Stress Relief
Acupuncture & Stress
Our lives grow ever more complicated and these demands take an emotional and physical toll on our well-being.
Stress is a natural, nonspecific response of the body to the various demands we place upon it. However, stress is not necessarily negative. There is a distinction between healthy and unhealthy stress. Healthy stress includes appropriate physical exercise, good eating habits, positive thinking, adequate rest, and a natural response to emergency situations. These stressors keep us alert and motivated, and support our body’s strength and vitality. Unhealthy stress, such as challenging emotions and chronic overthinking, overexertion, poor eating habits, lack of sleep, and chemical and environmental pollutants and toxins, challenge our health and can trigger physical and mental problems, particularly if they are experienced over a prolonged period of time.
Historically, our stress response, also known as our fight or flight response, provided us with energy to preserve life during difficult situations, such as an attack or threat by a wild animal. Today, we don’t have to look much further than our windows, or computer screens, to view various forms of stressors – everything from the 24 hour news cycle, traffic and road rage, building demands at work, world events, and our habit of constantly checking our cell phone. All of these combine to send even the most serene people into a stressful frenzy.
Signs and symptoms of an overactive response to stress:
Anger
Anxiety
Asthma
Depression
Depressed immune system
Digestive disorders
Headaches
Heart disease
High blood pressure
Joint pain
Weight problems
Insomnia, poor sleep
Unfortunately, modern day stress is taking a considerble toll on our health, more frequent and more consistent stimulation than generations before us. Over time this excess stress can be very detrimental to our health. Our body's natural response to stressful situations is to activate all available resources for survival, and to get us out of a scary situation fast. However, with the increase in physical, emotional and mental stressors, our stress response gets "locked in", resulting in the depletion of the body's resources.
Even if the stressors are no longer present, the body continues to keep the stress response active. This results in the depletion of our nervous system, lymphatic organs (spleen, thymus, and lymph nodes), kidneys and adrenal glands, and can pave the way for a wide variety of symptoms and signs. Medical studies have shown that with increased and consistent stress, our white blood cells, which defend our body against viruses, decrease. This decrease results in lower immune resistance, ultimately leading to physical disease and emotional instability.
There is Hope.
Practitioners of acupunctures have been helping people cope with stress for thousands of years. The classical theories of acupuncture on how stress affects the body are similar to those of modern medicine; however, acupuncture theory and treatment go far beyond treating symptoms and signs.
so many of us find ourselves in a constant state of stimulation
Along with treating physical and emotional symptoms and signs associated with stress, acupuncture addresses the root cause(s) of the problem. One way that stress affects the body is by causing a stagnation and depletion in our circulation, leading to inflammation and chronic issues.
With acupuncture the practitioner’s job is to support and restore the integrity of circulation and how it affects our physical, mental and emotional health.
Your acupuncturist may also suggest adjunct therapies to enhance treatment and speed healing. Proper eating habits, as well as the use of exercise, stretching, movement and meditation practicies, support and promote a balanced and healthy body, mind and spirit.