Relief from Painful Periods with Acupuncture

For many women, their monthly cycle brings a constant round of pain and misery. Painful periods (also known as dysmenorrhoea) and conditions such as Endometriosis can cause huge disruption to a woman’s work, family and social life. There is no need to suffer in silence though; acupuncture has a long history of easing these female complaints.

Do You Have Painful Periods?

It is estimated that up to 75% of women have experienced severely painful periods at some point in their lives with adolescent girls suffering the most. The painful cramping can be related to endometriosis (see below) or ovarian cysts and it is important that these conditions are ruled out beforehand.

My acupuncture treatments provide a safe natural intervention for dysmenorrhoea. The needling works by;

• Influencing the messages transmitted between the brain and reproductive organs; acupuncture can stimulate the release of serotonin and various pain-relieving endorphins
• Increasing nitric oxide production; nitric oxide is one of many chemicals within the body that encourages healthy blood flow and muscle relaxation
• Decreasing tension in the muscle walls of the womb

I also encourage clients to make sure they are eating plenty of foods rich in magnesium (such as dark green leafy vegetables and cashew nuts) and drinking plenty of water as hydration and magnesium are important for relaxing muscle tension.

As you can tell from one of my client testimonials, acupuncture is really effective for painful periods!

“I had a conversation with Tiziana re painful periods (which I had had all my life) and that’s when she told me that painful periods are NOT normal and that we as women are not supposed or “programmed” to experience them. Once again, I was curious to see if that was true and if acupuncture could help with that condition as well. I only had two treatments and to my surprise, I haven’t had a painful period since!”

Endometriosis

This is caused by cells that normally grow inside the womb, growing outside of it, for instance on the bladder, bowel or ovaries and even as far away as in the lungs or spine. The cells respond to hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle in the same way as cells inside the womb; swelling and multiplying before menstruation, then bleeding during the period. The blood has nowhere to flow though, so it forms sticky plaques and large cysts, called ‘chocolate cysts’ because of their dark reddish brown colour. Endometriosis can cause painful heavy periods, pain during sex, painful bowel and bladder movements, depression and fatigue.

I use acupuncture to help women manage stress and anxiety caused by the condition and specifically to;

• Reduce inflammation and swelling caused by the endometrial cells
• Provide deep, lasting pain relief
• Ease muscle tension and cramping
• Support liver and bowel function; the liver and bowel play key roles in detoxifying hormones and maintaining hormone balance.

On some occasions Chinese Herbal Medicine may be beneficial for balancing the hormones alongside acupuncture treatments; if so I will discuss this with you.

Are your periods long, heavy or painful?

Do you dread your monthly cycle and the impact it has on your life?

To discuss how my acupuncture treatments can give you freedom from monthly period pain and misery or to make an appointment, contact me on 07788 633292 or email at info@yorktraditionalacupuncture.co.uk