Acupuncture For Insomnia
March 8, 2009 - 9:26pm
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My sister is thinking about getting Acupuncture for her insomnia. Do you think that will help her get the sleep she needs?
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I've never personally tried acupuncture, but everything I've heard about it has been positive, from helping with depression to infertility. I've never heard anything negative about it. I imagine that it couldn't hurt, and would probably be better than trying medications to solve the insomnia problem. I have a friend who has tried acupuncture and thought it was the best thing since sliced bread. I'll ask her what she thinks about acupuncture for insomnia......
Acupuncture is a type of energy medicine with proven results in many conditions that have become chronic in our society today. Insomnia is one of those conditions and modern life with its built-in stresses have made things worse. Managing stress and identifying its root causes is the best way to address insomnia. Acupunture will help alliviate the symptoms but your sister is better off also trying to find the root cause of her symptom. Is she working too much? Does she have a high-speed life that prevents her from practicing self-care such as meditation, yoga, good nutrition, breathing exercises, a positive outlook in life, etc. Acupunture cannot address any of those, but it will provide a temporary fix. I suggest addressing the possible causes and work in complement with acupunture or even better, acupressure. But above all, improve nutrition and manage stress by using techniques such as those I mentioned above. I also suggest checking the acupuncturist's credentials!
I've tried acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine for the past 4 months for migraines and insomnia. I had great results for the migraines, but unfortunately no change in sleep. Definitely find a qualified professional - it makes a huge difference.
Thanks for sharing...this is very helpful to hear that your migraines were diminished (or completely gone?) after acupuncture and herbal medicine.
We would love to learn more about your treatments and conditions before/after treatment. For instance, what was the frequency & duration of acupuncture, and do you have to receive ongoing "maintenance" treatments? What kind of herbs were you taking? Any side effects? What were the pros/cons with treatment (pain, cost, time spent, etc) versus the pain, cost and time lost with migraines?
Thanks! Hope we hear back from you --- this is really interesting!
Kinnis,
On the original question, I am wondering if you sister has any idea as to where her insomnia is based? A lot of different things can cause insomnia. Some insomnia is chronic; other insomnia is caused by something physical (an uncomfortable bed, a specific noise) and still other insomnia is caused by something happening within the body (for instance hormonal shifts during perimenopause or menopause.)
How old is your sister? How long has this gone on?
Here is how acupuncture.com explains the theory behind acupuncture and sleep:
http://acupuncture.com/conditions/insomniac.htm
And some more information about it, on altMD:
http://www.altmd.com/Articles/Acupuncture-for-Insomnia
If there is a medical cause behind her insomnia and her doctor supports trying acupuncture, insurance may even cover all or part of the expense.
Your original question was quite a while ago; has your sister tried this in the meantime? Did she have good results?