You may find yourself waking up with stiffness in the joints, neck pain, or a deep fatigue. Occasionally you may have rashes, flareups of chest tightness, or shortness of breath that come and go. These symptoms have been generally tied to the inflammation you experience as a result of lupus. You may be taking steroid, and anti-inflammatory medications to manage your condition, but you’re also seeking natural alternative therapies to give you a leg up. That’s exactly where acupuncture can help.

How would it feel to wake up one day without pain or stiffness, and feeling full of energy? Or not needing to avoid specific triggers that bring on the rash and chest tightness?

Pain that is more pronounced upon waking up is a sign of a circulation issue. You can think about it like trying to workout before warming up. The muscles need some light stretching or movement to get the blood flowing. Similarly, when you first wake it, it takes time for your the blood to fully circulate to all parts of the body.

This may be helped by stimulating acupoints to improve circulation in the heart.

Feeling heaviness, shortness of breath, or tingling hands are also signs of heart circulatory issues. The heart in Chinese medicine is easily affected by heat, or inflammatory conditions. Lupus falls in the category of autoimmune disease, which causes an increased level of inflammation in the body. Inflammation is another way of describing heat. This again, can be reduced or cleared out of the body by stimulating acupoints to improve heart function, or reduce heat in the body.

How many treatments does it take? Because autoimmune disease is a systemic disease, we recommend starting with a course of 10 treatments. These treatments are usually spaced out twice a week for optimal results. With each session we focus on understanding which symptoms are of concern that week or in that very moment.

As we knock down one symptom at a time, your body should feel better overall with less pain, less stiffness, and more energy. You should also notice a reduction in flareups and sensitivity to triggers. To book your first visit click here.