What is Auricular Acupuncture?
Auricular acupuncture is a form of acupuncture that involves stimulating specific points on the ear to treat various health conditions. It's based on the idea that the ear is a microsystem of the entire body, meaning each part of the body is represented by a corresponding point on the ear.
Auricular acupuncture is often used for:
Pain management
Addiction and withdrawal symptoms
Stress, anxiety, trauma
Insomnia
The history of auricular acupuncture in the United States is deeply tied not just to medicine, but to activism, especially within Black and Latino liberation movements during the 1970s. The Black Panther Party and the Young Lords (a Puerto Rican nationalist and civil rights group) were instrumental in bringing auricular acupuncture into community-based healthcare, particularly in the treatment of heroin addiction in underserved communities.
Dr. Mutulu Shakur, a key figure in this movement (also stepfather of Tupac Shakur) trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine and helped establish the Lincoln Detox Center, a revolutionary drug detox program in South Bronx, New York.
Initially using methadone, they became dissatisfied with the outcomes of mainstream healthcare and eventually turned to holistic, non-pharmaceutical detox methods, including auricular acupuncture. Their effective treatments influenced later programs like the NADA (National Acupuncture and Detox Association) which uses the five needle protocol established in the Lincoln Detox Center.
Today the NADA protocol is widely used in Veterans hospitals for the treatment of PTSD and continues to be used in detox clinics across the US and internationally. In 2025, the Oregon Medical Board — which licenses both medical doctors and acupuncturists — expanded the list of providers authorized to administer the NADA protocol, increasing access to this impactful treatment.
Many of my patients have experienced the benefits of the NADA protocol, which I frequently use in my practice. It’s one of the most effective treatments we have for quickly calming the nervous system. While ear points can feel more sensitive than other areas of the body, most patients agree that the results are unparalleled.
Dope is Death is a powerful documentary that chronicles the radical origins of the Lincoln Detox Center and its pioneering use of acupuncture to treat heroin addiction in 1970s New York.
Kecia Fox is a Licensed acupuncturist and Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner at Well Forest Acupuncture in Portland, Oregon, specializing in holistic wellness, chronic pain and stress.