Exploring Acupuncture for Endometriosis: What You Need To Know

BloomWell Holistic Health is here to help women with endometriosis understand their choices for managing their condition using holistic health practices. We aim to highlight available options, potential benefits, and how to connect with holistic practitioners. While conventional treatments such as surgery and medication play a crucial role, they are not the only resources available. An integrative approach that uses diverse holistic health practices provides a comprehensive path to wellness. This blog post will help you explore what you need to know about acupuncture for endometriosis management including the types of acupuncture you may encounter, the benefits for treating endometriosis, and how to connect with practitioners. Let’s get started!

What is Acupuncture and How Does It Work?

Acupuncture is a fundamental practice within Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that has been used for thousands of years to promote healing and alleviate a wide range of sympoms. It involves the insertion of thin needles into specific points on the body to promote healing and relieve symptoms. These needles activate muscle and sensory nerves, and balance the flow of energy (“Qi”) in the body. By restoring the proper flow of Qi, acupuncture can stimulate the body’s natural healing processes.

Types of Acupuncture

When working with an acupuncturist, you may encounter several types of acupuncture and related techniques:

• Traditional Needle Acupuncture: The most popular type of acupuncture which involves the manual insertion of thin needles into specific points on the body.
• Needleless Acupuncture: Known as (Tui Na), this is a forceful type of massage that uses friction to balance energy, remove obstructions, and improve energy flow
• Electric Stimulation and Microcurrent: This involves inserting acupuncture needles and attaching tiny clips between two acupuncture points to improve energy flow and reduce symtpoms.
• Cupping and Gua Sha: Cupping uses suction to draw toxins and muscular waste to the skin’s surface, while Gua Sha uses a flat, smooth instrument to gently scrape the tissue and muscles, breaking down adhesions.
• Moxibustion: Involves burning moxa (dried mugwort leaves) on or above the skin to warm and stimulate acupuncture points to regulate qi and blood, balance yin and yang, and promote healing.
• Auricular Acupuncture: Stimulates specific points on the outer ear, which contains over 200 points, using thin needles or ear seeds (tiny acupressure devices held in place by waterproof tape.)

Benefits of Acupuncture for Endometriosis

Acupuncture offers a comprehensive, whole-body approach to healing, making it particularly well-suited to managing the complex nature of endometriosis. Unlike treatments that focus soley on symptoms and short-term relief, acupuncture addresses underlying imbalances and systemic issues that contribue to endometriosis. By harmonizing the body’s energy flow, reducing inflammation, and enhancing overall well-being, acupuncture provides holistic support that complements conventional treatments. Here are some specific benefits of acupuncture for endometriosis management:

• Pain Relief: Endometriosis can be severe and debilitating. Acupuncture helps alleviate pain by stimulating the release of endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, and by modulating the nervous system to reduce pain perception. By improving blood circulation and reducing muscle tension, acupuncture can offer significant relief from a wide variety of pain symptoms.
• Reducing Inflammation: Chronic inflammation is a hallmark of endometriosis. Acupuncture has an anti-inflammatory effect, reducing pro-inflammatory cytokines and increasing anti-inflammatory substances in the body. This helps lower systemic inflammation, which can contribute to lower levels of pain, as well as create a more inhospitable environment for endometriosis to thrive.
• Hormonal Regulation: Hormonal imbalances, particularly those involving estrogen and progesterone, play a key role in endometriosis. Acupuncture can help regulate these hormones by influcencing the endocrine system. This can lead to better regulation of menstrual cycles and lowered levels of associated pain, as well as support all of the hormones in our body, which rely on eachother to function optimally.
• Supporting Digestion and Gut Health: The gut microbiome plays a critical role in overall health and there is growing understanding of the role of gut bacterial imbalances (dysbiosis) in the establishment and progression of endometriosis symptoms. Many women experience gut-related symptoms like bloating, “endo-belly”, constipation, diarhhea, etc. Acupuncture can help address these issues by reducing stress and its impact on the gut, improve gut motility, modulate immune function, enhance blood flow and support liver function, which all have a positive effect on gut function.
• Immune System Support: Endometriosis is associated with immune dysfunction, as the immune system fails to recognize and eliminate the displaced endometrial-like tissue. Acupuncture can modulate the immune response, improving the activity of immune cells, enhancing the body’s ability to manage endometriosis. This can potentially help to control the spread of endometriotic lesions and reduce chronic inflammation.
• Nervous System Modulation: Chronic pain and stress significantly impact the nervous system, exacerbating endometriosis symptoms. Acupuncture promotes relaxation and reduces stress by regulating the autonomic nervous system and lowering cortisol levels.

What to Expect in an Acupuncture Session

Understanding what to expect during an acupuncture session can help you feel more at ease and prepared. Acupuncture sessions can differ depending on the practitioner’s approach, the setting, and your individual needs. Here’s an overview of what you might experience during both private sessions and community acupuncture.

Private Individual Sessions

In a private session, you’ll receive one-on-one attention from your acupuncturist. Here’s how these sessions typically proceed:

1. Initial Consultation: Your first session usually starts with an in-depth consultation. The acupuncturist will ask about your medical history, current symptoms, lifestyle, and specific concerns related to endometriosis. This helps in creating a personalized treatment plan.
2. Physical Examination: The acupuncturist may check your pulse, examine your tongue, and assess areas of pain or tension to get a better understanding of your condition.
3. Treatment Plan: The acupuncturist will develop a treatment plan tailored to your needs. This plan may include specific acupuncture points and complementary techniques like cupping, moxibustion, or herbal medicine.
4. Acupuncture Treatment: You will lie comfortably on a treatment table while the acupuncturist inserts thin needles into specific points on your body. The needles are typically left in palce 20-30 minutes while you relax. You may feel a slight tingling or warmth, as well as a sense of calm and relaxation, but the process is generally painless.
5. Post-Treatment: After the needles are removed, the acupuncturist may provide advice on lifestyle, diet or exercise to support your healing journey. You may feel relaxed or energized after the session, and it’s important to stay hydrated and rest if needed. Follow up treatments and frequency will be discussed.

Community Acupuncture for Endometriosis

Community Acupuncture offers a more affordable and accessible option by treating multiple patients in a shared space. Here’s what you can expect:

1. Group Setting: In community acupuncture, treatments are provided in a group setting, with several patients receiving acupuncture simultaneously. This allows the acupuncturist to treat more people at a lower cost.
2. Brief Consultation: The initial consultation is generally shorter that a private session consult, but still includes essential questions about your health.
3. Treatment Area: Patients recline in comfortable chairs, often arranged in a quiet, communal room. There may be soft music playing and lights dimmed. The acupuncturist will move between patients, inserting needles and monitoring each person’s response.
4. Acupuncture Treatment: The treatment process is similar to private sessions, with needles inserted into specific points on the body. You will relax with the needles in place for about 20-30 minutes.
5. Post Treatment: After the session, you can discuss any immediate concerns with the acupuncturist, as well as recommendations for frequency of follow-up visits.

Choosing the Right Setting for You

Whether you choose private individual sessions or community acupuncture depends on your preferences, budget and level of personalized care you seek. Both settings provide effective treatment options for managing endometriosis, and the choice ultimately comes down to what makes you feel most comfortable and supported in your healing journey.

Finding an Acupuncturist to Work With

Finding a qualified acupuncturist for endometriosis is crucial for effective treatment. Acupuncturists undergo extensive training in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) principles, anatomy, physiology, needling techniques, and additional practices such as moxibustion, cupping and herbal medicine. When selecting a practitioner ensure they are licensed and ask about their experience treating patients with endometriosis. It is worth exploring how a practitioner may approach treating endometrosis, even if they do not specialize in it specifically. Having an initial conversation can be beneficial to discover if the practitioner feels like a good fit for you. For more information on qualifications and to find a certified acupuncturist, visit NCCAOM and explore their directory, as well as visit our Learn page for links to other practice organizations.

Conclusion

Acupuncture for endometriosis management is a comprehensive, holistic approach that addresses the complexities of the condition through multiple pathways. By alleviating pain, reducing inflammation, regulating hormones, supporting better digestion, enhancing immune function, and modulating the nervous system, acupuncture is a powerful practice to consider. In future posts we will dive deeper into the benefits of acupuncture on specific symptoms and contributing factors of endometriosis, helping you to further explore whether this modality might supporty your healing journey.