Did you know that Koalas can sleep for around 20 hours a day? While that may be too much for us humans, something I see in my clinic a lot is patients who have trouble with insomnia. Sometimes they cannot drop off to sleep, sometimes they have fitful sleep, waking up in the night. Studies have shown (1) that lack of sleep is very detrimental to the human body.
When a client tells me that they have sleep issues, we talk through all aspects of their lifestyle before I decide how to proceed. One of the many wonderful things about acupuncture is that sessions are designed for the individual - I do not use a ‘one size fits all’ approach. If you are waking up around 3 in the morning, in Chinese Medicine this can equate to issues with the Liver systems, which can be affected by what you’re consuming as well as emotions like stress or anger. Are you drinking or eating a lot of heating foods, such as alcohol, coffee, chilli? Are you having a stressful situation at work or at home? This could be causing your wakefulness.
Some of my clients suffer from hot flushes which wake them in the night, due to peri-menopausal or menopausal symptoms. Others cannot even get to sleep to begin with, often because they are anxious or worried.
Whatever the source of your sleeplessness, acupuncture is a great way to help restore yourself to wellbeing and have a better life balance. Sleep is important and if you’re having an issue with it, don’t just ignore it!
(1) Worley S. L. (2018). The Extraordinary Importance of Sleep: The Detrimental Effects of Inadequate Sleep on Health and Public Safety Drive an Explosion of Sleep Research. P & T : a peer-reviewed journal for formulary management, 43(12), 758–763.
