ALTERNA HEALTH

Swapping one needle for another

By Noah Bruce

Maine Med has received a first-of-its-kind grant from the Office of Substance Abuse Services to conduct a research study on the use of acupuncture as treatment for the symptoms of substance-abuse withdrawal. The treatment will be provided by acupuncturist Elizabeth Garnett, RN, to Maine Med’s dually diagnosed clients — people who are diagnosed with mental illness and a substance-abuse problem.

Garnett is certified by the National Acupuncture Detox Association and has worked in acupuncture detox clinics in the Boston area. Currently, she has a private acupuncture practice on St. John Street in Portland.

The treatment will occur in group sessions of 45 minutes in length and will consist of extremely thin stainless steel needles being inserted into specific points on clients’ ears. It will be provided in a comfortable setting with relaxing music. The acupuncture is supposed to reduce symptoms of substance-abuse withdrawal and lessen the cravings while a patient is on the wagon. It will be combined with individual and group counseling.

“It isn’t a miracle treatment,” says Garnett, “but it does help decrease the craving for substances and smooth out the withdrawal process. It doesn’t deaden the craving, but it makes it much less painful for clients to stop abusing substances.”

Garnett explains that Western science has not been able to explain why acupuncture helps to reduce cravings, only that it is effective. “One theory is that it increases endorphins in the brain, but that doesn’t really account for it entirely. At the same time, Western science can’t really explain some things it has created like Prozac, though they know Prozac works.”

While this reporter cannot attest to the effectiveness of acupuncture for substance abuse issues, I have had needles stuck in my ears to help get rid of a persistent cold. While it wasn’t a miracle cure, the cold was lessened in two days, and gone in three.

And how did the needles feel? I gotta admit, it isn’t comfortable to have needles stuck in your ears and left there for half an hour, but it’s not all that painful. I would compare the sensation to putting a relatively tight clothespin on your ear. You’re happy when it’s taken off, but compared with a serious heroin jones, I imagine it ain’t that bad at all.