Treating pain & discomfort
Acupuncture is now recognised as an effective treatment for pain and discomfort. Research has shown Acupuncture can benefit acute, sub-acute and chronic pain. I use Acupuncture alongside Moxa, Cupping, Gua Sha & Electro-acupuncture to successfully treat many different causes of pain and discomfort. Pain is a personal experience, and factors including your emotions, energy levels and pre-existing health all play a role in how you experience pain. Even things like lack of sleep can affect pain levels!
Different types & causes of pain
Acute Pain usually has a specific cause, like an injury or a particular intervention or event. This includes things like broken bones, surgery, dental work, childbirth, cuts and burns. Chronic pain can continue for months (or sometimes years). If the root cause is injury or damage the pain may still be felt long after the body has healed. Other causes (like repetitive strain injuries or degenerative conditions) can set up a new pattern of pain-experience that feels permanent. Some common examples are conditions such as back pain, arthritis and pain due to nerve damage including post-stroke pain.
Other causes of pain include: Visceral pain from trauma or disease or imbalance to internal organs; Neuropathic pain caused by dysfunction in your nervous system: and Somatic pain resulting from stimulation of pain receptors in tissues.
Long-term impact of pain
Chronic pain can wear people down. Long-term imbalance affects the body and can lead to additional problems such as limited mobility, tight sore muscles, and poor posture. These in turn can begin to affect your emotional and mental health and lead to health problems like anxiety and depression. Pain management becomes really important to maintain your quality of life.
Acupuncture is effective at treating both the root cause and the symptoms of pain. It has local benefits to the site of injury or cause of pain while also supporting changes to pain receptors and chemical messages in the brain. We work together to alter and re-route pain messaging in the brain, enforce Neuroplasticity and restore muscle memory. When the root cause of the pain is a systemic imbalance, acupuncture supports both the symptoms of the pain and the root cause.
Acupuncture can help
So whether the source of your pain is bone, joint, tendon, nerve or internal, Acupuncture can relieve pain levels and support the body’s healing process. It also helps reduce inflammation, increase range of motion and allow faster recovery time. Furthermore, NICE recommend Acupuncture for chronic primary pain.
Contact me to discuss the conditions I commonly treat in clinic to good effect. I am happy to run through if and how acupuncture can treat your pain and discomfort. The majority of pain conditions are treated weekly for 6-8 weeks.
