Pain Management
Pain is an uncomfortable sensation triggered by the nervous system in response to damage to part of your body. We experience pain in many ways, from a dull or achy throb to a stabbing, shooting, or burning sensation. There are many varied causes of pain, but generally pain will be categorized as acute or chronic. Acute pain occurs at the onset of disease or injury and will reduce as the underlying cause is treated and healed. This type of pain is your body’s warning system alerting you that something is wrong. Chronic pain, on the other hand, is pain that lingers beyond the healing period, or persists despite treating the underlying cause. Pain, whether it’s acute or chronic, has an impact on our emotional wellbeing and outlook on life, and can impede our daily activities. That is why effective management and relief of pain is especially important.
How acupuncture can help
Acupuncture has been proven to be very effective at treating a variety of chronic and acute pain. Stagnation of our blood and Qi both cause pain, and acupuncture addresses pathological factors causing that stagnation to help restore the natural flow of energy in your body. When acupoints are stimulated, pain-killing biochemicals such as endorphins and corticosteroids are released to provide lasting relief. Acupuncture also improves blood circulation and reduces inflammation, which helps in reducing pain, improving mobility and shortening recovery time.
Acupuncture’s holistic approach can be particularly helpful in treating pain because it does not treat the affected area in isolation, but instead aims to restore your whole body’s natural balance to encourage healing and wellbeing. It is a non-invasive treatment that can reduce the need for prescription pain medications.
Common sources of pain
Everyone is likely to experience pain at some point in their lives. Some types of pain, like back pain, neck pain, or headaches, are more common than others. Below are some of the most common causes of pain treated by acupuncture:
Back pain
Back pain is one of the most common sources of pain. It has many different causes from slipped disks or muscle strain, to scoliosis or osteoporosis. Symptoms of back pain range from muscle soreness to a shooting, burning, or stabbing sensation.
Low back pain
Pain in the low back or lumbar region can make it hard to stand or move around and is a leading reason for missed work. It’s commonly caused by arthritis, herniated disks, back injuries, or lifestyle factors such as smoking, or weight gain.
Neck pain
Neck pain, or cervicalgia, is something everyone experiences from time to time. It frequently results from poor posture, like from sitting hunched over in front of a computer screen for long periods of time. Neck pain can cause muscle tightness or spasms and decrease the ability to move your head.
Arthritis
Arthritis is the name for the types of conditions that cause inflammation in your joints. There are as many as 100 types of arthritis. Some of them are simply the result of aging and wear and tear, while others are associated with autoimmune conditions like psoriasis or lupus. Symptoms include pain in one or more joints, stiffness, and difficulty moving.
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. It occurs when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of bones starts to wear down. This causes damage to the joints, typically in the hands, knees, hips, and spine, but it can affect any joint.
Rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that affects the joints and other tissue. It’s an autoimmune disorder that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks your own body’s tissues. Symptoms include tender, warm, swollen joints; joint stiffness that worsens in the morning or after periods of inactivity; and fatigue, fever, and loss of appetite.
Psoriatic arthritis
Psoriatic arthritis affects people who have psoriasis, which is a skin condition characterized by patches of rough, scaly skin. It occurs when your body’s immune system attacks healthy cells and tissue. Symptoms include swollen fingers and toes, foot pain, lower back pain, nail changes, and eye inflammation. While it’s most common to develop psoriasis years before psoriatic arthritis, some people will develop arthritis before they notice changes to their skin.
Headache and migraine
There are three types of chronic headaches: migraines, tension headaches, and cluster headaches. Suffering from chronic headaches can be incredibly disruptive and debilitating. While each type of headache has their own set of symptoms, they all prove tricky to treat with western medicine alone.
Myofascial pain syndrome
Myofascial pain syndrome is a chronic pain disorder where pressure on sensitive points (trigger points) on your muscles trigger pain in the muscle and sometimes also in seemingly unrelated parts of the body. This condition can be caused by repetitive strain injuries or from stress-related tension.
Sciatica
Sciatica is pain that travels along the sciatic nerve, which runs through the lower back, hips and buttock, and down each leg. When there is pressure on the sciatic nerve, like from a herniated disk or overgrowth of bone, it causes inflammation, pain, and often some numbness in the affected leg.
Cancer pain
Pain is very common among cancer patients. Cancer itself is known to cause pain, but so does the treatment. Sugery, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy all put a lot of strain on the body. This is why pain management is an important component to any cancer treatment.
Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS)
The precise cause is still unknown, but chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome is a long-term condition that causes pelvic pain and lower urinary tract symptoms without evidence of bacterial infection.
Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition that causes widespread musculoskeletal pain, fatigue, sleep problems, memory, and mood issues. It is believed that fibromyalgia amplifies painful sensations by affecting the way your brain and spinal cord process painful and nonpainful signals.
Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP)
Also known as persistent postsurgical pain (PPSP), this is pain that continues beyond the postoperative healing period. Most commonly caused by surgical injury to a major peripheral nerve, this is a complication that can occur after any kind of surgery, although some surgical procedures carry a higher risk of CPSP.
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease. It causes your immune system to mistakenly attack healthy tissue. SLE can affect the skin, joints, kidneys, brain, and other organs. Symptoms vary from person to person, but can include chest pain when taking a deep breath, fatigue, fever with no cause, malaise, hair loss, weight loss, skin rash, mouth sores, or sensitivity to sunlight.
Whatever your health goals are, acupuncture can help you manage your symptoms and restore balance in your body, and your life. You’ll receive treatments that are tailored to your unique needs. Learn what to expect if it’s your first appointment.
Note: For an official diagnosis of any of the above conditions, you should speak with your healthcare provider.
