Acupuncture For Women’s Health
There are a number of health problems which women may encounter, and physiotherapists can provide a variety of treatments to help. There are a number of ways in which our Physiotherapy team can provide these Women’s Health treatments, acupuncture being the most popular. Although many people are familiar with the term acupuncture, not all of them know exactly what the treatment is and how it can benefit women’s health.
PMS and cramps can be relieved with acupuncture for young women just beginning menstruation. Regular menstrual cycles allow women to go about their normal activities without interference. As a result of her first pregnancy, your mother may have had a difficult period. Luckily, there isn’t much waiting involved. Symptoms of PMS often disappear within a few days after treatment. The management of chronic menstrual problems is best done over time. Herbal medicine and acupuncture relieve pain caused by fibroids and endometriosis and reduce heavy bleeding. Infertility problems are sometimes solved by acupuncture for women trying to become pregnant. The effects of acupuncture on the new mother’s energy are very beneficial after childbirth. This time of transition can be made much more comfortable by reducing hot flashes (power surges) and night sweats. Treatment for excessive sweating focuses on restoring restfulness and stopping sweating.
Overall Health & Wellbeing
Although this is not specifically about women’s health, we must still start here. We Care Medical believe in treating you as an individual when it comes to Chinese Medicine. No matter what you’re seeking assistance with, even if it’s something specific like listed below, it is important to always keep in mind the simple things that affect us all, such as stress, sleep, digestion, energy, pain, attitudes, etc.
As a consequence, modern people are very adept at going into their stress response (fight or flight) to help keep up with what they have to deal with in work, home and social life. The fight or flight response isn’t harmful — until it becomes chronic, hampering our ability to switch from our fight or flight reaction to our parasympathetic (rest and digest) response. Due to this decrease in recovery and healing ability on a daily basis, our bodies become prone to a variety of ailments over time.
Among WeCare Medical’s treatment goals are supporting healthy digestion, restoring sleep patterns, reducing pain, boosting energy, and uplifting moods with acupuncture. In terms of women’s health, addressing these concerns would go a long way.
Menstrual Health
The use of acupuncture for menstrual health has been around for centuries. Chinese medicine has recognized and developed treatments toward women’s menstrual cycles that include PMS symptoms, painful periods (dysmenorrhea), irregular cycles, abnormal periods (amenorrhea), heavy bleeding (menorrhagia), and spots. While conditions such as PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) or endometriosis have modern diagnoses, their symptoms are quite similar to what Chinese medicine, acupuncture, and other oriental medicine systems have already been treating for thousands of years.
At WeCare Medical, we take into account both your period’s symptoms and your general health when providing menstrual health support. Our team reviews the patient’s symptoms and overall health over the course of at least three cycles to develop a treatment plan.
Fertility
An increasing number of women are seeking acupuncture as part of natural conception or to use with IVF to improve their fertility. During treatment, we address our clients’ needs based on where they may be in their cycle if they are currently trying, or where they are in a particular IVF process. However, we maintain that the focus is always on relieving stress.
When coupled with months or years of unsuccessful IVF cycles or pressure from family, society, and ourselves to start a family, this can create a vicious cycle of stress. We can believe that the environment is hostile and unsafe for reproduction if our bodies are caught in a cycle of fight or flight stress responses. As a result, we will use fewer resources to support reproduction. Men and women both need to be partners (to tango, two must be present). It will be beneficial for the body to minimize stress, as this will assist in supporting natural fertility.
A traditional fertility formula that has been used for thousands of years is combined with points that deal with underlying issues with the menstrual cycle.
Pregnancy
An expectant mother’s body undergoes several changes quickly. During pregnancy, there are a wide range of symptoms that can include morning sickness, sleeplessness, swelling, insomnia, and lethargy. Acupuncture provides safe treatment options for symptomatic relief when many common medications or treatments are unsafe during pregnancy.
It is our job as your Chinese medicine doctor to treat you as an Empress during pregnancy since a healthy pregnancy and delivery can depend on your happiness and health.
We have specific points that we use in the weeks leading up to the due date to promote healthy labor (these points are to be avoided during the rest of pregnancy). The same is true for babies positioned breach or posteriorly, as there are also points and treatments you can try.
Post Partum
Chinese culture holds that the period after the birth of a child is a time in which you should concentrate solely on recovery and bonding with your baby. The traditional dowry would involve being waited on hand and foot, fed nourishing food, but you would be forbidden from leaving your room or ever interacting with anyone outside of your immediate family. Despite changing times, recovery and bonding are still important parts of modern life.
The traditional points of acupuncture can be used to help with recovery and other things, including things like breast milk production, pain, mood issues, and energy problems. At this point, finding time for yourself can be a struggle.
Menopause
During perimenopause and during menopause, women will experience different symptoms. The symptoms of menopause, such as hot flushes, dizziness, insomnia, mood changes, etc., are somewhat common, but the experience can be very different from woman to woman. Taking an integrated view of your symptoms, we can come up with a treatment plan that treats you as a whole person, not just temporarily relieving hot flushes. This is where Chinese medicine pattern differentiation comes in.
It may take a few weeks for the acupuncture (or Chinese herbal medicine, if appropriate) to have an effect depending on the severity of the symptoms and other contributing factors. However, signs of success should start to appear within a few weeks of treatment.
If you have above symptoms and conditions, WeCare Medical Specialty Group can help you. We have five offices across Northern Jersey. Please call our office at (973)996-2990 or book an appointment online immediately.
