Facial acupuncture (can also be called cosmetic acupuncture) can be a gentle and complementary way to take care of your skin.
If you've never had acupuncture before, it is a modality that uses extremely thin needles inserted in various parts of the body along different organ channels called meridians.
Your face and skin aren't independent of the rest of you. The points that I (or your acupuncture provider) choose(s) are based on areas of concern and a full-body assessment.
I pair my treatments with a face and neck massage to help with muscle tension, lymphatic drainage, and circulation–my patients LOVE this!
It's for anyone who wants a gentle way of supporting their skin health. Keep in mind that you're not going to see results like fillers or Botox because, well, this isn't either of those things!
Some of the contraindications to getting cosmetic acupuncture include:
Similar to most therapies, appointments are closer together at the beginning in order to get the ball rolling. Then, you will require maintenance if you want to continue seeing the results. Most people's maintenance appointments are 4-8 weeks apart depending on trial and error, age, response, concern, and budget.
Think about it kind of like exercising: it's good for you even if done irregularly, but best results (for health, muscle mass, endurance, etc.) come from repeated action over time.
The narrow definition of "beauty" and "beauty standards" is something I encourage you to explore (and re-explore), read about, and talk to people about. We get marketed to as being not good enough the way we are, and I for one do not want people to constantly shrink themselves to fit into a concocted patriarchal box.
I believe that ageing is a privilege. Facial acupuncture is not botox and it's not fillers–it's not going to give results like that either. It is a supportive measure for your skin and whole body. To me, is a great tool to support my overall skin health and augment my skincare routine while decreasing TMJ symptoms and muscle tension.
I love it as a tool for personal wellness–it's part of my self-care. I still have my acne scars and fine lines, which are evidence of years lived in this skin of mine, and I'm embracing those as much as possible (it's a process!). We get marketed to as being not good enough the way we are, and I, for one, do not want people to constantly shrink themselves to fit into a concocted patriarchal capitalist box.
Many of us are fortunate enough to choose how we spend our time, effort, and resources. We get to define what wellness means to us. I think about this often. I hope you do too.
