Acupuncture for Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease can cause abnormalities in the skin, the
joints, the heart, and the nervous system. Most patients are often also
suffering from generalized severe fatigue, muscle and joint stiffness/pain, back
pain, depression, swollen glands, and headache.
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Acupuncture can
help Lyme Disease in 3 different ways:
Immune function--acupuncture can improve the functions of the immune system to fight the bacteria that cause Lyme Disease.
Immune function--acupuncture can improve the functions of the immune system to fight the bacteria that cause Lyme Disease.
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Pain--acupuncture
has a direct pain relieving effect on the joint and muscle pain associated with
Lyme Disease. There is also a more general effect of endorphin release which
contributes to pain relief; it is an ideal recovery tool.
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Hormonal--most
people with Lyme also have adrenal insufficiency; acupuncture can help this by
balancing/tonifying adrenal function.
Acupuncture
works by helping your body to re-activate its own natural healing abilities.
Many people enjoy the way that acupuncture can contribute to a relaxed sense of
physical, mental, and emotional well-being. A skilled practitioner can provide
high quality acupuncture treatments which are comfortable, safe, and effective.
For people experiencing joint pain, depression, or other symptoms related to
Lyme, acupuncture can often begin to provide relief within one or two sessions.
Blood
coagulopathy and Blood stasisRecent evaluations of chronic diseases such as Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue have shown that there is evidence of abnormal blood coagulation associated with these diseases. In a recent cohort study of 54 patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, 92 percent of the patients had a demonstrable blood coagulopathy or low-level activation of coagulation.
In Oriental medicine signs of what this medical system calls blood stasis can be detected before blood coagulopathy is measurable. Most notably the radial pulse may feel choppy or may also feel deep or hard as though the blood flow is impeded. The tongue may appear dull or dark with shades of purple and sublingual congestion. The abdomen is usually noted as feeling tight or moderately tender especially in the peri-navel area and lower quadrants.
Immune-system pathologies have also been shown to coexist with blood coagulopathy. Understanding this interrelationship begins with the understanding that impaired blood circulation interferes with oxygen transport and immune-signaling. When the body lacks essential communication within its immune pathways, inflammatory cytokines are stimulated. A perpetual cycle of immune dysregulation, inflammatory cytokine production, and coagulopathy inhibits effective treatment response.
