Women’s Health

By: Dayna Mulkay | DTCM + Acupuncturist

A woman’s menstrual flow can be a sign of good health. When the body is out of balance, various symptoms can show up: such as having no period (amenorrhea), excessive bleeding(menorrhagia) and/ or pain during your period (dysmenorrhea), spotting, and/or cramping. These changes often can be due to hormonal imbalance, other bodily changes and life stress. Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine can help restore better hormone function to achieve the correct rhythm, flow and address the following issues:
•Cramps
•Irritability
•Lower abdomen pain
•Fibroid cysts
•Endometriosis

What is PMS or pre-menstrual syndrome? PMS refers to a wide range of physical or emotional symptoms that typically occur about two weeks before a woman begins her menstrual flow or period. PMS can not only be painful, but it can indicate a noticeable hormonal imbalance during this time.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, PMS is commonly attributed to poor blood flow through the liver during menstruation- Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine can encourage better circulation through the hepatic artery. This is a short blood vessel that supplies 70% of oxygenated blood to the liver.

Many women are being diagnosed with infertility and undertaking procedures such as intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) without trying conservative measure to re-balance the female hormonal system. The inability to get pregnant can be due to many other unexpected reasons, including low sperm count or motility issues in men. Current research supports the assistance of treating infertility with acupuncture, and often is used in conjunction with more western therapies such as IVF and IUI.

Acupuncture and herbal medicine can support conception by increasing blood flow to the reproductive organs, which dramatically improves a woman’s response to hormonal therapy; and it also has been shown to be a hormone regulating therapy. Improving ovulation by reducing stress and a hyperactive sympathetic nervous system response are also important targets of acupuncture, ultimately helping improve your pregnancy rate by decreasing stress around embryo transfer during IVF.

Questions about how acupuncture can help regulate a hormonal imbalance? Schedule your spotlight session with our resident acupuncturist today!

— Dayna Mulkay