Daith piercings for migraines?

Lately there's been a lot of buzz on the internet regarding Daith piercings as a cure for migraines.1 A "Daith" piercing bores a hole through the ear's innermost cartilage fold.2

Why would a piercing in the ear affect migraines? The man who pioneered auricular (ear) acupuncture, Paul Nogier, was a French neurologist. A lot of his patients were coming to him with a scar on their ears in a particular place. When asked they told him they had visited a lay healer who burned that point on their ears to cure them of sciatica. In an "ah ha" moment, he realized the entire body was connected to the ear.

Anyone who's had acupuncture at our clinic knows we use acupuncture points in the ears a lot. I call the ears the "keyboard to the brain". Using them, I can affect hormones, the nervous system, and the way the body processes pain. Ear acupuncture is one way among many that I, as an acupuncturist, have of encouraging your body to use its resources differently.

There are no recognized acupuncture points at the exit and entry points of the Daith piercing. It's actually closest to the "External Genitals" point. (Yes, I know, "eek!") My only theory for why this affects pain in the head is that a piercing here would redirect excess Qi from the top of the head to the root of the pelvis. Contrary to what you might have read on the internet, it's at least 1 cm away from "Point Zero" that regulates homeostasis in the body.

My opinion on the Daith piercing is that it might very well help some people. I'm willing to bet, however, that it doesn't help everyone. It's likely not a permanent solution and comes with some significant risks.

This piercing is very painful and takes between 3-6 months to heal. Extra care must be taken to avoid infection in the cartilage. If nickel allergies or sensitivities are an issue for you, a Daith piercing may cause more problems than it solves. A proper Daith piercing requires knowledge of advanced techniques by the practitioner. I would insist upon implant grade material for any piercing of this type.

A Daith piercing could theoretically stimulate the points so strongly and actively, the nervous system would be re-trained to accept a new pattern. For some people this new pattern might stick and they'll be "cured". For some folks, I suspect as soon as the piercing heals, their migraines will return. I'm sure there are migraine sufferers who have noticed no improvement or just feel it's so uncomfortable it keeps them from focusing on their other pains.

My concern with using piercings for relief is that they probably become "background noise". Just like repeatedly telling my kids to "pick up your socks!", the body eventually tunes this stimulus out. Any point that's overused will lose its effect. I have a piercing at the "eye" point in my ears, but I don't notice that I have any greater visual acuity because of it. An additional concern is that a piercing of this magnitude could well destroy the acupuncture points that we're trying to effect.

When I treat you with acupuncture, I start out with a hypothesis of what's causing your problem. Migraines have a number of different causes from a Chinese Medical perspective. You might have Liver Yang Rising, Yin Deficiency, Qi and Blood Deficiency, Phlegm Turbidity, or Fire rising in the Gallbladder Channel to name a few. I usually select points on the ears and the body to set a new pattern for your body to follow. I use points in the ears to calm down the parts of the brain that process pain. I use body points to set a strategy for reversing the negative pattern.

Sometimes I can't find any reactive points in the ears, so I have to rethink my strategy. For whatever reason, some folks are just not good candidates for ear acupuncture. There's no harm in putting needles there, but we're not going to have a powerful effect. Other patients have fantastic results with ear acupuncture. For these folks, I send them home with retention needles that are very much like a mini-piercing.

So, in short: do your research and try acupuncture first!

1 -Could a daith piercing solve your migraine problem ...
   -Daith Piercing: Migraine Cure?

2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daith_piercing

Left Hand Community Acupuncture is located in the heart of Old Town Lafayette 
at the corner of Simpson St. and Michigan Ave. LHCA offers an affordable sliding 
scale of $25-$55. We do not ask for proof of income. You decide what you feel is 
fair to you and fair to us. We treat patients in a relaxed, group setting that promotes 
an atmosphere of healing. Caroline Adams is a Licensed 
Acupuncturist and nationally board certified. Acupuncture can help with a wide range of health 
issues including pain, stress, insomnia, arthritis, allergies, depression, headaches, 
fatigue, cold and flu, digestive issues, PMS, infertility and many other health concerns.

http://lefthandacu.com 

720-248-8626

Acupuncture and Trauma: Yes, it can help!

It's been only a few short days since Colorado's 1000 year flood and yet many lives will be changed forever. 

Some might ask: I just lost my house, my business, my pets to the flood. How is acupuncture going to help me? My basement flooded. I’m worried about my friends up in the canyon. How is acupuncture going to help me? 

First, it calms the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system governs the fight or flight response. During stressful situations your blood pressure increases, your heart beats faster, adrenaline is released, and your digestion slows down. When we’re in a crisis situation, we need these things to happen so we can move fast and respond to threats. The problem comes in the aftermath. In situations like these it’s easy for us to get stuck in this hyperactive state. Even for those of us not directly affected by the floods it’s easy to slip into this state just by watching the news coverage. 

Acupuncture has been documented to sedate the sympathetic nervous system and activate the parasympathetic nervous system (rest & digest). Acupuncture treatments calm anxiety and promote deeper and more restful sleep. Patients often tell me they feel ‘clearer’ and ‘more centered’ after an acupuncture treatment. Unfortunately, I don’t have needles and acupuncture points that make money troubles vanish or ex spouses to stop annoying you, but I can make your response to those things more balanced. I tell folks that “your life is still your life, but after acupuncture it just seems more manageable.”

The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association auricular (ear) acupuncture protocol is used to help people overcome addictions of all kinds. It also happens to be extremely helpful in mitigating all sorts of emotional and psychological stressors. We use the NADA protocol and other ear protocols like it to help folks deal with traumatic events of all kinds. 

Acupuncture also deals with specific emotions themselves. Those directly affected have no doubt experienced fear and panic as they were forced to deal with these extremely frightening circumstances. Fear depletes the adrenal glands and can lead to adrenal fatigue, so it’s important to use acupuncture to boost up the Kidneys and calm fear. 

Grief and sorrow follow after the loses of friends, loved ones, pets and cherished possessions. This is a completely normal emotion when we experience a traumatic event. The goal of the acupuncturist is not to dull the grief that you feel, but to help you experience it in an authentic way and then move on. When we hold onto grief, it impacts the lungs. I can’t tell you how many folks I’ve met who have lost a family member and then gotten chronic cases of pneumonia and bronchitis because of the impact on the lungs. We want to nourish the lungs to make sure they’re ready for the fall and winter months ahead.

Worry is another common emotion. A lot of us have been worried about others and stuck in the over-thinking mode (myself included!). On an organ level, worry prevents proper digestion of our food. On a psychological level, it keeps us up at night.

It’s not an emotion, per se, but having water invade your home, your community and some of our favorite places pushes our boundaries. Acupuncture can also be used to boost those up.

Anger often pops up after the initial feelings of shock and sadness. As bystanders we feel frustrated that we can’t help more. As survivors we feel angry that things we’ve worked very hard for have been destroyed by a random act of the weather. Acupuncture helps the Qi of the body and the emotions to flow more freely. 

Our minds and bodies are intertwined, therefore when our mind is tense, our body becomes tense. How many of us cope with stressful situations by raising our shoulders closer and closer to our ears? Most of us I would say! When our body is tense or in pain, our emotions tend to get stuck in anger or fear or worry. It’s the acupuncturist’s job to get things flowing again. Think of how quickly a toddler flows through emotions: delight at seeing a new toy, frustration when s/he is unable to make it work properly, sadness someone else takes it and starts playing with it. Then back to joy when they see a butterfly. This is the ideal, to fully experience our emotions in the moment and not to get stuck in any one emotion for too long. 

So whether it’s sore muscles from mucking out a neighbor’s basement or stress from dealing with a disaster, acupuncture can and will help!

More about NADA: http://www.acudetox.com

Acupuncture? In the Ear?

By Dennis Weigel, L. Ac.

   The earliest known writings on auricular acupuncture come from China in the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine dating to around 500 B.C.   From 500B.C.to 100 A.D., clinical uses of earrings and ear stimulation for various ailments was mentioned in writings by Greek physicians Hippocrates and Galen.  It has been said also, that pirates wore large gold earrings in the lobe of the ear not as a fashion statement, but because it corresponds to the eye area and would give them the ability to see further distances.  In Persia, there are medical records of a treatment for sciatica by cauterizing the ear in the sciatic nerve area.  In the middle ages from 1500 to 1700, there was a lot of trading among various cultures of Europe and Asia.  During this time, acupuncture methods were brought to Europe which included ear acupuncture.  Several clinical reports in Europe also mention the cauterization of the sciatic nerve area on the ear to treat sciatica.  The painting “Garden of Earthly Delights” dating to around 1500, shows a reference to the ear being needled at the libido point yielding obvious results: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hieronymus_Bosch_-_The_Garden_of_Earthly_Delights_-_Prado_in_Google_Earth-x4-y0.jpg

      In 1957, a neurologist named Dr. Paul Nogier observed a scar on the ears of several patients who claimed to have been cured of their sciatica by a French lay practitioner known as Mrs. Barren.  Nogier began experimenting with this technique himself and had success doing so.  He decided to try using less barbaric technique by needling the area instead which also led to success.  After experimenting with other ear points he discovered the “upsidedown fetus” map of the ear.  Nogier further developed this map with great accuracy and began to train other physicians and practitioners, and eventually spread auricular acupuncture to a global audience.  

     Auricular Acupuncture’s effectiveness has been validated by practitioners around the world and is now making its way into mainstream medicine.  One of it’s most well known uses is to help with addictions of all types.  The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association (NADA) has established treatment protocols for a variety of addictions and is being used in recovery programs as well as prisons across the US.  In the military, “Battlefield Acupuncture” is being used to treat combat soldiers who have been wounded and are in transport to a hospital to relieve pain.  http://www.nbcnews.com/id/28930238/ns/us_news-military/t/air-force-trains-combat-docs-acupuncture/#.UcsDuvmsiSo

    There are scientific studies conducted to investigate how auricular acupuncture works on a physiological level.  Many of the studies are being done in China and Korea where auricular acupuncture is well known.  One of the most interesting studies I’ve seen shows a direct correlation from the visceral organ points on the ear to the actual organs in the body via the vagus nerve.  In this study, stimulation of the organ points on the ear sends a signal through the vagus nerve to the body, and directly relaxing the chosen organ.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3523683/

    While auricular acupuncture has a rich history, there is still a seemingly infinite potential for discovering and understanding more deeply how this modality works.  The next time you are feeling a little off, try massaging your ears with a new understanding that the ear is more than an organ for hearing, it is indeed a map to your entire body.

Sources: 

1.    Auriculotherapy Manual: Chinese and Western Systems of Ear Acupuncture 2nd Edition by Terry Oleson Phd.

2.    Ear Acupuncture: A Precise Pocket Atlas Based onn the Works of Nogier and Bahr by Beate Strittmmatter, MD

3.    The Internet

By Dennis Weigel, L. Ac.