Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine for Stress, Anxiety and Mental Health 

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine.

High stress and anxiety are more common in our culture than you think. Many patients visit the Acupuncture and Chinese medicine clinic for other ailments such as digestive issues, headaches or period pain, yet also present with huge anxiety over life. Smart phones with constant notifications about world events, social pressure, unhappy work environments, financial worries, health concerns, relationship troubles or life curve balls that just turn everything upside down. 

Stress and anxiety (1) can take it’s toll on your body in a number of ways:

  • Insomnia (2) or poor sleep quality
  • Digestive upset, nausea, butterflies in your abdomen
  • Fatigue and adrenal burn out
  • Pain in the body
  • Palpitations in your chest
  • Racing thoughts
  • Irritability
  • Depressed mood (3)
  • Hormonal imbalance and PMS
  • Hypertension
  • Inflammation
  • Poor immune function 
  • Lack of interest in job and friendship circles
  • Can lead to more chronic health problems

In the tradition of Traditional Chinese medicine, a physical complaint addressed with acupuncture and herbs simultaneously addresses the corresponding emotional and spiritual counterpart to that physical complaint. In the same way, treating an emotional or spiritual complaint will also address the corresponding physical complaint. An example of this can be seen with digestive issues and the tendency to ruminate, worry or over think. Acupuncture and Chinese medicine is a holistic therapy. It can maximize your overall energy level and minimize fearful reactions and anxiety in your daily life. This is achieved by regulating the nervous system.

In my experience, patients that start acupuncture for a physical complaint, come back for subsequent treatments with unexpected improvement in symptoms such as insomnia or other emotional difficulties. I’ve also seen many patients ashamed or embarrassed to share with me that they are experiencing emotional or mental upheaval as a main complaint, while addressing a physical ailment such as “tense shoulders from sitting behind the desk at the office”. Yet they are experiencing insomnia, panic attacks or deep depression simultaneously.

Life can be really tough sometimes in this human experience. It is very much okay to ask for professional help, to take some time out or to have a health treatment to take care of you so you can reassess and manage things.  

Research: Acupuncture has shown to have some promise in assisting anxiety related disorders. Although at this time evidence is inconclusive, it does show potential positive results. 

CONTACT INFO

Dudley Street Nambour 4560

Web: www.tanyakeamwellness.com

Phone: 0417 732 213

Appointments can be made Monday to Friday 8am-6pm and Saturday 8am-1pm by phone, text or email. Enquiries/appointment bookings outside of these hours will be responded to within these hours, and Monday morning following a Sunday.

Or book yourself in online!

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Research:

  1. Reilly P, Buchanan T, Vafides C, Breakey S, Dykes P (2014). Auricular Acupuncture to relieve health care workers’ stress and anxiety: impact on caring, 33(3):151-9. doi: 10.1097/DCC.0000000000000288. > Research Link 
  2. Gao, Xiyan, Cuixiang Xu, Peiyu Wang, Shan Ren, Yanli Zhou, Xuguang Yang, and Ling Gao. “Curative effect of acupuncture and moxibustion on insomnia: a randomized clinical trial.” Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 33, no. 4 (2013): 428-432. > Research Link
  3. Chan YY, Lo WY, Yang SN, Chen YH, Lin JG. The benefit of combined acupuncture and antidepressant medication for depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Affect Disord. 2015 May 1;176:106-17. > Research Link