What is the difference between acupuncture and massage?

The core difference is actually the different paths of action. Acupuncture is an invasive physical stimulation. The needle tip can directly penetrate the skin and fascia, and accurately act on deep muscle nodes, meridians and acupoints, and even the soft tissue around bones and joints. Massage is non-invasive. All the force is penetrated from the surface of the skin layer by layer. The final depth that can be reached depends entirely on the skill of the operator, as well as the fat and muscle thickness of the recipient.

Last week, I picked up a young man who works in Internet development. His shoulders have been sore and his hands have been numb for more than three months. I go for shoulder and neck massage every week. After two hours of massage each time, I felt so stiff that I couldn't lift it up again in the afternoon. I took a X-ray to rule out cervical disc herniation. After palpation, it was found that the deep muscles of the infraspinatus muscle were compressing the brachial plexus, which is hidden in the brachial plexus. Under the thick trapezius muscle, most of it had dissipated by the time the massage force penetrated there. After rubbing for a long time, he could not reach the real core point of compression. I inserted two needles near Tianzong and Jianzhen. I pulled the needles for a few seconds. He said on the spot that the numbness on his hands was gone by 70%. This is the advantage of acupuncture to accurately reach deep lesions.

But this does not mean that acupuncture is better than massage. The compatibility between the two is far different in different scenarios. For example, a child with a weak spleen and stomach who doesn't like to eat will definitely cry until he is trembling when you give him an acupuncture, and his cooperation is very low. Instead, he insists on pinching the spine and rubbing the waist at home. If the technique is correct, after half a month, most of them will have an appetite, and there will be no wounds or the soreness and swelling caused by the acupuncture. The acceptance level is much higher. There are also people who have just finished a half marathon or full marathon, and their muscles are so sore that they cannot lift their legs. Most people would rather choose a relaxing massage to knead the tight muscle fibers. The soreness will dissipate quickly and they are comfortable. There is no need to suffer from acupuncture.

There are different voices in the industry now. Some very experienced masseurs believe that as long as the technique is gentle enough and the force path is correct, the force can penetrate the deep fascia and achieve a similar relaxing effect to acupuncture. There are also doctors of traditional Chinese medicine who believe that the boundary between invasive and non-invasive lies there. No matter how deep the massage is, it cannot reach the stimulation points near the periosteum. There is no unified conclusion on this point. In the end, it still depends on the specific symptoms and the user's acceptance.

By the way, the operating thresholds of the two are also quite different. Acupuncture is an invasive medical operation and must be performed by professionals with a medical license. I have seen people buy needles online to learn how to pierce their stomachs to lose weight, and accidentally punctured the intestinal wall and sent them to the emergency room. Don’t try it blindly. The threshold for ordinary relaxing massage is much lower. For ordinary people, it is no problem for ordinary people to learn basic shoulder massage and chiropractic techniques to relax their family members at home. As long as they do not use brute force to break the joints, there is basically no risk.

I usually use the two together when treating clients. I would first use massage to loosen superficial muscle tension, and then use needles to loosen deep-seated muscle knots. I would never insist on which one is better. The most suitable one is the most effective.