Acupuncture To Improve Sleep

Insomnia may be caused by any number of factors and is very frustrating for patients that suffer from it. Tossing and turning all night combined with feeling sluggish and not up to par the following days are common occurrences for the chronically sleepless individuals.

Common causes of insomnia include:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Stress
• Eating too late at night
• Poor quality sleep environment
• Bad, old, or sagging mattress
• Sleep disorder
• Lack of consistent sleep schedule
• Caffeine consumption too late in the day
• Side effects from prescription medication

There are many supposed treatments for insomnia but many of them do not work and leave you feeling more frustrated then when you started seeking help. Insomniacs that suffer from prolonged sleeplessness swear by the use of acupuncture for treating their insomnia.

Acupuncture is the use of thin needles by an experienced professional that are inserted strategically into areas of the body in order to regulate energy and electron flow in the body. Traditional Chinese Medical practitioners like acupuncturists believe that the body is regulated by energy fields called Meridians and various chronic medical conditions, like insomnia, are caused by these Meridians being out of balance in your body.

Preliminary studies were conducted in 2004 on the effects of acupuncture on treating insomnia and have continued to be conducted so much research is available on this topic. These initial studies found that using acupuncture regularly for the treatment of insomnia increased the presence of melatonin production in the body at night, decreased night time stress, and studied patients were less aroused at night during sleep.

Studies later conducted on patients with HIV found that acupuncture aids in sleep because it reduces sleep activity and increases sleep quality after about five weeks of regulated treatments.

Chronic pain can play a major role in insomnia and studies have shown that acupuncture done in regular intervals helped to reduce pain and inflammation in these patients so sleep was achieved easier and patients stayed asleep longer while achieving a higher level of quality sleep than achieved previously.

Life and bio hackers have found that acupuncture improves sleep but also improves mental clarity, so those of us working on higher levels of productivity should take note of this!

Sleep Hacking Using Acupuncture as a Treatment

• Find a qualified acupuncturist with plenty of experience and a clean treatment facility. Fully trained acupuncturists should have at least two hundred hours of on the job training and practice under their belts before becoming licensed as a practitioner. A clean treatment facility is needed to ensure your health and safety.

• Choose a practitioner that you are comfortable with. Fear of needles is common in America so choosing someone that you feel relaxed and comfortable around is key to having a good experience. You will get the most from the experience if you feel comfortable.

• Fully commit to trying this as a treatment for at least a few sessions. You may experience some relief from insomnia after your first session but you may not. Commit to trying a few sessions and following the instructions of the acupuncturist to see if this method of treatment will work for you. No Debbie Downer attitudes around here, folks, until you have tried at least five sessions.