| Depression Depression is one of the most common mental health complaints in the United States. For people who suffer from depression, whether it be an incident specific depression or a long term chronic struggle the feelings of hopelessness and discouragement make it hard to find life worth living. While all of us go through periods of feeling blue or in the dumps, for people with depression this state seems to go on and on and nothing they do seems to help Within the paradigm of Chinese Medicine there are many reasons why a patient might suffer from depression. When there is a stressful event, often our qi does not move the way it should. This can cause problems with our digestive system, when means that we don’t have the qi or energy we need to keep our body running smoothly and then it is that much harder for our energy to get started moving again. What starts the chain, be it an emotional event, poor diet or perhaps a seasonal depression is varied, however once the chain begins in a susceptible person, it is difficult to regain balance. Regaining the balance is one way acupuncture can help. In addition to helping with mood by helping regulate the body’s qi, acupuncture can also help with the sleeplessness or hypersomnia that can happen when a person is depressed. It can assist the person’s general energy and sense of well being. Whenever one is being treated for depression, it is a good idea to work with a trained therapist as well. The acupuncturist can help the physical symptoms, but sometimes the emotional issues and events also need to be dealt with. This is done far more effectively in the office a trained psychotherpaist or counselor. Acupuncture is not an antidepressent and won’t make the feelings go away, but it can help the patient work through the feelings and allow their body to free of the distressing side effects of depression. The following is a list of studies on acupuncture and depression. Allen, J, Schnyer RN, Hitt, SK (1998) The Efficacy of Acupuncture in the Treatment of Major Depression in Women Am Psychological Society 9:397-400. Luo H, Jia Y and Zhan I (1985) Electro-acupuncture vs amitriptylinein the treatment of depressive states, J Trad Chin Med 5:3-8 Yang X. Liu X. Luo H and Jia Y (1994) Clinical observation on needling extrachannel ponts in treating mental depression, J Trad Chin Med 14:14-18. For further Reading Schnyer, Rosa N, Allen John JB Allen, Acupuncture and the Treatment of Depression, Harcourt, London 2001. |
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