Can Acupressure Decrease Anxiety & Pain?

Rachna Mehta, PT, DPT, CIMT, OCS, PRPC, RTY 200 is the author and instructor of the?Acupressure for Optimal Pelvic Health?course. Rachna brings a wealth of experience to her physical therapy practice and has a personal interest in various Eastern holistic healing traditions.

A patient walks in with 15/10 pelvic pain, she’s anxious and in tears. She was diagnosed with Pudendal Neuralgia, has been seeing a multidisciplinary team of providers, and is on high doses of pain medication. “These medications don’t even touch the surface of my pain! Can you help me?” she asks.

Over the years I have seen so many of these patients in my clinical practice, and these patients have sparked my interest in Complementary & Alternative Medicine (CAM) therapies. I started researching

the evidence and found Acupressure to be a powerful Integrative practice with roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine dating over 3000 years.

Using vaginal Acupressure as well as potent points for alleviating Anxiety and Pain, I was on some days able to bring this patient’s pain down from 15/10 to 8/10, which was a phenomenal relief for her.

Anxiety is a very common psychiatric symptom and can also occur in many physical conditions. Due to the limitations of conventional pharmacotherapy, the discovery of nonpharmacologic treatments that alleviate anxiety effectively is clinically important. Yintang (EX-HN 3), an Acupoint located between the eyebrows, is known to have a mentally stabilizing effect in Traditional Chinese Medicine (1). Modern Acupuncture and Acupressure charts also map this point as GV 24.5.

Yintang (EX-HN 3) is clinically useful because it is very easy to find and use even for beginners. In a recent systematic review of the effects of acupressure on anxiety, acupressure showed promising results for anxiety relief, and EX-HN 3 was one of the most commonly used acupoints (2).

The research indicates that Acupressure has also been widely used to alleviate symptoms of Anxiety. It is also known to be an active part of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) which is an evidence-based intervention. EFT has also been shown to be effective in addressing emotional challenges such as anxiety, depression, burnout, stress management, and fears. The basic principle of EFT is to send activating and deactivating signals to the brain by stimulating points on the skin that have distinctive electrical properties, usually by tapping on them. These points correspond with the?Acupressure?points that in?Traditional Chinese Medicine?are believed to regulate the flow of the body's energies (3).

Acupressure uses the same points as Acupuncture and is a non-invasive, low-cost, and efficient CAM therapy to alleviate Anxiety and pain. Acupressure involves the application of pressure to points located along the energy meridians of the body. These Acupoints are thought to exert certain psychologic, neurologic, and immunologic effects to balance optimum physiologic and psychologic?functions (4). Acupressure can

also be used for treating a variety of pelvic health conditions including Chronic Pelvic Pain, Dysmenorrhea, Constipation, digestive disturbances, and urinary dysfunctions to name a few.

As healthcare providers, we can incorporate mindfulness-based holistic interventions into our clinical practice to improve the quality of life of our patients. We can empower our patients to recognize the mind-body-energy interconnections and how they affect multiple systems, giving them the tools and self-care regimens to live healthier pain-free lives.

The course?Acupressure for Optimal Pelvic Health?is curated and taught by Rachna Mehta. It offers a unique evidence-based journey and explores Acupressure and Yin Yoga as powerful tools in the realm of energy medicine to complement our best evidence-based practices. To learn how to integrate Acupressure into your practice, join the next scheduled remote course on June 3-4, 2023.

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References:

1. Kwon CY, Lee B. Acupuncture or Acupressure on Yintang (EX-HN 3) for Anxiety: A Preliminary Review. Med Acupunct. 2018;30(2):73-79. doi:10.1089/acu.2017.1268
2. Au DW, Tsang HW, Ling PP, Leung CH, Ip PK, Cheung WM. Effects of acupressure on anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Acupunct Med. 2015;33(5):353-359. doi:10.1136/acupmed-2014-010720
3. Dincer B, Inangil D. The effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques on nurses' stress, anxiety, and burnout levels during the COVID-19 pandemic: A randomized controlled trial. Explore (NY). 2021;17(2):109-114. doi:10.1016/j.explore.2020.11.012
4. Monson E, Arney D, Benham B, et al. Beyond Pills: Acupressure Impact on Self-Rated Pain and Anxiety Scores. J Altern Complement Med. 2019;25(5):517-521. doi:10.1089/acm.2018.0422
5. Chen SR, Hou WH, Lai JN, Kwong JSW, Lin PC. Effects of Acupressure on Anxiety: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Integr Complement Med. 2022;28(1):25-35. doi:10.1089/jicm.2020.0256
6. Church D, Stapleton P, Vasudevan A, O'Keefe T. Clinical EFT as an evidence-based practice for the treatment of psychological and physiological conditions: A systematic review. Front Psychol. 2022;13:951451. Published 2022 Nov 10. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.951451

Acupressure for Optimal Pelvic Health

Price:?$450?.00??????Experience Level:?Beginner??????Contact Hours:?12.5?hours

This two-day seminar offers participants an evidence-based perspective on the application of Acupressure for evaluating and treating a host of pelvic health conditions including bowel, bladder, and pelvic pain issues. The course explores a brief history of Acupressure, its roots in Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and presents current evidence that supports the use of complementary and alternative medicine as an adjunct to western medicine. TCM concepts of Meridian theory and energy channels are presented with scientific evidence of Acupoints transmitting energy through interstitial connective tissue with potentially powerful integrative applications through multiple systems.

Acupressure for Optimal Pelvic Health - June 3-4

Acupressure for Optimal Pelvic Health - October 14-15