Depression
In a study by The National Institutes for Health (NIH) America, women suffering from depression, 70% of participants experienced at least a 50% reduction of symptoms. This research marked the first U.S. randomized, controlled, double-blind study of acupuncture’s effectiveness in treating depression. The NIH funded study concludes,
“Acupuncture may alter brain chemistry by changing the release of neurotransmitters and neurohormones in a good way.”
Although depressive disorders and anxiety are commonly seen together, there are distinct differences between a diagnosis of depression and one of anxiety.
Depressed people often feel overwhelmed by day-to-day tasks and personal relationships. Energy levels are usually very low, feeling of hopelessness, despair, anger, insomnia, a decreased interest in daily activities and feelings of emptyness/worthless.
Symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder may include excessive and ongoing worry, an unrealistic view of problems; restlessness, irritability; muscle tension; headaches; difficulty concentrating; trouble falling or staying asleep; and being easily startled.
In TCM, illness affects both the mind and body; there is no separation between the two. Therefore, emotional disturbances have associated physical symptoms and, in reverse, physical disorders evoke emotional responses. The first objective of a TCM practitioner is to discern a relationship between all symptoms a patient presents with in order to establish what is called a “pattern of disharmony”.
Treatment is aimed at restoring harmony and bringing the body into balance, and the whole person is always taken into account. The theories used to establish the TCM “patterns of disharmony” include Yin and Yang, Internal Organs; Qi, Blood and Body Fluids, and Five Phases.
Changes in one’s diet will also definitely help the therapy. Many herbals medicine also useful such as Jujube fruit, Bupleurum root, Ganoderman lucidum, Licorice, Valerian, Chrysanthemum, Rose flower, and many others.
