Auricular means ‘ear’. When you’re stressed out or emotionally upset, do your symptoms get worse? Dr. McDonald’s innovative form of ear acupuncture — also called Auricular Therapy or Auriculotherapy — can help. Dr. McDonald has refined and modified traditional Auricular Therapy techniques to create a unique ear acupuncture treatment that targets the underlying emotions of illness and physical pain.
Whether we are aware of it or not, most ailments have an emotional or stress component that can be treated with ear acupuncture for a more complete healing.
Says Dr. McDonald: “We are so immersed in our daily lives that we tend to be focused on the superficial aspects of life and health, rather than the deeper core issues. ‘Out of sight, out of mind.’ I repeatedly find, through specific pulse testing methods, that past emotional and general stressors contribute to most present ailments.”
What is Ear Acupuncture?
Auricular Therapy (also called Auricular Medicine) is the original ear acupuncture technique created in the 1950’s by Dr. Paul Nogier, MD, a French neurologist and acupuncturist. He mapped acupuncture points on the ear as a microsystem of the entire body in multiple layers. His method requires the use of the patient’s wrist pulse to localize and monitor treatment.
Dr. Nogier’s research found that Auricular Therapy treats the body’s tissues and organs directly. Prior to his work, the ancient Chinese system of acupuncture did not include the ear. Since publication of Dr. Nogier’s research, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has adapted and developed his concepts into their own ear acupuncture protocols.
Dr. McDonald practices a branch of Auricular Therapy called Auricular Medicine, which relies on Dr. Nogier’s original, diligent mapping of the ear points in multiple layers.
Benefits of Auricular Therapy
Dr. McDonald has found that his protocol of ear acupuncture, especially when combined with homeopathic remedies, is a powerful treatment to rebalance body and mind. His innovative modifications to the traditional ear acupuncture technique have helped countless patients improve chronic and acute conditions — where other approaches that don’t treat the emotional stress component may fall short.
Says Dr. McDonald: “The critical emotional stress component of illness accumulates silently, gradually impeding the physiological processes of health maintenance. It’s an inconspicuous process hardly noticeable as the body continues to adapt to stressors, but the erosive effects become more evident as we age. Auricular Therapy for the emotions, is a safe, simply and very effective tool to address this problem.”
How Does Auricular Therapy Work?
The acupuncturist uses tiny, stud-like needles, microcurrent and taped-on bee-bees to treat precise points on the ear, while monitoring the patient’s pulse. The tiny studs remain in place on the ear until they naturally come out when treatment of the affected point is complete.
The acupuncturist uses microcurrent to treat points of the ear where a needle cannot be inserted. Microcurrent is an electrical neuromuscular stimulator device that delivers weak electrical impulses to the body through the nervous system.
As with body acupuncture, the needles stimulate the flow of qi — the body’s internal energy — to treat underlying imbalances that contribute to disease. The ear is abundantly innervated by a variety of nerves, which can be stimulated to aid in the healing process by utilizing the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system responses, according to the patient’s condition.
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