A 29-year-old woman came to our clinic struggling with severe nausea and vomiting from morning sickness. She was eight weeks pregnant, and her obstetrician had just prescribed medication that was not helping. This morning sickness acupuncture case study describes how acupuncture helped resolve her nausea and vomiting safely and naturally.
The Problem
The American Pregnancy Association reports that 85 percent of pregnant women experience nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Symptoms begin as early as five weeks into the pregnancy, although they typically begins around week 6. Some women have just queasiness, while others struggle with severe nausea and vomiting all day long. Symptoms begin tapering off around week 13 of pregnancy, the end of the first trimester. A minority of women have nausea throughout their entire pregnancy.
Western medicine does not know definitively what causes morning sickness. WebMD states, “Doctors still aren’t sure exactly what causes morning sickness, but the most popular theory is that morning sickness is the body’s reaction to the pregnancy hormone, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), which is produced at higher levels during the first trimester than at any other time during pregnancy”.
Chinese medicine explains morning sickness the following way. The stomach has a descending function. Food in the stomach descends to the small and large intestine. When a woman becomes pregnant, the stomach is confused. Instead of descending, it rebels upward, causing nausea and vomiting. Over the course of the first trimester, the stomach acclimates to the fetus developing beneath it. By week 13, the stomach starts descending again, resolving the symptoms of morning sickness.
Acupuncture speeds up this process by “harmonizing” rebellious stomach energy (qi). Specific acupuncture points calm the stomach and help it descend again. One of these points, located on the inner wrist, helps all types of nausea by resolving rebellious stomach qi. Typically three or four acupuncture are enough to get the job done, resolving morning sickness quickly and naturally.
Morning Sickness Acupuncture Case Study
Our 29-year-old patient starting feeling nausea at week 6 of her pregnancy. Within a few days she was nauseous all the time and vomiting every few hours. The medication from her doctor was not helping, so she sought relief with acupuncture. We explained the process, and reassured her that acupuncture was perfectly safe during pregnancy. After taking her history, feeling her pulse and looking at her tongue, we began treatment.
After the first treatment she had relief for three days before nausea started creeping back up. Following the second treatment, all vomiting stopped and her nausea was 50% less all week. After three weeks, nausea was 80% resolved, and following her fourth treatments she was nausea-free.
This morning sickness acupuncture case study was fairly typical. Most times patients start feeling relief after the first treatment. Many cases fully resolve after four treatments, with some patients requiring a few more sessions.
Our patient was very pleased with her acupuncture experience, describing the treatments as relaxing and the results as a huge relief. She was grateful not having to take medication for nausea during her pregnancy, and for being able to eat foods more comfortably. She also gained weight easier, which made her doctor happy. And most of all, she was able to enjoy her pregnancy.
Next Steps
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What our Clients are Saying
Single best thing for morning sickness!! I’ve had four kids and used acupuncture every time. This practice is the best! They don’t drag out treatments. They get you better fast.
My first pregnancy went so easy. So I was surprised when I got so nauseous with my second one. Every smell made me sick and I didn’t want to eat anything. My mom found Raleigh Acupuncture. The practitioner told me it generally took 3 to 6 treatments to stop the nausea. She was right. After 6 treatments I wasn’t nauseous anymore and could eat again without trouble. I’m very pleased and would recommend them to any pregnant woman suffering from nausea.
When I was pregnant 6 weeks I got terrible nausea and vomiting. I could not hold anything down. I started losing weight after two weeks and my doctor put me on medications. But I was still vomiting every day and felt awful. I found Raleigh Acupuncture and they treated me three times. It totally stopped the nausea and vomiting. I stopped my medications, and the rest of my pregnancy had no problems. They said this was an easy thing to treat. I wish I had known about it from the beginning of my pregnancy.