pain modulation, integrative acupuncture has a broader application through determining and addressing systemic drivers of a person’s condition.

Entirely new ways of understanding our physiology will be introduced, which will give participants a broadened filter for understanding systemic drivers.

In many chronic conditions, for example, regulating the autonomic nervous system and the immune and digestive systems will help facilitate recovery.

There is also significant scope within integrative acupuncture for determining the dosage of treatment required, which makes it easier and safer to treat patients who are very debilitated as well as older people, children and those recovering from surgery, cancer or traumatic injuries.

What are some of the diagnostic tools covered in ‘Integrative Acupuncture Level 1’?

Integrative acupuncture uses very refined palpation to examine tethering of the fascial system.

We are also able to assess physiological changes through new diagnostic filters based on observation of a patient’s complexion and demeanour and palpation of their abdomen and skin.

Patients are asked questions designed to ascertain whether the sympathetic nervous system is overactive.

A number of programs now look at vagal tone, but acupuncture has been doing this for a long time.

What kinds of systemic benefits does integrative acupuncture offer?

Rather than focusing solely on an area of dysfunction, the main objective in integrative acupuncture is to regulate various systems in order to improve a person’s wellbeing.

The systemic benefits brought about by autonomic nervous system regulation will lead to improved sleep patterns, gut function and mood and consequently a better quality of life.

‘Integrative Acupuncture Level 1’ will run from Sunday 1 October 2023 to Sunday 30 June 2024 in Kent Town, South Australia.

Visit here for more information and to register.

>>Paula Raymond-Yacoub APAM is a founding member of the Australian Society of Acupuncture Physiotherapists and was chair of the APA’s Acupuncture and Dry Needling national group for two terms.

She has been teaching acupuncture to allied health practitioners since 1991 and runs a diverse practice that covers chronic disease management, persistent pain syndromes, paediatrics and women’s health.