Acupuncture for Period Pain & PMS, Endometriosis, PCOS and other menstrual irregularities

Studies have shown that acupuncture can help period pain by reducing the intensity of the pain and the length of time for which it is experienced.

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Can acupuncture help with period pain?

Most women and girls experience period pain at sometime in their lives, and for some women it is very intense. Period pain is usually felt around the start of the period and can be stabbing, cramping and/or a heavy feeling. 

Increased awareness of endometriosis causes some women with period pain to fear that they have the condition. Endometriosis is usually felt at various times throughout the cycle and has other typical features – see below for more details. 

There is good evidence to show that acupuncture is very effective for reducing the intensity of menstrual cramps and the length of time the pain is experienced. Unlike painkillers it doesn’t just treat the symptoms as they occur, but has an effect to reduce the pain in future cycles.

At your first session your acupuncturist will take a detailed case history to establish what’s going on for you physically and mentally. Hormonal variations can cause other problems such as:

• Bloating, breast tenderness and fluid retention
• Mood swings
• Food cravings
• Digestive irregularities
• Headaches

As holistic therapists we target all of these conditions. Your acupuncture is tailored to suit each stage of your cycle. We recommend that you come for a course of 6 sessions over a few weeks, and might advise you to visit on particular weeks of your cycle – eg pre or post ovulation. We will usually give dietary and life style advice as part of the treatment. Chinese herbal medicine can also be effective for these symptoms.

Endometriosis and Adenomyosis

These are complex multi systemic diseases. So we’ve given them their own page.

Find out more about accupuncture for endometriosis…

Acupuncture for premenstrual syndrome/PMS

Many women experience mood swings during their menstrual cycle and a range of other symptoms:

• Irritability/ anxiety / depression
• Breast pain/ bloating/ fluid retention
• Sleep disturbance
• Fatigue and food cravings
• Headache and brain fog
• Acne

These occur as part of a whole body pattern. Your acupuncturist will not just focus on one of these issues, but will aim to reduce physical and mental symptoms as part of the same treatment strategy. Chinese medical theory gives us the tools to treat these symptoms as part of the same pattern.

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)

Polycystic ovaries have a large number of immature eggs (these are the cysts) and is estimated to affect up to one in ten UK women. It can lead to long gaps between periods or an erratic cycle. It sometimes occurs when women come off the oral contraceptive pill.

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (POCS) is associated with excess androgens (male hormones) in the blood stream. Issues with insulin balance are common and these imbalances can lead to symptoms such as acne, excess hair growth and weight gain.

Can acupuncture help with PCOS?

We take a full medical case history for our PCOS clients and look for patterns which enable us to treat your whole system. Although this condition seems to centre on the ovaries, the mechanisms in the development of PCOS are complex and systemic. It’s caused by disruption in the hormonal axis between the hypothalamus and pituitary (in the brain) and the ovaries. It is also common to for blood sugar levels to be imbalanced.

Using Chinese medicine we look at the body and mind as a whole system and aim to treat both the root and the symptom. The treatment strategy will vary from person to person according to the symptom picture.

Acupuncture is a safe treatment for PCOS, and studies have found it can help:

• Increase blood flow to the ovaries
• Reduce ovarian volume and the number of ovarian cysts
• Reduce cortisol levels and reduce stress
• Improve pregnancy rates in patients with PCOS undergoing IVF
• Improve metabolic function of patients with obesity-type PCOS

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