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Acupuncture and the Nervous System

Theodore Levarda

Acupuncture has been used for centuries to treat a variety of physical and emotional ailments, but how does it work? The answer lies in its effect on the nervous system. The nervous system is a complex network of cells and fibers that transmit signals between different parts of the body.

Acupuncture has been found to stimulate the nervous system in various ways, including the release of endorphins, the regulation of neurotransmitters, and the activation of specific nerve pathways. In this blog post, we will explore the connection between acupuncture and the nervous system, and how this healing practice can help promote physical and emotional well-being.

NERVOUS SYSTEM STUCK IN FIGHT OR FLIGHT

Do you ever feel like you're constantly on high alert, with a racing heart and a sense of impending doom? You're not alone. When the body gets stuck in "fight or flight" mode, it can have serious consequences for our physical and mental health. Luckily, acupuncture can help.

By stimulating specific points on the body, acupuncture can activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps to calm the body and promote relaxation. So if you're feeling like your nervous system is stuck in overdrive, consider giving acupuncture a try to help restore balance and ease your symptoms.

NERVOUS SYSTEM STUCK IN FREEZE MODE

When faced with a traumatic event or chronic stress, the body's natural response is to activate the "freeze" mode, a state of immobilization that helps to conserve energy and protect the body from harm. However, when this response is prolonged, it can cause the nervous system to become "stuck" in this freeze mode, leading to a range of physical and mental health problems, such as chronic pain, anxiety, and depression.

Acupuncture can help to reset the nervous system and restore balance by stimulating specific points on the body that are connected to the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes relaxation and restorative processes. By addressing the root cause of the nervous system's freeze response, acupuncture can help to improve overall health and wellbeing.

The physical symptoms of stress include a wide range of symptoms.

THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

The nervous system is comprised of two main components, the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) and the parasympathetic nervous system (rest & digest, freeze). The enteric nervous system is also another part which is related to gut health and new research is emerging on this area.

The sympathetic nervous system is responsible for the "fight or flight" response, which prepares the body for emergency situations. It increases heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration rate and diverts blood flow away from the digestive system and towards the muscles. When the sympathetic nervous system is overactive we get stuck in the “on” position and in a heightened state of arousal and agitation. This corresponds to Yang in Chinese medicine.

The parasympathetic nervous system, on the other hand, is responsible for the "rest and digest" response, which helps the body relax and recover. It slows down heart rate and respiration, increases digestion and elimination, and reduces blood pressure. When the parasympathetic nervous system is overactive we are in the “off” position which is like a paralyzed or frozen state. This is like the concept of Yin in Chinese medicine.

Normally we move through these states on a regular basis and are hopefully somewhere in the middle most of the time (referred to as our “window of tolerance”). When our nervous system has trouble regulating itself, it can get stuck in one state, or have trouble staying in neutral and move quickly between extreme states. Stress and traumatic events are a big cause of nervous system dysregulation.

Acupuncture can modulate the activity of both sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system and help restore the balance between the two. By doing so, acupuncture can improve a range of physiological functions, including digestion, sleep, and immune function, and alleviate stress, anxiety, and pain.

NERVOUS SYSTEM STUCK IN FIGHT OR FLIGHT

Being stuck in a sympathetic nervous system state can



Source: Geo-Science-International [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

Normally, when we are presented with a stressor, our nervous system reacts and sends a signal to our brain which then tells our body how to react to the stressor. When the full cycle of the stress response is not completed, our brain sends signals to our body that something is not right, resulting in physical symptoms like pain.

PHYSICAL RESPONSES TO STRESS

Stress can cause a variety of physical symptoms and responses in the body, many of which are the result of the body's fight-or-flight or freeze responses to stress. These symptoms can include changes in heart rate, breathing rate, digestion, sleep, anxiety, fatigue, and pain.

Research has shown that acute or long term stress can affect our health. It can have a negative impact on the immune system, making individuals more susceptible to illnesses and infections. Chronic stress has been linked to a variety of health conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

In addition to these physical symptoms, stress can also cause emotional and mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and insomnia. It can also lead to cognitive problems such as memory loss and difficulty concentrating.

There is research in the psychology and affective physiology fields on how this response to stress works and how we can get stuck in certain phases of the stress response. The book “The Tao of Trauma” by Alaine Duncan is a recent publication which maps the Somatic Experiencing (SE) model and the Self-Protective Response (SPR) to trauma by Dr. Peter Levine to the Chinese medicine concept of the five elements. It is possible to get stuck in one of the response phases due to excess responsiveness and also a lack of responsiveness of the nervous system.

To summarize:

  • When our body senses a threat, it activates our body’s alarm system. This corresponds to Chinese medicine’s Metal element or the Lung organ, which is the most exterior and acts as a filter to the world. It also relates to the emotions of sadness and grief. Unresolved issues in this phase can manifest in physical symptoms like shallow or rapid breathing.

  • Once our body has determined there is a threat, it then activates the fear response which results in a heightened state of awareness. The fear emotion corresponds to the Water element or Kidney organ in Chinese medicine, which represents the deep root of Yin & Yang in the body. When this response is called upon it draws on the body’s reserve of strength and energy to mobilize a response. When this phase gets stuck we can see symptoms related to fear and anxiety, agitation, and magnified phobias.

  • Next our body reacts to the threat by mobilizing a response. Blood flow is directed towards the extremities and away from the center of the body. Our heart rate speeds up and our pupils dilate. Digestive function and other processes not essential to immediate survival are shut down. This corresponds to the Wood element or Liver organ in Chinese medicine and also relates to the emotion of anger. There can often be unresolved anger leading to physical symptoms like tight or flaccid muscles, rigidity in thoughts, or lack of initiative if we are not able to move through this phase successfully.

  • After mobilizing a response, the body needs to restore coherence by reconnecting to all of its parts after the stressful event. The Fire element and Heart organ relate to the emotion of joy and the Heart is considered to be the organ that directs all of the other organs. It does so both via its connection to circulating blood throughout the body and also by being related to the mind in Chinese medicine. Failure to navigate this phase successfully can leave us with panic attacks, anxiety, heart palpitations, or on the other end of the spectrum, difficulty connecting with others, poor memory, and a feeling of dissociation.

  • Lastly, if we have navigated the stressful situation successfully, we need to digest the experience and move forward from it. We learn lessons and grow from our experiences. This phase is often overlooked and is important to moving through our body’s reaction to stress. The Earth element is responsible for the Spleen and Stomach organs which correspond to the transformation and transportation of food and nutrients in our bodies. Our body also needs to digest and extract the nutrients of wisdom from the stressful experience.

We can get stuck in any given phase of this stress response cycle, and sometimes more than one. By identifying the area of concern and moving through the stress response, our body is able to return to normal and balanced function.

Source: Duncan, Alaine D., The Tao of Trauma: a Practitioner's Guide for Integrating Five Element Theory and Trauma Treatment. North Atlantic Books, 2019.

Source: Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9683885

CHRONIC STRESS OF DAILY LIFE

This concept is further complicated by the things we do on a daily basis. Most people are routine oriented and expose themselves to repetitive types of stress (both physical and mental) in the types of work they do and the relationships they are in. Our bodies are extremely adaptable and create holding patterns in our body which can result in changes to our posture and musculoskeletal system to manage the stress response.

Hans Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) maps out the stages our body goes through in response to stressors:

  • Alarm Stage: Give the body a boost of energy in order to respond to the threat - this looks like the first two stages in the SPR or five element model of Metal & Water and the beginning of the fight or flight response or Wood phase.

  • Resistance Stage: The body tries to fight or adapt to the stressor - this looks like the next two stages in the SPR or five element model of Wood & Fire. The body is mobilizing a response and recovering from the stressor.

  • Exhaustion Stage: The body is tired and energy is depleted from responding to the stressor if it exceeds the body’s capacity. This does not correspond as well but would be related to the last stage or Earth phase of the five element model. The exhaustion phase would be avoided if the body is able to react to the stressor successfully before depleting its energy.

Source: U3144362 [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]


ACUPUNCTURE FOR CHRONIC STRESS

Our bodies are extremely adaptable and will learn to live with higher levels of stress if they persist over longer periods of time. The longer lasting symptoms of this heightened stress state include things like musculoskeletal pain, fatigue, depression, anxiety, irritability, and poor concentration. These are all things acupuncture has been shown to be effective for, regardless of what the root cause is.

We can use acupuncture to help balance the nervous system and restore the body to homeostasis. An acupuncture treatment generally includes staying still with needles retained in a quiet or relaxing atmosphere for 20-30 minutes. Without needles, deep breathing in a relaxed state promotes the parasympathetic nervous system and help brings the body to a more relaxed state. By combining the two we get an enhanced effect on the nervous system and promote a better state of relaxation.

Furthermore, a 2013 study titled “Acupuncture Effect and Central Autonomic Regulation” highlighted that:

Emerging evidence indicates that acupuncture treatment not only activates distinct brain regions in different kinds of diseases caused by imbalance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic activities, but also modulates adaptive neurotransmitter in related brain regions to alleviate autonomic response. However, it is not clear whether different pathway is activated by specific acupoint, such as local points and distant points, or the autonomic regulation effect of acupoints from different meridians.

Source: Li, Q. Q., Shi, G. X., Xu, Q., Wang, J., Liu, C. Z., & Wang, L. P. (2013). Acupuncture effect and central autonomic regulation. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2013, 267959. doi:10.1155/2013/267959

Research is still being done to fully understand how this process works but historically certain acupuncture points are used for this purpose. I have seen clinical improvement from patients suffering from the physical symptoms of stress related disorders and hope to continue to improve my understanding on the best ways to treat these conditions.

Acupuncture has been found to have many benefits for the nervous system, including its ability to regulate the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, as well as affect brain function. By regulating the nervous system, acupuncture can help improve many health conditions, including chronic pain, anxiety, and depression. It has also been shown to improve sleep quality and overall wellbeing. Acupuncture's potential for promoting nervous system health and overall wellness makes it a valuable complementary therapy for those seeking to improve their overall health and quality of life.

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