Optimal Health

Acupuncture for Childbirth and Labor by Dr. Randy Martin, OMD

Q - I have heard that Acupuncture can be used to induce labor and to reduce the pain of labor, but I’m so afraid of needles, I’m not sure I can handle even more pain from the acupuncture needles — should I try it?

A - To be quite honest, needles give me the creeps too!  I don’t like them either, and I hate blood tests.  But the needles used for acupuncture are so tiny that you can even put one in the hole of a regular needle used for injections or blood tests.  They are about the size of a strand of hair actually.  And you hardly even feel them.

Q - What is your experience in the use of acupuncture during labor?

A - In my experience, it is not uncommon for the entire labor to be extremely quick and easy when acupuncture is used.

Q - How could you ever possibly convince me that I would want to let someone poke LOTS of needles into me?

A - I know that acupuncture seems odd to our Westernized mind, but there is actually a lot of scientific research that supports its use during labor.  Many studies show that those little needles increase endorphins, and it’s your endorphins that actually help you to relax.  So if you want to calm down and feel a bit more relaxed and less stressed during the whole birthing process, acupuncture is actually the best and safest way to go.

Q  - Are there any studies that acupuncture works to help birthing?

A - Yes.  There are many such studies.  Your labor can be significantly shortened if you use acupuncture while giving birth.  One such research study published in “Gynecologic and Obstetric Investigation” and reported in Natural Health Magazine stated that out of 120 women, those who received acupuncture treatment during the first stage of labor reduced their labor time from an average of 321 minutes, down to 96 minutes.  In other words, the women in this study who received acupuncture reduced their labor by more than one-third!

Q – In your experience, does acupuncture shorten the time for the labor?

A – Yes, definitely.  The women who I’ve needled during their labor had their babies very quickly.  Everyone was very happy and the doctors were really surprised!

Here is one personal experience:  My office got a call from a very pregnant woman who was referred to us by her obstetrician.  “Anna” was one week overdue and her doctor was going to induce labor if contractions didn’t start within 10 days.  This was Anna’s third pregnancy and the other two had been late as well.

Her doctor had heard of my practice, and me and since another of our mutual patients had experienced great success with acupuncture during her pregnancy and birthing process.  So he told Anna to give me a call and try some acupuncture to induce the labor, before resorting to traditional Western methods.  He figured that she had nothing to lose by trying.

He was right!!!  She came to my office and was very uncomfortable in her body.  It was hard for us to find a comfortable position for her acupuncture treatment.  We settled for having her sit up on the massage table, propped up by pillows.  This worked for her, and also gave me access to all the points on her body that I needed.

We treated Anna three times.  Her fourth appointment was scheduled for the day before her doctor was going to induce the labor and delivery, but she didn’t show up.  My secretary jokingly said, “Well, she probably went into labor after the last acupuncture treatment and is back at home already with the baby!”

And my secretary was right.  When Anna called us a few days latter, she said that contractions began immediately upon leaving the office and continued to get stronger and stronger as the hours went by.  A day later she was in the hospital, and the delivery of her baby began shortly thereafter.  All was a grand success!

Q – Does Acupuncture Help with Deliver of Breech Babies?

Yes it does.  In one study published in Fetal Diagnosis and Therapy (Nov-Dec 2003; 18(6):418-21, doctors demonstrated that of the 67 pregnant women studied who had babies in the fetal breech position, those who received acupuncture were far more likely to have the baby move to the proper delivery position.  This study showed a difference of 31% in the group that got acupuncture.   I have personally had excellent successes with my acupuncture fertility treatment and with turning the baby in the last few weeks and hours before delivery.

Q – Can Acupuncture also help emotionally if I feel depressed and am full of fear?

Yes – Acupuncture is very successful at increasing endorphins, or the body’s own, naturally occurring stress-relievers.  Because acupuncture works on the energy of the mom and baby, it not only affects the mom physically, but can also relax her and reduce her stress levels.

It’s really important to keep your body/mind/and spirit balanced during the time of birth, and acupuncture can be your friend and ally during this time.

Dr Randy Martin, OMD, LAc, PhD, QME, MUP, CCH

Doctor of Chinese Medicine

Certified Classical Homeopath

Research Update:  Acupuncture Decreases Menstrual Pain (Dysmenorrhea) This study was performed on fifteen women ages 14-35 who did not respond to traditional medical treatment for their menstrual pain.   The study was done in Milan, Italy at the Mangiagalli-Regina Elna Hospital and reported on eCAM March 9, 2007. All women suffered from severe menstrual pain for a minimum of one year.  They each received acupuncture once per week for eight weeks.  The results showed that 13 of the 15 women experience a substantial reduction in their menstrual pain by up to 69%. Seven of the women were able to completely discontinue use of all conventional pain medications and they still had no pain six months after the acupuncture treatments. Dr. Martin’s Comments:  PMS and Menstrual Pain are one of the easiest problems to treat, based on my experience.  For most women, if they start treatment using acupuncture either twice per month or weekly, for three menstrual cycles, their pain will either be gone completely or at least substantially reduced at the end of that 3 month period. After that time, usually they only need one treatment per month to keep the cramping away. My experience shows that results are even faster if the women also take fish oils, and other oils such as black current seed or flax seed, and also increase their intake of Magnesium and Calcium, and eliminate all raw, cold and frozen foods beginning at least one week before their period starts.   Additionally, the Chinese herbal combination of Tang Quai and Peonia or Tang Quai and Bupleurum helps quite a bit, and the homeopathic remedies Colocynth and Magnesium phosphoricum also will help a lot.   A good multiple mineral vitamin combination, such at Clinical Nutriients for Women, is also very helpful. This is an age and gender specific supplement, geared especially for women’s health and well-being.    I recommend the use of the amino acids GABA, L-Theanine and 5-HTP, along with P5P (Vitamin B-6) beginning a couple of days before the period begins, to ensure the ready flow of endorphins.  Finally, I like women to take my liquid Calcium/Magnesium formula to assure they have adequate minerals to relax the lining of the uterus. 

Low Back Pain with Acupuncture 

Question:    Does acupuncture help cure back pain?

I am contacting you today because I haven’t been feeling the best that I could be, in regards to my health. I have a recurring back pain that resurfaces once or twice every year and just recently, I have been seeing a chiropractor for my neck and shoulder pain as a result of a rear-ended car collision. I was wondering, in your honest/genuine opinion, if acupuncture or holistic medicine can help me and to what degree it can help me.

Answer:   The simple answer is Yes - Acupuncture will Definitely Help Relieve Your Pain

Now the longer answer:

1.  Acupuncture works great on neck, shoulder and back pain, whether due to auto accidents or due to other, more chronic, problems.

2.  Usually when someone is not healing from a car accident, it’s because it catalyzed, or “kicked in” some deeper imbalance.  It might be related to nutrition, stress, sleep, exercise, lifesyle issues, or other problems that will be discovered as I get to know you personally.  

3.  There are two ways for us to approach treatments:  

Option A.   Just do acupuncture.   This works, especially if there are no underlying imbalances!   Many people with back pain report that after a few treatments, they feel much better.

Option B.  Have a longer consulation, and a longer-term strategy, allowing me determine the underlying imbalances in your body, based on you complete history, blood analysis, diet or other lab work, in addition to the Chinese tongue and pulse diagnosis.   Then we create a plan based on acupuncture, herbs, nutrition, supplements, and homeopathy.

4.  Most patients never know quite what to do when deciding between option A and option B.  We all want a simple solution.

5.  I have found that the people who have a committment to work with me over a long time make considerable strides towards feeling better over-all, and of course, their initial complaint or pain is also taken care of.

7.  Now, after the initial problem is better, I usually see people monthly for a tune - up acupuncture treatment, and to assess if the herbal and homeopathic and nutritional program is working.  If it stops working, then we sit down and see why not, and create a new and different program.

8.  With our normal life stress, most people can really benefit from getting on a program like this.

9.  Many of my patients start with just acupuncture alone, and when they see how effective acupuncture really is, they then choose to delve deeper into more of the underlying issues.

10.  I like to work as a team, and if you already are having good results with your chiropractor, I would stick with him or her.  I like my patients to get a massage, chiropractic, and sometimes counseling or therapy, as well as to have an MD they trust and who is open to working as a team.  I am a firm believer in this teamwork approach to better health.

11.  Acupuncture is almost always covered by insurance.  Either you can call your company to see, or you can check on-line to see if your policy includes coverage for acupuncture.

Yours, In Health, Naturally

Acupuncture Beats Lower Back Pain

Low back pain is an extremely common concern, affecting anywhere from 75 to 90 percent of people at some point in their lives. Low back pain is second only to the common cold as a cause of lost days at work and is one of the most common reasons to seek medical care, including acupuncture. In fact, one of the top reasons that people get acupuncture treatments is for low back pain. 

The Oriental Medicine Perspective of Low Back Pain

In spite of the large number of pathological conditions that can give rise to low back pain, up to 85% of the cases are classified by Western physicians as ‘non-specific’. When low back pain is looked at from an Oriental medicine perspective, it is seen as a disruption of the flow of Qi within the area and associated with a specific disharmony and then treated accordingly.

The basis of acupuncture is expressed in this famous Chinese saying: “Bu tong ze tong, tong ze bu tong” which means “free flow: no pain, no free flow: pain.”

In other words, any kind of pain or illness represents an obstruction in the normal flow of Qi or life force. Simply put, acupuncture moves Qi, restoring free flow.

The disruption of Qi that results in low back pain is usually associated with the following three disharmonies:

Weak Kidney Qi - In Oriental medicine, the lower back is referred to as the “dwelling of the Kidneys”. The majority of chronic low back pain conditions are associated with Kidney Deficiency. Kidney Deficiency type pain is dull and comes and goes. It is usually aggravated by over tiredness and improves with rest.

Stagnation of Qi and Blood - When the flow of Qi along the meridians that traverse the lumbar region becomes congested, it is referred to as the stagnation of Qi and blood. This presents with a severe stabbing pain that is worse with rest and better with movement, tender to touch and can be accompanied by stiffness and tightness.

Invasion of Cold and Dampness - Cold, damp type pain is worse in the morning and when the weather is cold and damp. This type of pain improves with movement and the application of heat. Stiffness and contraction of back muscles that is aggravated by rest indicates cold predominance while swelling, numbness and a heavy sensation are indicative of dampness.

If you or someone you love suffers from acute and chronic back pain, please call to find out more about how acupuncture and Oriental medicine can help you.

While acupuncture is readily accepted as a viable option for low back pain in mainstream modern medicine, there has been little research to prove that it works. Now there are studies that support the clinical evidence.

In a German study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, 1,162 adults with chronic, lower back pain were divided into groups treated with the standard pharmaceutical and exercise therapy commonly used in Western medicine and acupuncture. The researchers reported that acupuncture provided relief and lasting benefit to nearly twice as many lower back pain patients as drugs and exercise. Forty-eight percent of the acupuncture patients reported at least a one-third decrease in pain along with improvement in their ability to function, versus 27 percent of the patients treated with conventional methods reporting such benefits.

In another recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine analyzed 33 studies covering more than 2,100 patients from around the world on acupuncture for low back pain.

They found acupuncture provided definite pain relief in the short-term (defined as relief sustained for three weeks after the end of the acupuncture sessions).

Do You Get Acupuncture Yourself?I must be asked once daily, “Dr. Martin, do you receive acupuncture yourself?”

And the answer is, “Yes, of course I do!”

For those who have not read my book with my personal story of how I discovered acupuncture, suffice it to say, that the way I first got into acupuncture was that I went to an acupuncturist who so impressed me, that I decided to study it myself.

So……this week my back “went out” and I started needling myself.  And it never ceases to amaze me how well acupuncture does work for pain control.  Two patients this past week reminded me that the reason they keep coming back is because of how quickly and effectively acupuncture has worked on their chronic knee pain.

But I’m always the skeptic, and forget how well it works, even though I”m being told daily how much everyone likes it.   Today I did it on myself, despite it being hard to reach around to treat oneself on the back.  But other then me, what other acupuncturist is open to treat me on a Sunday? 

When I took the needles out after only about 10 minutes, I really was surprised that the reduction in pain was so significant.

Yes - I believe in it and I do it on myself, and I get it from other acupuncturists.  Why?   Because it works!

What I find really funny is when I tell someone at the market or standing in line at a checkout stand what I do, and they ask, “Do you really believe in that?  

Well, it’s not a religion!  Ha….. and all the insurance companies wouldn’t be reimbursing for it if it didn’t work so well.

A quick Google Search for Low Back Pain and Acupuncture reveals many studies on its effectiveness.

Here is one such study showing the pain and healing time is reduced significantly by using acupuncture.

http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/archives2002/mar/03lowbackpain.html

Can Acupuncture Help with Lower Back Pain?

The simple and quick answer is — Yes !!!!  

This is one of the most common problems people seek the help of the acupuncturist for.  At any given time, it accounts for between 20- 40% of my practice.  Almost all of my patients at one time or another suffer from some lower back pain.  It’s sometimes combined with knee pain, ankle pain, headaches, or neck pain.

Needles are placed either on the stomach and legs, or on the area of the lower back and buttocks area that are painful.  If there is pain down the legs, often called sciatica, then needles are also placed on the legs, along the sciatic nerve.

Often a treatment on the stomach is more effective than treating the lower back directly, based on the principle of treating the front to affect the back, and visa versa.

Exercise and strengthening the stomach muscles is also critical to healing the lower back.  Some people also might need physical therapy, ultrasound or chiropractic care.  But the average person will respond to acupuncture alone quite well.  You will generally know after about eight (8) treatments.

Certainly, the quicker you seek treatment, the easier it will be to treat and the quicker it will get better.

Some of the most common herbs and supplements I might also use for lower back pain include the following:

*Pain X - a great anti-inflammatory and pain killer
*PSI Nitetime - good pain reliever which also helps with sleep when you are in pain
*Pro Muscle Calm - provides vital vitamins and minerals to help bring down the swelling in the back and around the vertebrae.
*Tu-Huo and Vaicaum - a good Chinese herbal formula to strengthen the kidney yin and increase the circulation in the lower extremities and back

Some of the common homeopathic remedies used for lower back pain include the following:

*Mag phos - used as a muscle relaxer and to help with sleep
*Colocynth - helps with muscle cramping
*Rhus tox - this remedy is indicated with the lower back pain is better after you begin to move around a lot
*Bryonia - this remedy is indicated when you are better not moving around, and just laying still in bed

There are certain emotional factors that usually accompany lower back pain.  Since the lower back is controlled by the kidneys, according to Chinese medicine, we say that lower back pain involves the emotion of fear.  (Each organ in he body has a corresponding emotion.)

The number of treatments needed will vary from person to person.  Some people respond after just a couple of treatments, and other people might need a series of 8-12 treatments.   If you have had chronic lower back pain, you may need tune-up treatments every other week for a few months.

Health Insurance usually covers at least a part of the cost of acupuncture for the treatment of lower back pain.

Please call our office to schedule an appointment or to have any of your questions answered, and to check on your insurance coverage.