Acupuncture for Migraines

If you’ve ever suffered from a migraine, you know how debilitating it can be. As well as a throbbing headache which is typically just on one side of your head, accompanying symptoms often include feeling sick, being sick and having an increased sensitivity to light and sound. It can seriously impact your daily life and often lying down in a dark, quiet room until the symptoms pass is the only answer. A migraine will last from 4 to 72 hours and can leave you feeling tired for several days afterwards.

Five element acupuncture is an effective and natural approach to finding relief from intense and debilitating migraines. This holistic therapy treats the whole person – body, mind and spirit – and helps manage the symptoms and frequency of migraines.

The cause of migraines is not fully known. Common triggers include lights, smells, noise, weather, hormonal changes and emotional stress. Everyone has their own threshold for what affects them. Some people experience visual disturbances such as blind spots or flashes of light before the start of a migraine. These warning signs are known as aura. Other people have no warning before a migraine attack begins. Migraines can also cause anxiety – do you worry about when the next migraine is going to strike and where you will be when it happens? Acupuncture can also help you feel more in control so that anxiety is less overwhelming.

The frequency of migraines differs for each person, but sometimes it can feel like a continuous cycle of pain, nausea, vomiting and fatigue. Over-the-counter painkillers often come nowhere near to relieving the symptoms so prescribed medication is required, although side effects can occur from frequent or prolonged use.

Some people try acupuncture because they want to reduce the amount of medication they take for migraines. Some people try acupuncture when they are told they cannot take the medication that will help their migraine symptoms. Ladies…imagine the joy of finding out that you are pregnant and then being told that your usual prescribed medication for migraines would be harmful to your baby. How will you get through the next few months?  Why not try acupuncture?

Five Element Acupuncture brings the body, mind and spirit into balance to improve your health and wellbeing. Book a treatment with Kathy Hitchens at Balancing Acupuncture in Truro.