There are many other conditions that respond well to acupuncture
Rheumatoid arthritis
Stress, anxiety and depression
Side effects to other treatments including chemotherapy & radiotherapy
Irritable bowel syndrome
Fibromyalgia
Headaches / migraines
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic condition that can cause pain, stiffness, progressive joint destruction and deformity.
How acupuncture can help
Acupuncture treatment may help to relieve pain, relieve stress & anxiety, reduce joint inflammation and improve function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) describes a collection of symptoms, including chronic abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, and altered bowel habits. It is a chronic, recurrent disorder.
IBS affects up to 22% of people and is the most common functional digestive disorder seen by GPs.
Women are 2-3 times more likely to develop IBS, and often experience more symptoms during their periods and especially if they also have a diagnosis of endometriosis.
Pain related to IBS is one of the most common and debilitating symptons.
The triggers for IBS are often unknown however some potential ones include: stress, anxiety, poor or altered diet, dehydration and / or food sensitivities. The distress caused by IBS symptoms can lead to a vicious cycle of anxiety-pain-anxiety, while the embarrassing nature of the condition can lead to feelings of depression. Acupuncture can alter the brain’s mood chemistry, increasing production of serotonin and endorphins, helping to relieve negative emotions.
How acupuncture can help
Acupuncture treatment may ease IBS symptoms by:
- Providing pain relief
- Regulating gut motility
- Reducing stress & anxiety
There is consistent evidence that Acupuncture improves
IBS symptoms and general wellbeing
Around 1 in 25 people has fibromyalgia. It is a chronic condition involving widespread musculoskeletal pain and tenderness, fatigue, sleep disturbance, and functional impairment.
How acupuncture can help
Acupuncture may help relieve the symptoms of fibromyalgia by:
- Reducing pain
- Reducing inflamation
- Relieving muscle tension
- Reducing stress and anxiety
- Increasing sense of wellbeing and relaxation
Headaches are one of the most common complaints in clinical practice, affecting about 80% of the UK.
Acupuncture is now recommended in the NICE Guidelines for the treatment of migraines & headaches. NICE concludes that acupuncture is beneficial to relieve and prevent tension-type headaches and migraine
New evidence also shows that acupuncture can increase coping mechanisms eg relieve stress, anxiety and muscle tension which can reduce the frequency and intensity of acute episodes.
How can Acupuncture help:
- by stimulating nerves located in muscles and other tissues, acupuncture leads to release of endorphins, the body’s own ‘feel good’ chemicals, which play an important role in the regulation of physical and emotional stress responses such as pain, heart rate, blood pressure and digestive function.
- when the body is under stress / in pain, an area of the brain called the hypothalamus releases neurochemicals, research shows that acupuncture can calm this response, changing the processing of pain in the brain and spinal cord
- reducing inflammation
- improving muscle stiffness and joint mobility by increasing local microcirculation, which aids the dispersal of swelling and bruising
Stress, anxiety and depression are common health problems that affect all genders, ages and backgrounds.
Acupuncture has been found to be as effective as conventional medicine in reducing stress, anxiety and depression.
About two thirds of adults will at some time experience depression severe enough to interfere with their normal activities.
Depression can be the body’s response to overwhelming and constant stress. This stress could be the result of mounting anxiety, nutritional deficiencies, allergies to environmental influences, and any number of other stress-inducing factors.
Acupuncture can be used as a stand-alone treatment or in combination with talk therapies and conventional medicine eg anti-depressants.
Inserting Acupuncture needles into specific points on the body can stimulate the central nervous system, releasing chemicals into the muscles, spinal cord, and brain. This can promote the body’s natural healing abilities by altering brain chemistry and by helping to release neurotransmitters and neurohormones.
How does it work?
Inserting Acupuncture needles into specific points on the body can stimulate the central nervous system, releasing chemicals into the muscles, spinal cord, and brain. This can promote the body’s natural healing abilities by altering brain chemistry and by helping to release neurotransmitters and neurohormones.
Stimulation of certain acupuncture points has been shown to affect areas of the brain that are known to promote relaxation and deactivate the ‘analytical’ brain, which is responsible for stress, anxiety and depression
