Insomnia & Anxiety
Acupuncture may feel like a foreign treatment for your insomnia or anxiety. To dispel the mystery and help you become more familiarized, we decided to let real people voice their experiences of our work. These are real patients with real lives, from all walks of life for whom The Gilbert Clinic was an answer. We invite you to read their stories.
Simone Parrish | IT Manager/Webmaster | Age: 40 | Patient since 2008
“When I made my first appointment with Jonathan Gilbert, my neck was so locked up with tension that my left arm was virtually paralyzed. After clearing that up in three treatments, Jonathan determined that it had resulted from deeper issues of anxiety and insomnia. Not getting good sleep meant that I wasn’t able to recover from day-to-day stresses, both mental and physical. This led to intense anxiety, which of course led to even worse sleep. Through treatment with Jonathan (both acupuncture and herbs), I was able to fall asleep more easily—and, most amazingly, to fall back asleep if I woke up, rather than lying awake being anxious about not sleeping. Acupuncture with the Gilbert Clinic twice a month has healed the immediate effects of my anxiety, which in turn has helped me deal more effectively with its root causes. It is such a joy to be facing life on a more even keel, with more energy and optimism. Jonathan is a genius (and I don’t use that word lightly).”
Noel Healy | Washington, DC | Medical Administrator | Age:26 | Patient since 2009
“My quality of life has improved significantly since I started treatment for insomnia at the Gilbert Clinic. Before I began treatment, I would sleep very poorly, if I slept at all. I had completely sleepless nights several times a week. This sleeplessness predictably caused fatigue and a very poor level of daytime functioning. After I began treatment, I realized that my insomnia was largely due to my inability to relax and turn my brain off. Acupuncture treatment enabled me to release much of the physical and mental stress I had been suffering from. Through treatment with Jonathan, the sleepless nights have largely disappeared, and the quality of my sleep has vastly improved. I have more energy than I’ve had in years! I would definitely recommend acupuncture at the Gilbert Clinic to anyone suffering from insomnia.”
Insomnia & Anxiety
Do you lie awake at night, struggling to calm your anxious mind? Is your poor quantity or quality of sleep affecting your ability to function? You are not alone. Up to 30 percent of adults struggle with insomnia. For one person in ten, lack of sleep or poor quality of sleep impairs day-to-day living. In our experience, anxiety and insomnia are closely tied: each can cause or worsen the other, so we often treat them together.
Quality sleep is a critical part of overall wellness. Insomnia on its own can make you exhausted and worn out. Even worse, poor-quality sleep can aggravate many other health conditions, increase the effects of stress, and contribute to anxiety, which poses its own challenges. Restoring sleep patterns and quality of sleep is an important first step in treating many complex and chronic conditions.
Acupuncture is a proven and safe modality for improving sleep without the side-effects of medication. Several clinical studies show that acupuncture is an effective treatment for insomnia.
Read more in our Acupuncture & Herbology: Effective, Affordable Healthcare brochure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will it help?
Acupuncture has been clinically shown to reduce the need for medication and improve sleep in patients with insomnia. It also is an effective treatment for anxiety. Acupuncture helps by reestablishing your nervous system’s balance. Illness, stress, or major life events can easily cause your nervous system to either underperform or become over-stimulated. Acupuncture is a relatively non-invasive, side-effect-free method of bringing your nervous system back to normal function, and can produce a positive effect on anxiety and insomnia without daytime drowsiness. Insomnia patients report being able to fall asleep more easily, stay asleep longer, and return to sleep more quickly if they wake in the middle of the night. Patients with anxiety describe acupuncture treatments as reducing their anxiety and increasing their ability to function.
Will it hurt?
Acupuncture is not at all like getting an injection, having blood drawn, or pricking yourself with a sewing needle. Acupuncture needles are hair-thin; there is a small sensation when they are inserted, but there should be little or no discomfort. Jonathan Gilbert prides himself providing a painless needling technique that he learned during his post graduate studies in Vietnam. The experience of acupuncture varies from person to person and from treatment to treatment, but painful is not a term we hear often from patients describing the experience.
How many visits will I need?
This is a highly individualized treatment, so Jonathan will set your treatment schedule after your initial consultation.