James Silverman is used to the question by now.
After all, it”™s the one the Mount Kisco-based acupuncturist hears most often: “Does it hurt?”
On a recent morning in his office, an Asian-themed retreat tucked into an everyday office-park, Silverman offered a quick demonstration to illustrate the answer, inserting a single needle into the back of a visitor”™s hand.
And the answer is no, it doesn”™t really hurt ”“ but it is an unexpected sensation.
These days, Silverman said, more people have experienced acupuncture, a Chinese healing practice that has been around for thousands of years.
That”™s due, he said, to a combination of a growing awareness of nontraditional medicine and more access to alternative treatments.
“A lot of insurance covers it,” Silverman said. “About a third of my clientele is insurance-covered.”
It all adds up, he said, to a thriving business that succeeds primarily by word of mouth.
“I”™m busy,” he said of Mount Kisco Acupuncture & Massage, which has been in town for nearly eight years.
Silverman, who grew up in Yorktown, said he has found a strong clientele in northern Westchester. “Businesswise, it”™s good to be in these towns.”
Silverman, who trained at the Swedish Institute of Massage Therapy and began his massage practice in 1994, went on to expand into acupuncture. He graduated from Tri-State College of Acupuncture in New York City in 2002.
It was a natural progression, he said, for someone who was always in search of something more.
“I was always an artistic kind of a kid, a little more free-thinking, a little more accepting,” he said. “Body work seemed almost like art in a way.”
It is believed that acupuncture helps restore balance to a body; being out of balance is manifested by ailments or pain.
“Acupuncture is actually a subculture of Oriental medicine,” Silverman said. “Sometimes pain is all about blockages.”
Inserting a needle causes the body to feel a small injury to the skin and muscle tissue. In reaction, the body begins to heal, bringing a response to that site. Sometimes, the acupuncture needles are inserted far from the problem site but served by the body”™s pathways.
“The interesting part is the body”™s doing it. The needle”™s not doing it,” he said of what makes acupuncture work.
While some see a mystical element to acupuncture, Silverman said he practices Acupuncture Physical Medicine, which combines both classical acupuncture and Western physical medicine. But, he said, he realizes his role in the process.
“I”™m not fixing fractures.”
He will, though, work with muscles and ligaments, often offering treatment in conjunction with traditional medical doctors.
“I think it”™s good for a person to have a team,” he said.
Acupuncture, Silverman has explained, not only can reduce pain but can also slow the heart rate, regulate breathing and bring the body to a relaxed, balanced state. Benefits are said to include reduced inflammation and improved circulation.
Silverman”™s clients range from teens to seniors, and he often works with athletes with injuries and those with carpal tunnel syndrome. Acupuncture, he said, is also often used to support those going through in vitro fertilization.
Combining massage and acupuncture is a winning thing, he said.
“It”™s cumulative, and it”™s also preventative, and it is relaxing,” he said, noting stress is often a factor in many ailments.
Silverman, who has also been tapped to help with allergies, next sees himself moving on to homeopathy.
“You need the right tool for the right job,” he said, using one of his favorite phrases: “You don”™t want to use a hammer to put in a screw.”
Silverman keeps up on trends and new data by attending workshops several times a year, as required by the state to maintain his credentials.
Combining massage with acupuncture has proven a winning combination for Silverman.
“It allowed me to help people more and think a little further out the box.”
