ACUPUNCTURE FOR ANXIETY HOW DOES IT WORK? IT IS EFFECTIVE? - ARTE - 2024

The acupuncture for anxiety is considered an alternative treatment based on the stimulation of different points of the body by inserting needles into the skin. Acupuncture is a fundamental treatment within the Chinese medical system and is used to intervene in a large number of diseases.

This treatment consists of inserting needles in precise points of the skin, favoring the rebalancing of the energetic-vital system of the people. The treatment begins by inserting the needles in the respective points, and they are manipulated with the intention of releasing the blockages in the flow of energy. In this way, it is possible to balance the Yin and the Yan to restore the health of the patient.

This conception of diseases and of the treatments to be followed to prevent or cure them is far from the western medical vision, a fact that has caused great questioning about this type of intervention.

History and present

In our culture, these types of techniques were conceived and classified as strange, lacking scientific evidence and with little medical foundation.

However, in the 1970s, many scientific investigations began to verify the efficacy of this type of treatment, especially acupuncture.

Thus, at present, the World Health Organization recognizes the usefulness of acupuncture for the treatment, although in an auxiliary way, of a total of 49 diseases, based on scientific evidence on its efficacy and effectiveness.

Is acupuncture effective or useless?

Acupuncture is considered an effective treatment to treat problems such as arthritis, tendonitis, facial paralysis, headache, polio, dislocations, cerebral palsy, asthma, diarrhea, constipation, indigestion, diabetes, insomnia, sore throat and allergies.

In our culture it is understood that acupuncture is a technique that allows peripheral stimulation, producing maximum activation of the body's immune system and releasing various neurotransmitters that modulate our physiological activity.

Although acupuncture is a treatment based on a medicine very different from that prevailing in the West, it has been shown to be an effective intervention to deal with multiple diseases.

How does acupuncture work?

The points where the needles are placed are located in a series of channels, also known as "meridians" of the body.

According to this type of medicine, people have 14 basic points. Each of them corresponds to a different organ of the body. In addition, it is held that the vital energy of each person is distributed throughout the body through these points.

According to Chinese medicine, each of these points has a specific application based on three main concepts: rebalancing, stimulating or sedating the vital flow.

In order to properly understand the application of this treatment, according to traditional Chinese medicine, both the organs that are of a "Yin" nature and the viscera that are of the "Yan" condition, perform many more functions than those granted by medicine and culture. western.

The heart

Let's take an example: the heart, according to our modern medicine, regulates the flow and rhythm of the heart, the circulation of the blood and the functioning of the blood vessels, which is why we intervene in this region of the body when these types of alterations are connoted.

However, according to traditional Chinese medicine, the heart, apart from performing these functions that we have just discussed, also controls thinking, speech, memory, quality of sleep and moods such as joy or sadness.

In this way, oriental medical interventions are based on a global conception of the body-mind, so that treatments that can be useful to intervene a physical alteration are also considered adequate to treat psychological problems.

Statistics of alternative therapies to treat anxiety

First of all, it should be noted that the World Health Organization does not list anxiety problems as one of the 49 diseases that can be treated effectively through acupuncture.

However, this does not mean that this technique is not effective in treating anxiety or that it cannot provide benefits for people suffering from anxiety.

In fact, according to the same World Health Organization, in Europe and America, there has been a high use of alternative and / or complementary medicines among people who suffer from anxiety or depression.

Specifically, in a survey applied in New Mexico City, it was shown that 26.7% of people with anxiety and 18% of people with depression, used some type of alternative medicine, among which, acupuncture was the More frequently.

Likewise, the National Survey of Psychiatric Epidemiology showed that 6.5% of people with affective disorders, 7.3% of people with anxiety problems, and 3.9% of people with action problems, used some type of alternative medicine.

But does acupuncture work for anxiety?

Acupuncture has been scientifically proven to be a reliable medical intervention for curing and treating many diseases, yet is anxiety one of them?

There are currently no conclusive studies that demonstrate the efficacy of acupuncture for the treatment of anxiety disorders, a fact that justifies the WHO does not include it as one of the diseases that can be treated with this technique.

For example, in the study by Kurebayashi and da Silva on the efficacy of acupuncture for stress management among nurses, very ambiguous data were obtained.

For their part, Rojas and Delgadillo conducted an investigation on the effects of acupuncture to treat anxiety levels in a population of the XUE-HAY Alternative Medicine Clinic, in which no firm evidence on its efficacy was extracted either.

Few studies

However, it is worth noting the few studies carried out on the effects of acupuncture for the treatment of anxiety when interpreting the absence of scientific evidence.

It is now known that the brain and the immune system are closely interrelated through the endocrine system.

Therefore, a technique such as acupuncture that has been shown to have a direct effect on the regulation of the immune system, could also provide benefits and reduction of symptoms in those people who suffer from anxiety or other types of emotional disturbance.

For all this, and taking into account the considerable number of people with anxiety who resort to treatment with this technique, I would not like to affirm that the absence of scientific evidence automatically makes acupuncture an ineffective intervention to treat anxiety.

Clearly, more research is needed to show the effectiveness of such treatment in reducing levels of stress or nervousness, but this does not mean that no one can benefit from acupuncture to reduce their anxiety levels.

Western treatments for anxiety

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers a series of therapies as effective for each of the anxiety disorders.

For generalized anxiety disorder, it considers pharmacological treatment (anxiolytics), relaxation techniques, activity planning, cognitive therapy and hyperventilation treatment as effective interventions.

For phobias, consider effective both cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy, as well as a combination of both (cognitive behavioral therapy). Also, other types of psychotherapy such as dynamic therapy are considered appropriate.

Likewise, the WHO recommends for the treatment of panic disorders with or without agoraphobia, cognitive behavioral therapy with cognitive techniques and behavioral techniques, and systemic psychotherapy.

With regard to obsessive seizure disorder, the use of anxiolytic or antipsychotic drugs is recommended, together with cognitive behavioral psychotherapy.

Finally, with regard to post-traumatic stress disorder, the WHO justifies the use of psychotropic drugs and various types of psychotherapy: cognitive-behavioral, behavioral, cognitive, dynamic, relational, etc.