Background information
More than one billion people worldwide are affected by migraines and headaches, which can have a significant impact on their quality of life and impose a substantial burden on society. For people with frequent migraines or headaches, preventive treatments to reduce the frequency are available, but not all patients respond well to drug therapy and we find patients would rather avoid pill popping, or at least reduce it. Fortunately, acupuncture can be an effective treatment providing a useful additional tool in our therapeutic arsenal.
What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture is a form of traditional Chinese medicine that involves inserting fine needles into specific points on the body to balance the flow of energy, or "qi." Our Hamilton Osteopaths practise Western medical acupuncture, this practice is adapted for modern scientific purposes. It is based on the biological effects of needling and on clinical and laboratory research.
How does acupuncture work?
Acupuncture affects the nervous system, including locally where the needles are placed, in the spinal cord and brainstem, where a ‘damping effect’ occurs on pain transmission, and in areas of the brain which regulate the emotional aspects of pain. The overarching belief is that it activates pathways in the brain that are responsible for turning pain off. In addition to this, acupuncture improves blood flow at the needled sites and relieves trigger points /knots in the muscle. A more detailed image of this is provided below.
What to expect during an acupuncture session
Our osteopaths in Hamilton at TLC offer osteopathy with acupuncture. This means we treat using techniques from both skill sets. During an acupuncture session, needles are carefully inserted at specific points, usually along a person’s back or neck where they can slow pain transmission. Appointments are 40 minutes, and patients are advised to undergo roughly six sessions, usually once a week.
Why choose acupuncture?
While the effects of acupuncture (like other preventive treatments) are a modest reduction in migraine days each month, it provides a useful additional tool in our therapeutic arsenal. Almost 90% of people with frequent migraines have no effective preventive treatment, so acupuncture can be a game-changer for many patients.
In fact, The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) includes acupuncture as a treatment to be considered to prevent chronic tension-type headache and migraine. If you're looking for an alternative treatment for your migraines or headaches, it's worth exploring acupuncture as an option.
Our final thoughts
Acupuncture is an ancient practice that has been adapted for modern scientific purposes. It has been found to be an effective treatment for reducing the frequency of headaches and migraines. While its effects may not work for everyone, it provides an additional and safe tool for clinicians to help their patients manage this debilitating condition. If you're interested in trying acupuncture for your headaches or migraines, be sure to find a qualified acupuncturist with experience in treating these conditions. Our osteopaths in Hamilton use Acupuncture with Osteopathy to get the best results. In our experience, a 4-6 week course of acupuncture is a good way to find out if acupuncture works. People will then come back if they have a flare up of symptoms or if they find that occasional (once a month or so) treatment helps to keep their symptoms at ease. We do occasionally get a 'unicorn' outcome where one course of acupuncture and or osteopathy 'cures' a person of headaches for life.
Written By - Darryl Jenkins
TLC osteopaths
Hamilton Osteopaths
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Darryl Jenkins is a friendly Hamilton osteopath and co-owner of TLC Osteopaths. His formal qualifications include a undergraduate certificate in Exercise science from Wintec, a degree in Human Biology from Unitec, and a master's degree in osteopathy from Unitec, where he also completed his thesis on human movement assessment. He also holds a postgraduate certificate in acupuncture from AUT which means he practices osteopathy and acupuncture. He would like to be pursuing the postgraduate certificate in Pain Science at Otago Uni (awaiting spouse approval).
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