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Close-up of acupuncture needles placed along a patient’s upper back as a licensed acupuncturist gently palpates the area during a treatment session at Willow Tree Clinic in Portland.

Dry Needling vs Acupuncture: What You Need to Know

When it comes to dry needling vs acupuncture, the conversation often misses a critical point: dry needling is actually trigger point acupuncture, performed without full acupuncture training. While both use needles, the level of education, safety standards, and treatment approach are very different. This article breaks down the real differences, explains why credentials matter, and highlights how acupuncture can be both highly effective and gentle when done by properly trained professionals.

Close-up of acupuncture needles placed along a patient’s upper back as a licensed acupuncturist gently palpates the area during a treatment session at Willow Tree Clinic in Portland.

Dry Needling vs Acupuncture: What You Need to Know

When it comes to dry needling vs acupuncture, the conversation often misses a critical point: dry needling is actually trigger point acupuncture, performed without full acupuncture training. While both use needles, the level of education, safety standards, and treatment approach are very different. This article breaks down the real differences, explains why credentials matter, and highlights how acupuncture can be both highly effective and gentle when done by properly trained professionals.

Acupuncture needles, herbal tools, and plants arranged on a wooden table inside an acupuncture clinic in Portland OR. | acupuncture for hashimoto's

Acupuncture for Hashimoto’s: How It Helps Calm Your Immune System and Support Your Thyroid

Hashimoto’s isn’t just a thyroid issue. It can affect sleep, mood, digestion, cycles, and energy. At Willow Tree Clinic, our Portland OR acupuncture care supports the nervous system and helps settle immune overdrive, so symptoms feel more manageable. We pair acupuncture for Hashimoto’s with practical nutrition and, when needed, customized herbal support for steady, whole-body progress that fits real life.

Doctor provides gentle facial acupuncture during a calming treatment session at Willow Tree Clinic. | acupuncture for pinched nerve pain

Acupuncture for Pinched Nerve Pain: Natural Relief Without Medication

A pinched nerve can feel like your body’s hitting a limit. Numbness, tingling, or even sharp, burning pain that just won’t let up. Whether it’s

Acupuncturist gently placing a needle on a relaxed patient's forehead during a treatment session in a peaceful clinic setting.

Acupuncture and Cancer: How We Help You Feel Like Yourself Again

When you’re going through cancer treatment, it can feel like everything in your life has been flipped upside down. Not just your body, but your

Dr. Kiné Fischler, DACM sits at desk as she talks about what causes sciatic nerve pain.

What Causes Sciatic Nerve Pain and How Acupuncture Can Help

If you’ve ever felt a sharp, radiating pain that travels from your lower back down your leg, you’re not alone. Sciatic nerve pain is incredibly

Woman stretching in a fall park, feeling energized and grounded after tune-up acupuncture and seasonal self-care.

Tune-Up Acupuncture: Why Fall Is the Perfect Time to Reset Your Health

If you’ve ever felt a little off as the seasons change (maybe more tired, more tense, or more moody than usual) you’re not alone. This

Woman smiling and drinking tea after dealing with perimenopause digestive issues

What’s Going On With My Gut? Understanding Perimenopause Digestive Issues

If you’ve noticed your digestion changing during your 40s, you’re not imagining it. Bloating, constipation, diarrhea, or unpredictable food sensitivities can all appear during the

Bottles of herbal remedies for immune system

Herbal Remedies for Immune System Support: Boost Your Body’s Defenses Naturally

When your immune system is running smoothly, you feel it—you have more energy, bounce back faster from colds, and can handle seasonal changes without getting

Woman thinking at the table about acupuncture for hot flashes

Acupuncture for Hot Flashes: Natural Relief During Menopause

Hot flashes can feel like your body is turning against you. You feel heat surges out of nowhere, sweat pools instantly, and sleep goes out

Herbal medicine for stress relief

Herbal Medicine for Stress Relief: Finding Calm in a Busy World

We live in a fast-moving world—and our nervous systems often bear the brunt. If you’re navigating long workdays, caregiving responsibilities, hormonal shifts, or just the

a woman outside smiling and drinking coffee with her friends.

Understanding and Easing Your Late Perimenopause Symptoms

If you’re in your 40s or early 50s and starting to notice changes in your cycle, sleep, or mood, you’re not alone. Many women experience

how cortisol affects your body

When Stress Takes Over: How Cortisol Affects Your Body—and the Subtle Signs You Might Be Ignoring

We all expect stress to show up during life’s big moments, like a job interview, a family emergency, or an unexpected change. But what about

Women feeling great after acupuncture tongue and pulse diagnosis

Acupuncture Tongue and Pulse Diagnosis: What These Subtle Clues Say About Your Health

If you’ve ever visited an acupuncturist and noticed them checking your pulse or asking to see your tongue, you might have wondered what they were

healthcare professional discusses reasons the question: does acupuncture really work?

Acupuncture Benefits for Women: From Periods to Post-Menopause

Women’s health is always in motion. Your body shifts through so many phases, like your menstrual cycles, conception, pregnancy, and menopause, and each one brings

Kine Fischler

Chronic Sinus Issues: Ease Congestion and Pressure With Acupuncture

When you’re living with chronic sinus issues, it’s more than just seasonal allergies. It’s the pressure behind your eyes that doesn’t let up. It’s the

Woman looking in mirror during life after menopause

Life After Menopause: From Caretaker to Creator in Your Second Act

When was the last time you asked yourself what you want? This is the biggest question at the core of life after menopause. Not what’s needed

A Portland acupuncture talking about midlife awakening

Midlife Awakening: What if Menopause Isn’t a Crisis—But a Powerful Call to Something Deeper?

At Willow Tree Clinic, we’ve witnessed something powerful: menopause isn’t just a biological shift—it’s a midlife awakening. Too often, this season is reduced to a

A healthcare professional in scrubs and a reclining female patient in Portland, Oregon.

Acupuncture for TMJ Relief: Benefit from Natural Pain Relief

If you’re living with TMJ disorder, you know how annoying it is to live with jaw pain, clicking, and tension headaches. It can make simple

Middle-aged woman receiving acupuncture for perimenopause symptoms

The Perimenopause Symptoms No One Talks About & How Acupuncture Can Help

Hot flashes and night sweats get all the attention when it comes to menopause, but what about the other perimenopause symptoms—the ones no one warns

Dr. Kine treats a female client, lying on a table in a bright and airy room.

How Does Acupuncture Help Fertility?

When you’re planning for a baby and looking to maintain your wellbeing, improve your chances of getting pregnant, and prepare for a healthy baby, acupuncture

Pelvic Floor Acupuncture: A Gentle Approach to Pain and Tension

Pelvic floor dysfunction is unfortunately all too common for women–in fact, a quarter of women in the U.S. are affected by it and dealing with

how herbal medicine and acupuncture work together

How Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine Work Together to Support Your Health

When you’re looking for holistic treatments, it’s often best to explore multiple options. In fact, treatments like acupuncture and herbal medicine can work together as

Acupuncture for Postpartum Depletion

Postpartum Depletion: What It Is and How to Recover Quickly

Postpartum depletion is more than just feeling “tired from motherhood.” If you’re experiencing it, you know how much it can impact your life—from unshakable fatigue

A practitioner performing acupuncture for fertility on a patient in Portland, Oregon.

Acupuncture For Digestion: Bloating, IBS, And Reflux Relief!

Bloating, acid reflux, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are more than just “digestive annoyances.” If you deal with these issues, you know how much they

a person with acupuncture needles in their back for acupuncture for back pain treatment

Acupuncture for Athletes: Improving Recovery, Performance, and Injury Prevention

Athletes face unique challenges when it comes to staying active and performing at their best. Whether it’s recovering from intense workouts, preventing injuries, or achieving

Healthcare professional discussing fertility with a patient in a clinic setting.

The Powerful Benefits of Acupuncture for Back Pain: A Holistic Approach to Lasting Relief

Back pain is far more than a mild ache. If you’ve experienced it, you know it can bring intense discomfort, limited mobility, and constant frustration

a woman laying down getting acupuncture for migraines

Acupuncture For Migraines: A Drug-Free Approach to Pain Relief

Migraines are far more than “bad headaches.” If you experience them, you know they bring severe pain, nausea, and light sensitivity that can completely disrupt

acupuncture for breast health

Acupuncture For Breast Health: A Natural Approach

Breast health deserves our attention all year round, but October, as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, is a powerful reminder of just how important it is.

women outside after acupuncture forendometriosis

Natural Approaches to Endometriosis Pain Relief with Acupuncture

If you’re reading this, chances are you or someone close to you is dealing with the frustrating, exhausting symptoms of endometriosis. First of all, I

boosting your immune system with acupuncture

Boosting Your Immune System with Acupuncture

As the leaves start to change and the air gets crisp, we all know what’s here: back-to-school season and, not far behind, flu season. If

woman holding her baby in a sunlit room

Acupuncture for Postpartum Recovery: Nurturing New Moms Back to Health

Hey there, new mamas! First off, congratulations on your little bundle of joy! You’ve just been through an incredible journey, and now you’re embarking on