In today’s modern world, where people are working hard, going to school, taking care of their families, and dealing with everyday and not-so-everyday life stresses, many people suffer from anxiety. In fact, more than 40 million people in the United States experience some type of anxiety, but only a third of those people ever receive a formal diagnosis.
The definition of anxiety includes a large range of symptoms, such as restlessness, over-thinking, insomnia, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Acupuncture is a safe and effective treatment for alleviating symptoms of anxiety, whether used alone as a therapy or in conjunction with other medical interventions.
Acupuncturists have always observed that acupuncture can curb symptoms of anxiety, but science only recently explained the exact mechanisms at play. In the “Journal of Endocrinology” (March 2013), researcher Dr. Ladan Eshkevari presented a study showing the biological mechanisms involved in acupuncture’s stress-relieving abilities. The study demonstrated that stress hormones were lower in rats that had received acupuncture.
When a person becomes stressed, a series of hormones are released, switching off the parasympathetic response in the body (the calming response) and switching on the sympathetic response (the fight or flight response). This function is completely normal, and when the body is ready, it eventually switches back to the parasympathetic, or calm, mode. But when a person is under chronic stress, the body does not switch back, and symptoms of anxiety begin to develop.
Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine work with the body’s natural ability to regulate symptoms of anxiety. As an acupuncturist, when a patient comes in for a treatment, I ask a series of questions to assess their symptoms. I then choose points on the acupuncture meridians that will help regulate those symptoms. For example, if a patient experiences restlessness, tightness in the chest, and insomnia, I choose acupuncture points that can clear the restlessness, open the chest, and calm the mind.
After 9/11 in New York City, St. Vincent’s Hospital operated an acupuncture program twice a week. The program was specifically set up to treat the posttraumatic stress of people touched by 9/11, and a room was made available for anyone to come receive auricular (ear) acupuncture for two hours.
A very simple protocol was used: five points in each ear known as liver, kidney, lung, shenmen, and sympathetic were targeted. Auricular points are very useful in treating patients because the ear is a micro-system to the rest of the body. There are 10 cranial nerves that pass through the ear, and these points can be utilized to treat the rest of the body. Shenmen and sympathetic regulate the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system; liver regulates anger; kidney regulates fear; and the lung regulates grief. This same protocol is used in hospitals every day throughout the country, and also by the United States military.
Life will always bring challenges, and we cannot avoid them. What we can change though is how we cope with those challenges. Acupuncture is one method that can help prevent and treat anxiety.
– by Catherine Fugelsang, acupuncturist and herbalist