Insomnia

Treating Insomnia with Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine

Insomnia is one of the most common mediccal complaints that health care practioners see in their offices. It has most-likely affected every one of us in one way or another. For many of us it is situational, such as a sudden increase in stress, jetlag, that extra cup of coffee in the afternoon, etc. When we get ourselves back in to our regular routines then our sleep patterns go back to normal. However, many people suffer from severe and chronic insomnia where they only get a few hours of sleep per night (or sometimes none at all) leaving them cranky, unproductive and exhausted. Sleep medications can be effective, but can make you feel groggy and "out of it". They also can have dangerous side effects including allergic reaction, sleepwalking, and negative interactions with other medications. There is also the risk of accidental overdose.

I cannot stress enough the importance of sleep. We spend the entire day using up our available energy and sleep is the only time that the body has the opportunity to recharge itself in preparation for the next day. It is similar to recharging your cell phone: Your phone is on all day using up the battery life. If you forget to charge it at the end of the day, it won't have enough battery life to make it through the next day. The more you use it, the more important recharging it becomes. As humans we also have to recharge our "battery" at the end of each day. Unlike cell phones though, the human body is able to pull from and energy reserve when it needs to. It enables our minds and bodies to continue to function in case we are unable to get a significant amount of rest.

According to Chinese medical theory, the Kidneys are the source of this energy reserve. The Kidney energy, or Qi, is considered to be the pilot light of the body. It constantly puts out a low amount of energy in order to encourage the rest of the body's systems to function properly. When the body requires more energy to function, the Kidney Qi is able to provide that extra boost. However, without proper rest the body depends on this extra boost more and more and eventually the fuel for the pilot light will burn out faster than it can be replenished. Once the body has reached this stage, the body's various systems begin to suffer including immune function, digestion, concentration, etc.

The symptoms of insomnia include: difficultly or inability to fall asleep, stay asleep and/or waking inappropriately early. Women tend to suffer from insomnia more than men, and the likelihood of developing insomnia increases with age. Often when people are under an abnormally high amount of stress they complain that they "can't shut off their mind" and will lie awake or have a restless night's sleep. Certain mental health disorders (such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and/or post traumatic stress disorder) and the medications to treat them can also disrupt sleep patterns. The reason for insomnia can vary from person to person. Chinese medicine recognizes that regardless of the root cause, in the case of insomnia an integral part of the treatment strategy is to "Calm the Shen". "Shen" translates to "spirit" and it presides over activities that take place in the mental, spiritual and creative planes. Chinese medicine believes that there is no separation between the mind and body or the mental and physical. A healthy, clear and calm Shen is considered essential for health maintenance. When it is not calm or rooted, symptoms such as insomnia, anxiety, restlessness, mania and mental instability can manifest. Chinese medicine can help to calm the Shen and therefore rebalance any mental/emotion disruptions and the physical symptoms that may accompany them.

If you suffer from insomnia, acupuncture and herbal medicin are safe, natural, chemical-free and drug-free therapies that can help you get the rest you need.