Acupuncture and HIV
More than 1 million
Americans are living with human immunodeficiency virus, known as HIV. There is no official cure for HIV, although many live long lives after being initially infected. HIV
destroys the body’s T-cells, which makes it harder to fight off infections and
disease.
Acupuncture can help
promote immunity, treat side effects of medications, and be a complementary
therapy for HIV treatment. Many patients with HIV/AIDS suffer from pain
and anxiety. Acupuncture can help lower stress in patients as well as pain that
results from their decreased immune system.
Patients have found that
acupuncture can help relieve symptoms of fatigue, chest tightness, flu-like
symptoms and digestion issues that are associated with HIV. Acupuncture proves
to improve quality of life for those living with HIV and increase their energy
level and mood. Treatment can lower stress and anxiety levels, which are
usually high in HIV patients due to the nature of such a serious disease.
Because there are not only
physical effects of HIV, but mental and emotional as well, acupuncture is a
great complementary treatment to help both the body and mind handle the changes
that are occurring because of the illness. Being diagnosed with HIV can be
traumatizing in itself, acupuncture treatment can help calm the mind and
improve overall quality of life. Although HIV is not curable, it can be
managed.
“Acupuncture is one
additive method of maintenance, which can help improve the quality of life for
patients with HIV through balancing the forces through an individualized
baseline.” - Claudia Briones
Professionals have
concluded that patients who are stressed, anxious and depressed can adversely
affect their health. For this reason, acupuncture works well to lower these
feelings.
Most people with HIV are
taking some sort of medication to help their T-cell count. Because acupuncture
treatment is completely natural and involves no drugs, it can be used at the
same time as Western medicine to help manage symptoms and side effects.
Acupuncture works by
addressing the body as a whole. When the body’s natural energy flow is blocked
or stagnated due to illness, an individual does not have optimal health.
Treatment works by returning the body back to it’s natural flow and restoring
health to organs and the entire body and mind.
A study done at the
University of Boston found that acupuncture treatment improved overall quality
of life in HIV patients.
It is believed in
Traditional Chinese Medicine that HIV, which causes a high susceptibility to
infections, are heat toxins in the body and burn the system out, damaging the
cooling part of the body. This causes an imbalance between yin and yang in the
body. This imbalance is a disruption in the body’s qi, or natural energy flow.
“CAM treatments are
supportive rather than curative by nature, which helps an individual with HIV
not feel like they are in limbo between life and death, but rather feeling, and
truly being, alive.” - Complementary Therapies for the Treatment of HIV: In
Search of the Evidence. International Journal of STD and AIDS.
Contact an acupuncturist
today if you or someone you know is living with HIV and wants to consider a
natural, safe, complementary treatment.
Give me a call today to schedule a complimentary 15 minute health evaluation.
Bishara Wilson, L.Ac., MSTOM, C.SMA
New York Sports Acupuncture
(888) 375-5444
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