ACUPUNCTURE FOR DRUG ADDICTS

A calming needle in the ear can help drug abusers to kick the habit, says
Julia Bueno

John, 32, a music producer, started taking cocaine at 18. Three years ago he
started to experiment with crack. This soon developed into a pounds
250-a-day habit that lost him his job and his girlfriend.

In January this year he sought help. This includes not only counselling but
regular ear acupuncture, which he believes has helped his recovery.

"The first few weeks of being 'clean' were stressful," he says. "I had
strong cravings for crack. Each day was a long battle and I wasn't sleeping
at night, which made things worse. I needed ear acupuncture every day to
help get me through.

"The first few times the pins went in I felt a chill from my head to my
toes. Then within moments I could feel the stress melting away. After the
20-minute session I would feel very calm. As my recovery has progressed, I
need the pins less. But I still ask for them on a bad day."

Ear acupunture is one of a range of alternative therapies used by charities
working with people who have severe health problems, including addicts, HIV
sufferers and the homeless.

The Blenheim Project in Kensington, West London, provides a drop-in service
for drug users and an intensive programme for crack-cocaine addicts who are
determined to overcome their addiction. Both services encourage clients to
benefit from reflexology, acupuncture, shiatsu and homoeopathy. Herbal teas
help detoxification and aid sleep.

The Blenheim has followed this approach for nearly a decade. Its support
aims to integrate the mind, body and spirit.

Tracey Oak, a manager at the project, says: "We use points to relax and
ground clients, which allows us to work with them on other levels. People
using crack want things now, and the therapy helps to lessen this immediacy.
The pins also give people a sense of control over their recovery as they can
decide if, when and how often they use them."

The aim of auricular acupuncture is to restore and maintain health by
inserting fine needles into acupuncture points just beneath the skin
surface. It is based on the principle that our health depends on the
balanced functioning of the body's motivating energy or "Qi" (pronounced
"chi") which flows through our bodies and allows our organs to function
effectively. This flow, the theory runs, will have been severely disrupted
by substance misuse and the stress associated with it. The needles can
stimulate it to move freely.

Auricular acupuncture concentrates on stimulating Qi through points in the
ears alone - the principle being that the ear provides a mini-map of the
body's main organs.

The treatment used to ease addictions was devised in America in the early
1970s under the auspices of the National Acupuncturist Detoxification
Association (Nada). To encourage relaxation and distract from cravings, it
uses five points relating to the liver, kidneys, lungs, sympathetic nervous
system and heart. Of the 500 people who have tried the Blenheim programme
over three years, 45 per cent have completed it and 68 per cent remain
abstinent.

The Turning Point Junction Project in Harlesden, northwest London, has also
offered ear acupuncture to crack addicts since 1994. Stephen Sackville, who
heads the project, does not need to see scientific research to be convinced
of the positive role the pins play in keeping cravings for crack at bay. He
is more than persuaded by the continued demand for treatment, with many
addicts returning each day.

Until funding supports comprehensive research in the UK, the success of such
schemes will rest with persuasive anecdote. But more research has been
undertaken in the US, and in a preliminary study last year the New York
Probation Commission concluded that daily ear acupuncture helped to break
the cycle of addiction and crime.

Of more than 3,000 addicts treated, more than half were able to stay clean
for at least two months.