Acupuncture Facial Rejuvenation

By Elliot Wagner, O.M.D., L.Ac., Doctor of Oriental Medicine

My history with facial acupuncture goes back almost twenty years. At that time I was interested in learning whether acupuncture — given all the other wonderful things it can accomplish — could help women look healthier and more beautiful. At the time I was lucky enough to find and study with the only acupuncturist I was aware of who had developed a facial protocol. She used microcurrent therapy to tonify the skin and underlying tissue. I admired her work, and, wanting to be the best at what I did, thought that I should have the best equipment. This meant my wife and I had to do without a vacation and buy an expensive apparatus called an Acuscope. Then I became certified in Myotonology, a patented microcurrent facial system that uses the muscles of facial expression rather than acupuncture channels as the focus of treatment. From these, I developed my own microcurrent acupuncture system called Dermatec, applied to the U.S. Patent Office, and received a service mark for it.

I used this approach with success until a client of mine, a woman to whom other women listened, told me she was not going to continue treatment, that it was not making enough of a difference in her appearance. I was disappointed, but I knew she was right. My work was good, but something was missing. I eventually stopped doing facial work, and developed an entirely new side of my work. Then, a short time ago, I heard of someone who had taken acupuncture facial rejuvenation to a new level, and would teach what she knew. Now, after many years, I am again using acupuncture to help women to be healthier and look more beautiful, only this time they tell me how pleased they are with the outcome. One woman told me that her husband had never told her she was beautiful until her treatments. She told me she had never been so confident, and that her employers were now taking special notice. Another told me the facial rejuvenation had worked a miracle for her. She loves her facial treatments so much that she received a full series and then purchased another! Once when a patient who had just completed a facial treatment was coming out to the reception area, my receptionist and I watched another patient do a double take when she saw her. She said, "I want some of that!"

What is the difference this time? Why do these treatments work so well when previous efforts showed mixed results? The difference is that in previous years, I had relied on technology to do the work for me. Now I use the most fundamental approach imaginable to get great results. I use the basic ideas of ancient Chinese medicine in the same way that acupuncturists to the Chinese nobility did a thousand years ago. This approach uses the idea of "Blood and Qi." Blood and Qi is a concept central to Chinese medicine. It means, simple, "Circulation and Vitality." From a treatment standpoint it means that when we improve circulation to any part of the body the vitality of that area is also improved. We are relaxed and energized, any pain and swelling are reduced, and we look and feel more alive.

This principle works as well in acupuncture facial rejuvenation as it does in other areas of Chinese Medicine. Acupuncture treatments brighten and rejuvenate the face, lift the neck and reduce lines. I believe there is nothing available that is superior to acupuncture to improve health naturally revitalize the appearance.