Laughing Tao Acupuncture will be providing free acupuncture throughout the summer. The style of acupuncture we’ll be doing is called community acupuncture.
Community acupuncture involves providing treatments in a group setting. We can generally treat 5 to 8 people at a time. Everyone is spaced comfortably far apart, and people rest on yoga mats or chairs. We do a brief intake and ask you a few questions about your health concerns, look at your tongue and feel your pulse, then provide 5 to 7 needles. Treatment time is approximately 15 minutes. There is no need to remove clothing for community acupuncture as long as we can access your arms, legs, hands and feet. This model of acupuncture originated over two thousand years ago, and it was the original way acupuncture was given. When acupuncture moved to the West, the model was changed to one on one treatments.
Community acupuncture is also a way to give effective, quality acupuncture to more people at a lower cost. Many people cannot afford one on one acupuncture, which can range from $100 to $120 an appointment. With community acupuncture, prices range from $10 to $35 a session. There is also a huge benefit to getting multiple acupuncture treatments in a week, or at least once a week. Community acupuncture creates the financial space necessary for people to get the treatment they need at a cost they can fit into their budget.
Community acupuncture is great for colds, sprains, addiction issues, smoking cessation, and even PTSD. It’s also a wonderful way to try acupuncture without making a huge investment, and it can be a great to bring friends or family so you don’t feel as nervous about getting a treatment.
So why even get individual treatments? With 1-hour appointments, we have more time to delve into your full health history, prescribe herbs as necessary, and offer Eastern massage, cupping, warm therapy, and other supportive modalities for your treatment. 10% of very full priced appointment at Laughing Tao Acupuncture is also donated towards ensuring our other patients with financial challenges receive the care they need – so our one on one treatments help us continue to run our nonprofit in a way that truly benefits everyone involved.
We are very excited that later this year we will be offering sliding fee scale based acupuncture. The price range will be $5 to $25, based solely on what the patient believes they can give at that time. Sliding fee scale funds will be used to continue running our community acupuncture treatment clinic. Community acupuncture will be provided in a separate building on the Laughing Tao property. More coming soon!