Acupuncture for Migraines

There’s no denying the recent times have been difficult for all. It’s stressful, and anything but normal to be secluded for this long. Unfortunately, with stress can come headaches — and those who suffer from migraines know this all too well.

Anyone who has ever suffered from migraines knows how debilitating they can be. They can last anywhere from a few hours to a multiple days, and often bring along other symptoms like nausea and vomiting.

While stress and diet are believed to potentially contribute to migraines, part of the frustration surrounding them is that the cause can be different in each patient, making them extremely difficult to prevent. And chronic migraines can lead to further issues like anxiety and depression.

Thankfully, there is one treatment that seems to be making a difference.

Florida-based, licensed acupuncturist Renee Sarra has been treating migraine sufferers with acupuncture. The treatment can be effective by managing the changes in the brain that migraines bring on. By doing a full body structure assessment, Sarra tries to identify what is bringing the migraines on, then treating through specific acupuncture points. In conjunction with massage therapy, Sarra says acupuncture helps patients relax. As she puts it, she’s trying to “get this fire, this energy out of the head.”

Recently, research conducted at the 254th Hospital in China seems to back up the effectiveness of acupuncture for not only treating migraines, but potentially preventing them. The study tested 120 total migraine patients between the aged of 18 and 70 who were divided into four groups. One group was treates with electroacupuncture in the projection zone, another was treated with conventional acupuncture applied to eight specific points.

Both groups were treated once per day over the course of 10 days, and in both groups, the treatment was successful when compared to the other groups (non-acupoint group and drug group). The Projection Zone group saw an effective rate of 93.3%, while the conventional acupuncture treatment saw an 86.7% success rate. 

If you or someone you know suffers from chronic migraines and hasn’t yet tried acupuncture, a migraine-free future may be just a treatment away.

How Acupuncture Can Help Migraines

Anyone who has ever suffered from a migraine knows how painful and debilitating the pain can be. Pressure, pain, nausea, and aversion to light can keep you in the dark, both physically and mentally.

According to the Migraine Research Foundation, a migraine is, “an extraordinarily prevalent neurological disease” and they affect nearly 39 million people in the U.S. and 1 billion people across the world.

Here in the states, 18% of women, 6% of men, and 10% of children experience migraines. That’s far too many people that suffer from the all-encompassing pain that is much more than “just a headache.”

Luckily, acupuncture can help

While the root cause of migraines varies from patient to patient, the fact that acupuncture can help remains steadfast. Before you opt for prescription medications, give acupuncture a try.

One of the easiest ways to explain how acupuncture can help is through the release of endorphins. When inserted into the proper meridians, the acuneedle then stimulates nerves that in turn release endorphins (feel-good, pain-relieving hormones.)

Acupuncture also will help to balance qi, and improve circulation which will help to reduce inflammation and pain, too.

If you or someone you know struggles with migraines, let our trained and licensed acupuncturists help. We will work with you closely to formulate a treatment plan that is specifically targeted to treat your unique needs —while helping to reduce both the pain intensity and frequency of migraines and headaches.

Head Injuries Can Heal Faster Thanks to Acupuncture

Over the past few years awareness around head injuries and concussions has grown, and thankfully. Many of us spend our weekends in the fall and winter watching football, unaware of how common head injuries are for those who are playing the game. It’s easy to see when a player takes one big hit that causes them to lose consciousness—we see that and know that a concussion has been suffered. But we now know that repeated blows to the head which don’t cause unconsciousness add up, and over time, can ravage the brain and cause cognitive problems down the line.

And it’s not just athletes that suffer from head injuries either. Anyone whose work requires physical activity can be at risk, and once a head injury is sustained it can lead to long-term and ongoing problems.

Unfortunately, for concussions and conditions related to chronic head trauma, effective treatment can be hard to come by. Headaches, nausea and other side effects can be hard to predict, and often times narcotic solutions only exacerbate the problem, or stir up other issues.

Acupuncture is unfortunately an under-utilized treatment for head injuries. However, it’s something everyone suffering from post-concussion symptoms should seek out. Licensed acupuncturist Amy Moll writes: “Acupuncture has a regulatory, or modulatory effect on a person’s physiology and is a great tool that can be used as part of a concussion recovery program for many reasons.”

Among those reasons is that acupuncture promotes blood flow to the brain, when a concussion results in the opposite. Rather than treating a symptom of concussions, acupuncture in part addresses the root cause. In addition, acupuncture is well-known for its benefits of treating many of the underlying symptoms of post-concussion life like nausea, insomnia, and depression.

Hopefully you don’t know anyone who is suffering through post-concussion life—but if so, we are here and ready to help as soon as possible.

Facial Acupuncture for Migranes

For those who suffer from migraines, the pain is all too familiar.

The pressure, pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light is enough to make anyone seek any treatment that may be able to help.

But before resorting to harsh pharmaceuticals, it’s important to investigate other options that might help.

A writer for Bustle did just that. Just today, she shared her quest to treat her migraines with her readers — 30 days of acupuncture.

While we already know acupuncture can help relieve the pain and frequency of migraines and headaches, her experience was affirming.

For her 30 day experiment, she received acupuncture treatments at least once a week for four weeks. She saw different acupuncturists within the same group, and tried various modalities — but most days, facial acupuncture was the treatment of choice.

Ironically enough, if it was, “a particularly bad headache or migraine day, I opted solely for a headache treatment, which did not include needles in my face at all.”

The writer, Rosanne Salvatore, also monitored skin changes as well while not making any other changes in regards to diet or lifestyle.

The result? Pretty amazing.

She said, "There was one moment near the end of my 30 days where I actually couldn't remember the last time I had a headache. I will think back on that moment fondly, forever.”

After her last session, she went ten days headache free which was, the longest stretch I can remember in a long time.”

She notes that at the time of publication, “it's been about five weeks since my last treatment and I'm back to getting headaches about one to two times a week.”