Covid-19

Over the last few weeks, I have had an increasing number of people contact me asking if acupuncture can help in the treatment of post Covid-19 symptoms. Coincidently I was just deciding what to write my first blog post on when I suddenly realised that all of us are asking the same questions right now:

How can I keep my immune system strong?

What can I do to help lower my stress levels and anxiety?

What can I do to help my body recover from Covid-19?

Acupuncture can support the body in many ways, traditionally it has been used to help people recover from illness for many years. Most acupuncture practitioners treat post viral symptoms all the time as a result of the common cold, chest infections and influenza. The threat of contracting a virus is always there, although since March 2020 we have all been thrown into a new way of living with a heightened risk of being exposed to the new Corona virus, and it’s not just contracting the virus that is causing problems, mental health, living conditions, stress levels and emotional health have all been impacted. For these reasons I have been seeing more patients in clinic suffering with anxiety,  grief and sadness as well as stress and fatigue, a lot of this stems from how overwhelming and uncertain life has become over the last 7 months.

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Covid-19 and Acupuncture

Covid-19 is a relatively new virus and health specialists are still learning about it. Little is documented in terms of how acupuncture can help, however, in China Acupuncture and Herbs have been used in the treatment of Covid-19 with positive effects. Results from one study showed significant improvement in respiratory symptoms, fever, and a reduction in the amount of positive nucleic acid tests. A study carried out at Harvard medical school also suggested that acupuncture could be beneficial in influencing the body’s immune response by helping to lower the intensity of cytokine storms, these can occur in patients with Covid-19 when the body’s immune system responds too aggressively. The study used a modern form of acupuncture on mice with sepsis to see if it could help lower inflammation. The mice treated with acupuncture had lower levels of cytokines in their blood and a better survival rate compared to those that did not receive acupuncture treatment. 

Unfortunately, in this country Acupuncture is not part of our mainstream healthcare, therefore treatment is usually applied for post viral symptoms seen in clinic, rather than the active phase of a virus where someone may be in hospital or bed bound at home. So what kind of symptoms is Covid-19 leaving behind?

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Post Viral Symptoms Of Covid-19

• Cough, sore throat
• Insomnia
• Lung disease
• IBS symptoms
• Fatigue
• Nausea
• Depression
• Anxiety
  

Insomnia

Evidence supports that acupuncture is as effective as conventional medication in the treatment of insomnia with the added bonus of no nasty side effects. Insomnia and sleep disturbance are common complaints from patients, often secondary to other conditions or stress related issues. Chinese medicine is designed to treat the patient rather than the symptom and this creates results on a wider scale. Even if a patient isn’t coming in for sleep issues I have found acupuncture very effective at improving the quality of sleep and helping people to get to sleep more easily, it seems to be a natural effect of the treatment. Whether the sleep issue is due to a disturbance in someone’s circadian rhythm, secondary to a chronic illness or triggered by stress, Chinese medicine works by addressing the root cause of the problem and will not be the same for each person.

IBS

Irritable Bowel Syndrome is another condition where patients regularly seek out acupuncture for relief as conventional medicine is rather limited in this area. Research suggests that acupuncture may help IBS symptoms in a variety of ways:

• Reduction of abdominal discomfort and spasms.
• Pain reduction.
• Regulation of bowel movements.

In clinic I have found patients suffering with digestive issues respond well to treatment.  Acupuncture is a medical system designed to regulate, strengthen, and work in a 3 fold way by addressing our mind, body and emotions. Each system of the body is thought to be deeply connected with a particular emotion, for example the stomach and spleen known as the earth element are associated with worry. This is why patients experience an improvement in mood and state of mind when receiving acupuncture treatment because it works on many levels. The key benefits I have seen in clinic when addressing digestive issues are:

• Regulation of bowel movements.
• Reduction in bloating and discomfort.
• Return of a healthy appetite.
• Increased energy levels.
• Reduction in nausea and the so called worry tummy.
• Reduced signs of inflammation.
• Reduced anxiety and feeling more at ease with life.
• Improvement in stool quality.

Lung Health

In terms of treating post Covid cough it is possibly too early to tell how effective any treatment will be in this area. However, over the years I have successfully treated many patients with post viral cough and fatigue. These are common symptoms to experience following a bout of the flu or a virus that has led to a chest infection. I have found that one of the most important factors of treatment in this area is frequency. The more consistent and closer together the treatments are, the greater the effect.  Once the body starts to regulate treatments are spread out over larger periods of time.

In terms of lung health research suggests that acupuncture may be helpful as an adjunct in the treatment of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) due to its ability to regulate inflammation and cytokine production.

I have treated patients suffering with the common cold many times in clinic and have found acupuncture helpful for symptom relief. Studies support that acupuncture helps symptomatically in treatment of the common cold due to its ability to reduce inflammation, swelling, mucous production, and by increasing and modulating immune cells. 

Anxiety & Depression

Anxiety and Depression is a particular area of interest for me. I have found that people can experience a lot of ups and downs when seeking treatment in this area, some may be successful in finding the right medication straight away and others experience a lot of trial and error, often with side effects or/and unfortunately no effect in helping their condition. The wonderful thing about acupuncture is that it is natural and safe and can be used alongside medication, minimising side effects and help your condition at the same time.

Following a course of treatment patients often report that they feel more in control of their mood, less overwhelmed by intense emotions, less anxious and feel a real change in their energy levels. All of these factors really contribute to someone’s quality of life and can actually help people return to work, enjoy socialising, and feel part of life again. This may be due to acupuncture having an effect on neurotransmitters in the brain that help regulate mood, sleep and appetite. It is also thought that acupuncture helps to activate the parasympathetic nervous system helping to reduce stress hormones in the body such as adrenaline and cortisol.  

Summary

Covid 19 may be a new strain of virus but the use of acupuncture in the treatment of post viral symptoms isn’t. I do feel it is a great shame that traditional acupuncture is not integrated more into our healthcare system as regular consistent treatment can produce positive effects in many clinical areas. Often when seeking treatment privately consistency is lost due to time and cost. This is why I offer treatments at a very reasonable price to make it available to as many people as possible.

Stay safe and well and for more information on acupuncture check out the rest of my website.

References

Gong YB, Shi XJ, Zhang Y, Jiang K, et al. Clinical Application and practice of Acupuncture for the treatment of Corona virus disease. Chinese Acupuncture and Moxibustion, doi: 10.13703/j.0255-2930.20200319-k0004.

https://hms.harvard.edu/news/quieting-storm

https://www.acupuncture.org.uk/a-to-z-of-conditions/a-to-z-of-conditions/1135-irritable-bowel-syndrome-ibs.html

https://www.acupuncture.org.uk/a-to-z-of-conditions/a-to-z-of-conditions/1587-copd.html

https://www.acupuncture.org.uk/a-to-z-of-conditions/a-to-z-of-conditions/1191-colds-and-flu.html

https://www.acupuncture.org.uk/a-to-z-of-conditions/a-to-z-of-conditions/1283-insomnia.html