Women's Health Series: How Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture treat Fibroids

Fibroids are benign growths that develop in or around the uterus or womb.

Fibroids are made up of muscle and fibrous tissue and they are usually hard, white masses.

Causes & Diagnosis of Fibroids


Many women with fibroids are unaware that they have them until they are discovered during a routine pelvic examination.

From a conventional medical standpoint, no one knows what cause fibroids. But we can identify some risk factors that can cause them to grow.

-          Family history

-          Hypertension

-          Hormone pills or birth control pills

-          Higher number of child births

Symptoms of Fibroids

Most women do not have symptoms from their fibroids.

Whether a fibroid is symptomatic has to do with its size and location within the uterus. Those that are located in the muscle wall of the uterus just under the surface may not be symptomatic. But those growing into the uterine lining itself often cause heavy or irregular bleeding and other symptoms such as tummy or abdominal pain, low back pain, frequent need to urinate, constipation and pain or discomfort during sex.

Energetic Perspective of Fibroids

In the perspective of energetics, fibroids are representative of the creativity that was never birthed, including “fantasy” images of ourselves that have never seen the light of the day and creative secrets of our other selves.

Fibroids also result when we are flowing life force energy into dead ends and corners such as jobs or relationships we have outgrown.

Fibroids are also often associated with conflicts about creativity, reproduction and relationships. Many women can correlate the onset of their fibroids with the onset of verbal abuse from their partners, job stresses, or other problems in their relationships with the outside world.

Conventional Treatment of Fibroids


watch and wait

Treatment may not be necessary if the fibroids are present with no symptoms or if there are minor symptoms that do not significantly affect the daily activities. However a pelvic exam every six months to a year is recommended and an initial ultrasound scan to make sure the problem is a fibroid and not an ovarian cyst or tumor is advisable.

HOrmone therapy

Synthetic Progestin or Natural Progesterone

Using synthetic progestin or natural progesterone can help to keep the lining of the uterus from building up too much and works very well in controlling heavy bleeding.

However there are often side effects of depression, bloatedness, headaches and other premenstrual symptoms.  

GnRH Agonists

GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone) agonists are synthetic hormones that cause the pituitary gland to shut down the function of the ovaries. After about one month on these drugs, a woman’s body becomes artificially menopausal. Her estrogen levels fall very low, and her periods cease. The cyclic stimulation of the fibroid tissues ceases and in most cases the fibroids shrink in size.

However, the side effects of GnRH agonists are that they put the woman into artificial menopause, resulting in side effects of hot flashes, sleep disturbances and increased risk of osteoporosis.  

surgery

Myomectomy (surgical removal of fibroids) and hysterectomy are the common surgical procedures done for fibroids.

For myomectomy this procedure is reserved for fibroids that are six centimeters or smaller.

For hysterectomy, this procedure is chosen when the bleeding has been for months or years, resulting in anemia in the patient, has an abdomen that looks pregnant and cannot leave home for fear of bleeding through her clothes. However for this option, it is necessary that the woman have allowed herself the time to gather all necessary information and weigh all her options as this will involve the removal of the entire uterus which is not conducive to the fertility needs of patients. Furthermore the side effects can include early menopause and a low sex drive or loss of libido.

Holistic Treatment of Fibroids

acupuncture

Acupuncture can stimulate the body and activate its own regulatory functions, thereby improving and correcting organ disorders and dysfunction. Acupuncture treatment can clear the meridian and regulate the meridian to restore the normal function of the viscera and meridian. Acupuncture at acupoints such as Zhongji, Guanyuan, Qihai, Sanyinjiao, and Taichong can promote dredging of the meridians, regulate the functions of the viscera, and return the functions of the viscera to normal. Modern research suggests that human life is dominated by nerves.

 

Acupuncture can also release neurochemicals, usually enkephalin, dynorphin, or serotonin and may stimulate the gene expression of neuropeptides, restore normal nerve functions, and restore the muscle, blood vessels, viscera, and hormone secretion functions normal to the nerves.

Read more about how TCM works scientifically here.

Acupuncture of connective tissue can transmit mechanical signals to connective tissue and adjust the metabolism of connective tissue, which may be the key to acupuncture treatment of fibroids.

Studies have suggested that the growth of fibroid is regulated by a complex feedback loop between estrogen, progesterone, and growth factors. Acupuncture is used to regulate pelvic nerves and female sex hormone levels, improve blood circulation in the pelvic cavity, and enable fibroid to be effectively treated. Therefore, acupuncture as a treatment for fibroid is well-founded.

Read more on how TCM and Acupuncture treat Infertility, Premenstrual syndrome, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, Endometriosis, Irregular Period, Recurrent Miscarriages, Menopause.

Herbs

According to TCM, the formation and growth of uterine fibroids are due to an accumulation of stagnated Qi and blood at a certain time in the pelvic area. 

Therefore herbal formulas ensuring proper blood movement and smooth flow of Qi will relieve gynecological disorders and prevent stagnated Qi and blood from accumulating in the uterus, thereby preventing fibroid formation

TCM(Traditional Chin Med), TCM Wellness, TCM and Science, Basics of TCM, TCM SexologyXiang Jun LimDr (TCM) Xiang Juntcm, acupuncture, traditional chinese medicine, western medicine, hormonal imbalance, infertility, science, gene, cells, molecules, women's health, hormones, career woman, fibroids, creativity