starkvilleacupuncture@gmail.com
662.769.7601
WHY WE ARE DIFFERENT
A Note from Clare O’Nan
I have been practicing acupuncture for well over 20 years. For much of that time, I was practicing what is known as traditional acupuncture (where needles are placed in the body for 30-45 minutes, often requiring weekly treatments). After some years, however, I began to find traditional acupuncture alone frustrating, because I never felt that it addressed the root cause; patients always had to come back for “tweaking.” While it’s true that life sends us curveballs - and so of course some kind of maintenance is necessary - it was frustrating to me that I couldn’t help people more long term, especially when it came to chronic and complex medical conditions.
Over the years, though, I began to notice that those of my patients with the worst
conditions also tended to have the most sensitivities and/or the most restrictive diets. This started me investigating more about allergies and sensitivities and ultimately led me to Dr. Nader Solimon’s SAAT treatment (Solimon Auricular Allergy Treatment) and Auricular Medicine (AM).
After I started treating people with SAAT and AM for their allergies and sensitivities, I realized my patients were starting to feel better in many other areas of their lives as
well, and their symptoms for the most part were not returning. Slowly, my practice began to transform as I noticed my patients experiencing more long-lasting and life-changing results from these treatments.
Currently, I feel like I am in the “golden age” of my practice. I have honed my treatment plans to primarily target allergies and sensitivities and find that across the board, regardless of the patient’s initial complaint, this is by far the most effective and all-encompassing way to address health (or the lack thereof). Many patients don’t even realize they have sensitivities; our testing shows otherwise, and our treatments bear witness to it in a transformative way.
Today, I am having the time of my life treating my patients with this approach, because it works so well and is a vehicle not just for feeling better but for feeling great. Most people who seek me out have heard about me from someone else who has experienced this for themselves.
Life is meant to be enjoyed, not just tolerated; I would love to be instrumental in helping you enjoy yours more.
About Our Unique, Targeted, and
Highly Individualized Treatments
Our treatments primarily consist of Auricular Medicine Acupuncture, which involves the placement of tiny (3-mm) intradermal needles in the outer ear, secured in place with surgical glue and adhesives. These needles remain in place over a period of days to weeks.
Auricular Medicine Acupuncture is particularly effective for the treatment of allergies. While we in the West have become used to allergies and consider them a part of life, they are a constant challenge to the immune system and often end up in other more complex conditions, including autoimmune conditions.
Our treatment courses include:
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Per-condition treatments targeted to specific allergies and sensitivities, including Alpha-Gal Syndrome
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A more extensive approach to sensitivities that addresses more complex acute and chronic conditions, from pain to digestion to autoimmune problems.
We have found over the years that with our unique, targeted, and highly individualized approach to testing and treating sensitivities of all types, our patients get better quicker than with traditional acupuncture, many from longstanding chronic conditions, and enjoy a much greater quality of life as a result.
Some of the things we address in our courses of treatment are: heavy metal toxicity/sensitivities; geopathic stress; emotional congestion; protein and plant sensitivities; animal and insect sensitivities; and many more. Most patients notice an initial difference within the first one to three weeks. Across the board, our patients describe their experience with us as “life changing.”
Acupuncture FAQ
​How does Acupuncture Work?
Acupuncture primarily works by relieving pain, reducing inflammation, and restoring homeostasis (returning your body to its metabolic equilibrium). It does this by optimizing blood flow to targeted areas so that they can begin to heal. Acupuncture points are points of heightened neurovascular sensitivity that cause a cascade of events (neurologic, vascular, immunologic, and endocrinologic) to occur, both locally and distally, when needled.
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What is Auricular Medicine Acupuncture?
Auricular Medicine is based on holographic theory, which holds that, when it comes to the body, the brain projects images of itself onto unlimited other areas of the body (called “microsystems” in acupuncture). Thus, we can put a needle in someone’s leg, or hand, or anywhere else, to treat their shoulder, for example. It is a highly effective form of acupuncture.
Auricular Medicine Acupuncture uses points in the ear because the ear happens to be the most researched of all the microsystems. The tiny needles are placed in areas of the body represented in the ear that are key players in allergy responses, pain, addiction, and detoxification in general. The needles in Auricular Medicine Acupuncture are typically covered with surgical glue and adhesives and left in place for days to weeks. One advantage to this type of treatment is less frequent visits than with Traditional Acupuncture.
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What is Traditional Acupuncture?
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Traditional Acupuncture involves placement of needles at strategic locations in the body. The needles are left in place for 30-45 minutes while the patient rests comfortably. Most people experience it as extremely relaxing.
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What Conditions Does Acupuncture Treat?
Acupuncture can be used to help with a huge variety of conditions. Clare specializes in allergy and Alpha-Gal treatment with SAAT, in addition to acute and chronic pain and complex medical and inflammatory conditions.
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Who Can Practice Acupuncture?
​Licensed Acupuncturists: Licensed acupuncturists have completed three to four years of study and are board certified by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. Their course of study includes not only Oriental Medicine/Acupuncture but also Western (conventional) Medicine. As part of the licensing and certification process, acupuncturists must be up-to-date on clean needle technique and in compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Licensed acupuncturists here in Mississippi are licensed and governed by the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure, the same board that licenses medical doctors.
​Medical Doctors: Medical doctors in Mississippi can practice medical acupuncture upon completion of a 200-hour course of study. Medical acupuncture is more Western in its approach than the traditional acupuncture that is practiced by a licensed acupuncturist. In other words, medical acupuncture bases its point selection more on Western anatomical and physiological training than on an Eastern understanding of the body. Medical Acupuncturists, being medical doctors, are also governed by the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure.
Physical Therapists practice Dry Needling (not acupuncture): Physical therapists in Mississippi can practice a technique known as dry needling upon completion of a 50-hour course of study. Dry needling is based on Western muscular and trigger point patterns. It can be very effective for musculoskeletal conditions, but it is important to note that it is not acupuncture. Furthermore, it is important to note that physical therapists in MS are not required to complete any clinical training in dry needling prior to certification; if you pursue dry needling with a physical therapist, therefore, make sure they have some experience behind them. Physical therapists are not governed by the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure.
Natural forces within us are the true healers of disease.
Hippocrates