Acupuncture for Headaches
by Yasmin Devji, RAc, North Vancouver Acupuncturist
Headaches affect every one of us at some point in our lives. If we are lucky, a painkiller will remove our problem and we move on with our day. Unfortunately, many of us are not so lucky. So if you have chronic headaches and are seeking a more natural or permanent solution for them, then it is worth looking at some traditional Chinese remedies in addition to standard Western medicine.
Before we can discuss the solution, it’s important to determine exactly what type of headache you may be suffering from, as the treatment will vary depending on the type. Western medicine diagnoses headaches to include tension headaches (pain at temples, back of head or neck), sinus headaches (from sinus infections), rebound headaches (reoccurring pain likely from overuse of painkillers), cluster headaches (severe pain on one side of the head), and migraines (lengthy pain often with light or sound sensitivity and nausea or vomiting).
Can Traditional Chinese Medicine help?
Traditional Chinese Medicine tends to take a different approach to these ailments. We will endeavor to determine the root, or the cause of the headache as well as the branch of the headache – which is the pain itself. We then treat both the root and the branch to sustain a long-lasting or permanent solution to the pain.
As with much of Traditional Chinese Medicine, the imbalance of life energy or “qi” is often seen as the cause of our body’s pain, including headaches. If the blood and the qi is allowed to flow better, pain is relieved. Acupuncture can be used to increase the circulation of blood and qi. It can also be used to stimulate pain-killing endorphins as well as relieve muscle tension.
Headaches can be caused by any number of reasons. The most common root cause for tension headaches is the misalignment of the neck – whether due to stress, which tightens the neck and shoulder muscles; bending the neck to work on your laptop; or even just from sleeping on pillows without neck support. This neck misalignment will force the muscles to stiffen, and will not allow the blood and the qi to flow freely. Acupuncture seeks to remedy this situation as well as to ease the pain itself.
Often with sinus infections come sinus headaches and fever. Standard Western treatments include decongestants and antibiotics. Traditional Chinese medicine would diagnose the root of these headaches to likely involve spleen or lung issues, and acupuncture would treat these areas as well as the nose and sinus area.
While some headaches such as tension headaches can be relieved through simple painkillers such as aspirin or ibuprofen, there are others which are actually caused by these easily accessible tablets. Rebound headaches may occur with overuse of these painkillers, as the body has likely started to depend on them. Acupuncture treatments for rebound headaches will focus on relieving the withdrawal symptoms.
Cluster headaches often induce a watery nose and eye on the side of the face which has the extreme pain. Traditional Chinese Medicine believes the root of cluster headaches are often due to an excess in the body. Acupuncture seeks to reduce this excess on an ongoing basis.
Migraines can be characterized by a number of symptoms, but tend to include some form of nausea or vomiting. During migraines, people tend to also be quite sensitive to sound or light. With Traditional Chinese Medicine, the root is often diagnosed as a lack of blood and qi, or an imbalance of yin. It may also be because of the lack of heat in the body or a few other reasons. Acupuncture will seek to identify and then treat the root of the migraine.
If you suffer from chronic headaches, it is important to determine the root of the pain, so that it can be properly treated. Whether your headache is from stagnation or from a deficiency in the body, only by treating the cause can you achieve long-lasting results.