This is by far one of the most commonly asked questions by new patients seeking out Acupuncture as a treatment option. Generally speaking Acupuncture should not hurt, however, many different types of sensations are possible and whether or not needling itself causes an unpleasant sensation, depends largely upon context; what is the relative state of health or disease of the patient? What are the needling techniques being applied?- For example, active needling to disperse stagnation around an injured area can cause dull achiness, traveling sensations above or below the area being treated, sensations of warmth in an area of the body, trickling sensations, or in rarer cases electrical sensations. Usually these are actually considered positive indications of successful treatment- although these are generally very brief (seconds) and do not last the entire session! Another major contributing factor is the level of skill of the practitioner in needling, for example, can the practitioner work with the patient in such a way as to mitigate unpleasant sensations for the most part, while achieving the treatment goals? I believe in creating open lines of communication with every patient to ensure a positive patient experience as well as to ensure proper needle sensation and success of the treatment.