A 62-year-old woman came to Raleigh Acupuncture complaining of dry eyes for ten years. She used drops throughout the day but was still bothered by the constant raw, painful, dry sensation in both of her eyes. This dry eyes acupuncture case study describes how our treatment significantly eased her condition.
Dry Eyes for Ten Years
Our patient’s dry eyes started when she went through menopause ten years earlier. At the time, she struggled with dryness in many places in her body, including her bowels, causing chronic constipation. Until last year she managed the dry eyes with drops – first with over-the-counter drops and more recently with prescription drops. But lately, even these were ineffective, and she feared the condition would worsen.
Acupuncture Treats Dry Eyes
Last month while searching the internet, she stumbled upon a research study that found acupuncture a safe, reliable treatment for dry eyes. The investigation prompted her to look for an acupuncturist in her area, leading her to our clinic. While she was uncertain about acupuncture, her limited options motivated her to try.
Intake Exam and Diagnosis
We began her treatment with a complete intake exam consisting of taking a medical history and getting all of the details about her dry eyes. We then did something she had never experienced before at a doctor’s visit – we examined her tongue and assessed her internal organ function by feeling six different positions on the pulse of both of her wrists.
As mentioned earlier, the onset of our patient’s dry eyes occurred ten years earlier following the onset of menopause. In addition to dry eyes, she also experienced dryness in her bowels and heat signed in the form of night sweats and hot flashes. Her tongue was slightly red and relatively dry, reflecting internal heat and dryness. Her pulse was thin and rapid, indicating yin deficiency and empty heat.
Yin deficiency is a Chinese medicine pattern imbalance quite common with menopausal women, and empty heat is a form of internal heat caused by the lack of coolant in the body instead of excess heat. Think of a car overheating from a lack of coolant instead of any dysfunction with the engine itself.
Dry Eyes Acupuncture Case Study
Our treatment for dry eyes caused by kidney yin deficiency with empty heat included the following acupoints: KD6, GB37, SP6, KD2, LV3, LV8, LI11, LI4, BL2, Yuyao, and BL20. These points nourish yin fluids, clear empty heat, and improve qi and blood circulation in the eyes, increasing tear production and reducing dry eyes. The treatment works from the inside out, addressing the root cause of the dryness.
Our patient in this dry eyes acupuncture case study responded as expected – within three treatments, she experienced a 40 percent decrease in dry eyes. She had less eye fatigue as well. After six sessions, her dry eyes were 70 percent improved. The change occurred so naturally that she found it hard to believe. It seemed as if there was more moisture in her body – which was true. The acupuncture restored her body balance, generating more yin substance (moisture), resulting in more moisture in and around her eyes.
Following her tenth treatment, her eyes were 80 percent better. At this point, her progress plateaued, letting us know the extent to which acupuncture could improve the condition. Our patient was thrilled – she significantly reduced her daily eye drop dose and had much less irritation and dryness. Her improvement was long-lasting as well – a six-month follow-up confirmed that her eyes were still better.
Acupuncture Improves Many Eye Conditions
In addition to dry eyes, acupuncture improves many other eye conditions. For example, we recently helped a woman with eye pain and blurry vision following a bout of Bell’s Palsy. Acupuncture helped her Bell’s recover, after which she had lingering eye problems. Three targetted treatments resolved her eye issues, which stemmed from lingering nerve damage following her facial paralysis.
Another recent case at Raleigh Acupuncture involved swollen and puffy eyes due to allergies. Again, acupuncture improved our patient’s allergies while resolving his eye inflammation. We also treat floaters, which are black or white spots in the field of vision, migraines behind the eyes, and many other eye-related conditions.
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What our Clients are Saying
I’ve had dry eyes ever since my Lasik surgery. The doctor said it would resolve but it never did. That was two years ago. I had been using eye drops about ten times a day to deal with the discomfort. My brother-in-law suggested I try acupuncture. It worked great. The doctor said the treatment “returned my eyes to their normal state”. That’s what it feels like to me. And it’s lasted. Thank you Raleigh Acupuncture for your good work.
Ever since moving here five years ago I had terrible dry eyes. I thought it was allergies, but the doctor ruled that out. After trying everything under the sun, I tried acupuncture. What an amazing experience. It’s like my eyes are back to normal when I was living in Chicago. High praise for Raleigh Acupuncture. They know what they are doing!
Acupuncture treatment helped my chronic dry eyes. Whereas I had to use drops on a daily basis before my treatment, afterwards I didn’t need the drops any longer. The scratchy feeling in my eyes was gone, and my eyes were not nearly as red. I’ve sent two co-workers to Raleigh Acupuncture since being treated, both for eye conditions, and they also got relief. I recommend this practice to anyone struggling with dry eyes.
