Acupuncture for menopause
Up to 80 percent of women experience symptoms during menopause and 1 in 5 of these women experience those symptoms as so severe they disrupt their day to day life. While awareness is increasing about menopause, management options require further development to provide women with adequate support for symptoms.
Many are women turning to complementary therapies to assist with the symptoms of menopause and one of those therapies that has been getting good results is acupuncture!
Chinese medicine has over 2,000 years of history in treating women’s health conditions, and has become popular for treatment of other gynecological conditions including fertility and menstrual pain. Acupuncture has long been used to assist women with menopausal symptoms and has been increasingly acknowledged in modern research.
Evidence is mounting to support the use of acupuncture alongside conventional treatment methods to help with relieving the symptoms of menopause. Current research shows that acupuncture can lead to:
Reduced frequency and severity of hot flushes
Significant improvement in quality of sleep for menopause associated insomnia
Assisting with mood and anxiety
Improving overall quality of life
In Chinese medicine, how we experience one stage of life has long term effects. For example, adequate healing postpartum can prevent menstrual and menopausal issues in the future. Therefore, how you experience menopause can affect how you experience the ageing process later in life.
This is true from a Western medicine perspective as well, as research shows that the hormone oestrogen which declines over menopause has a protective effect on bone and muscle mass, and when administered during menopause through HRT can help with healthier ageing and reducing osteoporosis risk.
So no matter what lens you look at it through, menopause symptoms aren’t something to power through. They are a sign that your body needs support.
If you are interested in how acupuncture can help support you during menopause, reach out for a chat. I’d love to answer your questions!
