The Unicorn of Acupuncture Treatments

Every once in a while, one of my patients will receive what I call a Unicorn Treatment.

What is a Unicorn Treatment?

A Unicorn Treatment is a magical, mysterious acupuncture session that…
occurs once in patient’s lifetime (unless they themselves are a unicorn disguised as a human)
miraculously cures the patient’s chief complaint (in other words, the condition never reoccurs)

Maybe you’ve had a friend who’s personally experienced a Unicorn Treatment. For example, a friend trying to get pregnant without any luck for 19 months has acupuncture once and conceives right away.

Results like this lead to a common misconception that the Unicorn Treatment is a regular occurrence in the world of acupuncture. Upon hearing these stories, many people try acupuncture once, expecting a miraculous cure, only to feel disappointed when the condition returns a few days later.

This is totally normal.

The reality is most conditions, especially chronic ailments, take multiple acupuncture treatments to resolve. Patients usually feel better after the first treatment, but if they don’t receive another treatment within a few days, the pain or illness returns as if the acupuncture treatment never happened.

In my clinic, all treatment plans are customized to a patient’s needs. In most cases, I advise the patient that their condition will take X number of treatments within X number of days before they feel consistently better.

So, if you’ve tried acupuncture once, and you felt disappointed because it didn’t help you, I highly recommend trying it again (especially before resorting to an irreversible treatment like surgery). It’s likely that consistent treatments will give you relief of your symptoms. And if you haven’t tried acupuncture, maybe your first session will be a Unicorn Treatment, which will feel just as good as winning the lottery!