Can acupuncture treatment help menopause symptoms?

A recent small study published by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), and widely reported by the BBC and other media organisations, concluded that acupuncture was a safe, cost-effective and simple procedure that benefitted 80% of the women who took part in the study.

For some women, the menopause and the years leading up to it, can be a time of troubling emotional and physical symptoms.

The Danish Study found that five weeks of acupuncture given to women with menopausal symptoms reduced hot flushes, night sweats, sleep disturbance and emotional problems.

One of the study authors, Professor Frans Boch Waldorff, said: “Women seeking acupuncture treatment for menopausal symptoms should be informed of the current evidence, and its limitations, so that they can make a decision.”

The approach of acupuncture to menopause

Acupuncture is a gentle, natural, non-evasive and effective way to deal with the symptoms of menopause. Acupuncture eases menopausal symptoms, by balancing hormones, reducing hot flushes, insomnia and irritability and by inducing better sleep. It will improve your quality of life and inspire you to take a positive perspective on the changes happening in your life.

Traditional Chinese Medicine views the menopause as a natural occurrence. It is said to be brought about by a deficiency of yin. Throughout our life we expend yin by work, stress, grief, giving birth, taking care of others, illness and just general day-to-day living. This means that your body is not as efficient at balancing your natural rhythms of cooling, calming, moistening, leaving us with symptoms we describe as irritated, hot flushes, anxiety, not sleeping and generally feeling out of balance and not quite ourselves.

Although, in general terms, the main principle of treatment is to nourish yin, acupuncture does not treat any two people alike. Your acupuncturist will take your medical and emotional history and put together a treatment protocol recognising that the symptoms you are feeling will change at each visit.

What is acupuncture?

The classical Chinese explanation for acupuncture is that our bodies contain channels of energy that run in regular patterns throughout our body and over its surface. These energy channels are called meridians, which are like rivers flowing through your body that irrigate and nourish your tissues.

These meridians can become obstructed by emotional or physical trauma, much like a landslide that obstructs the flow of a river.

To re-establish the regular flow of energy or ‘Chi’ through the meridians, very fine needles are inserted into acupuncture points along the meridians to regulate your energy flow and unblock obstructions or stagnant energy. This activates your body’s natural healing to correct imbalances in your body’s systems.


For more information on menopause or to book an appointment in Bridgnorth or Shrewsbury, please call 01746 761050.​​​​

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