“How long does it take for acupuncture to work for anxiety?”

There are no true "quick fixes" for our physical or emotional bodies. It takes time for real healing to occur. Having said that, you will most likely start to feel changes within a treatment or two. It does take time for those changes to stick, so it's important to commit to a series of treatments. I start out seeing patients twice a week until their symptoms stay reduced the whole time, then I see them once a week, then every other week, and so on, This usually takes months, but it IS effective, so I encourage you to find someone who has worked with anxiety in the past and then stick with it. You'll be so glad you did.

FYI, a LOT of insurances are now covering acupuncture, so check with your insurance to see if it's one of them.

I suggest coming in for two times a week combined with an herbal formula. Also, how long have you had the anxiety? It could take longer if it’s a chronic condition.

No one can answer that question, because no one knows what tomorrow brings. I have had patients who were done in two treatments and I have had patients who came to me once-a-week for 5 years with a nice steady growth each week. Life has ups and downs, so we work with you on a day-by-day, week-by-week, month-by-month basis.

Similar to a psychiatrist or psychologist, the issues will gradually get better and if life hits you hard you can fall back a step or two. This is how life works and how treatments work with acupuncture or any other medical treatment. Acupuncture is no more a "magic bullet" than any of the medications on the market, except that acupuncture does not have the negative side-effects drugs can give you.

A patient will heal in their own time and if you find a good practitioner who you click well with, they can help guide you through this journey. Find a Licensed Acupuncturist in your area (L.Ac.) and if you can, find one who is trained in Worsley Style 5-Element acupuncture. The 5-E practitioners are very well trained in emotional issues. If you cannot find a 5E one, find an L.Ac. that you feel comfortable with, who will listen well and work with you. Finding an L.Ac. is similar to finding any other doctor, psychologist or even mechanic - it may take a few to find the one you like, but when you click you'll know.

Good luck.

Acupuncutre uses the insertion of thin, filiform needles at specific points on the body. The insertion of these needles causes an immediate response to the central nervous system. More specifically, the parasympathetic nervous system ("rest or digest") is activated; this system is responsible for creating and releasing the production of neurotransmitters, chemicals and hormones like GABA, endorphins, serotonin, etc. into our bloodstream. When we have "anxiety," we may not have the proper levels of chemicals, neurotransmitters, hormones, etc. in our system. This is one way in which acupuncture can help for anxiety. In terms of treatment length, this can vary depending on the severity of your anxiety and your overall health. The more severe or poor your underlying health, the longer treatment may take. As with the start of a vitamin, you may notice some improvements towards the start but it will take consistent visits to get your body to a place where all levels are sorted back out. I would encourage you to give acupuncture a go for at least 8-10 visits and re-evaluate from there

You can feel immediate relief of your anxiety during an acupuncture treatment. You may find, however, that it doesn't last long. Acupuncture has a cumulative effect, so as you continue with treatments, the relief will last longer and longer. If you abide by your practitioner's recommendations (meditation techniques or lifestyle changes for example), you'll reach that long-term relief even faster and develop better management skills for when anxiety flares up.

Sometimes the effects from acupuncture are quick and intense, and sometime subtle. People with deep rooted trauma or chronic anxiety may need to attend acupuncture sessions longer than someone with acute anxiety.

If it’s chronic, 2 to 3 months. If acute and early stage, it will be a faster and shorter period of time.

It depends on how long you were diagnosed with anxiety and if there are other signs and symptoms related to the condition. Typically 3 months to a year.

This is a question I get a lot: how long is it going to take for acupuncture to work for some condition? Unfortunately, there isn't really a single answer. Chinese medicine considers the human system as an integrated whole. Each person is unique and the treatments are individualized. This makes it difficult to pin down an exact number of treatments.

Diagnostically, Chinese medicine works a little different from conventional medicine. For anxiety, there are a couple of different root causes and some root causes are easier to treat than others. It sometimes helps to envision your health issue like an iceberg. The part of the ice floating above the water is the symptom you experience. The part of the ice below the water is everything leading up to the symptom you experience. To make the symptom go away, we also have to address what's hidden under the water, and there's often way more stuff that's submerged.

That being said, you should notice some improvement by your 3rd treatment (assuming weekly sessions). The idea with Chinese medicine is not to have you coming in once a week for the rest of your natural life. What we're trying to do is find a maintenance interval that works such that your symptoms are either eliminated or reduced to such a degree that they don't interfere with your life. Sometimes an acupuncturist can resolve your issue in 5 or 7 treatments, and sometimes an acupuncturist gets things under control in 5 or 7 treatments and then sees you monthly for a few months to make sure everything is going ok.