Effects of Acupuncture on Perceived Stress and Health in Military Service Members

The goal of this is to investigate the effect of a Manual Standardized Stress Acupuncture (MSSA) protocol as an adjunct treatment to a short-term mindfulness therapy for perceived stress and general health in service members (i.e., active duty military personnel and veterans). The specific aims of this study are Aim 1) To evaluate the effectiveness of a brief MSSA as an adjunct treatment with a short-term Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) compared with MBSR alone for perceived stress and general health in service members. Aim 2) To describe any perceived benefits of MSSA as an adjunct treatment with MBSR compared with MBSR alone for perceived stress and general health. Participants will be asked to complete an informed consent if eligible for the study and randomized into two groups: 1) Participants in the experimental group will receive MSSA in addition to MBSR. 2) Participants in the control group will receive MBSR only. Researchers will compare experimental and control groups to see if the interventions mitigated perceived stress and improved the health of the participants.