Headaches and migraines can express themselves in very different ways; the location of the pain, the type of pain (sharp, dull, achy, heavy, throbbing etc), timing, frequency, triggers, aggravating and relieving factors, associated symptoms (nausea, fatigue, vomiting etc) will all be experienced differently for each person.
Headaches and Migraines
TCM recognises that everybody has a unique constitution and consequently each 'type' of headache will be felt differently by each individual.
By understanding the individual manifestations of your headache, we can treat the symptoms and the root cause. Our ultimate aim is to stop your headaches all together and not just to manage the symptoms on a short-term basis.
For example, if you have a Liver Yang Rising type of headache you will likely experience very painful, sharp and pounding headaches that can flare-up quite quickly and affect the sides and top of your head, often your eyes will feel achy and hot and you might notice a bitter taste. In the acute instance, we want to drain all the excess yang energy from your head so you feel better and to try and prevent further headaches we will want to strengthen the underlying imbalance to make sure the Liver Yang is securely held and no longer flaring-up to cause headaches.
There have been many trials into the effectiveness of acupuncture for headaches and migraine. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which advises the NHS on the treatment and care of patients, recommends acupuncture for chronic tension-type headaches and migraines.
If you want to find out more about how Chinese Medicine can help you, please get in touch to discuss treatment options and appointment availability. In the meantime, here are a few links you may find useful:
