About 20% of children and adults suffer with anxiety in the United States. This includes both the crushing nervousness, tension, and panic, along with physical symptoms such as a racing heart, sweating, nausea, digestive difficulties, trouble sleeping, headaches, and more.
Did you know that acupuncture and herbal medicine are effective at reducing both the physical and mental/emotional symptoms of anxiety?
How Acupuncture Reduces Anxiety
Reduce anxiety with acupuncture & herbal medicine
Anxiety is one of our favorite conditions to work with because we so reliably get fabulous results. We are now learning through modern research that using certain acupuncture points changes hormone production and neurotransmitter production — meaning that it’s possible to decrease the production of stress hormones and increase the production of various hormones and neurotransmitters that provide a calming effect for the body.
So what does this mean for your body and mind?
An acupuncturist will stimulate points on your body that create an emotional and physical reset, bringing your body from the “fight or flight” sympathetic nervous system state into the “rest and digest” parasympathetic nervous system state. Instead of feeling tense, active, “on guard,” and anxious, you’ll conclude an acupuncture appointment feeling restful, peaceful, relaxed in your muscles, and calm in your mind.
The more often your body spends in this restful state the easier it becomes for you to access this pattern of calmness.
How Herbal Medicine Reduces Anxiety
Chinese herbal medicines have been extensively studied and we now know that many of the herbal formulas historically used to reduce anxiety contain both sedative and anti-anxiety herbs. These herbal formulas vary depending on the exact imbalance that someone is dealing with.
For example, if you’re the type of person who has anxiety especially at night and has trouble sleeping, we might provide one herbal formula, while if you’re the kind of person who has anxiety combined with difficulty digesting foods and you’re prone to stomachaches, we would provide a different formula.
The beauty of taking herbal medicine is that you’re providing a steady dose of calming medicine to your body and mind, re-training the body and mind into a state of relaxation. Over time this helps you to transition from a frequently anxious state to one that is typically calm with perhaps only occasional event-based anxiety.
Other Ways Chinese Medicine Supports Anxiety Relief
During sessions with our clients we discuss all aspects of life, ranging from diet to sleeping patterns to work and exercise habits to family and friend dynamics. We like to help our clients to discover and work to change patterns that are not serving them.
For our clients struggling with anxiety, sometimes the core reason has to do with unresolved trauma or difficult interpersonal situations. In these cases we will often refer to the appropriate types of therapists who may be able to help resolve underlying trauma and difficult relationship dynamics.
In other cases, inappropriate diet, a poor gut microbiome, or inappropriate use of stimulants may result in anxiety. Changing dietary patterns and supporting gut healing can be transformative in resolving anxiety for certain people.
Get Relief Now
If you feel ready to move on from your anxiety, call us at Inspire Family Acupuncture to see if acupuncture and/or herbal medicine are right for you. We can’t wait to support your health!
