Five Element
Acupuncture for Menopause & Perimenopause
Understanding Menopause and Perimenopause
The transition through perimenopause and menopause marks a natural, powerful shift in a woman’s life — but it can also bring unexpected physical and emotional changes. Fluctuating oestrogen and progesterone levels can lead to hot flushes, anxiety, poor sleep, low mood, brain fog, weight changes, and loss of libido. For many, it’s also a time when old patterns — physical and emotional — resurface, asking to be addressed in a new way.
Perimenopause can begin years before the final period, with subtle shifts in mood, cycle length, or energy levels. Menopause itself — defined as twelve months after your last period — is not an ending, but an invitation to move into a different rhythm. Supporting the body through this transition makes it far smoother, helping you feel balanced, clear, and confident in this next chapter.
Acupuncture for Menopause & Perimenopause FAQs
Q: How can acupuncture help during perimenopause and menopause?
Acupuncture supports the body’s natural hormonal shifts, easing hot flushes, night sweats, fatigue, and mood changes. It helps regulate temperature, calm the nervous system, and improve sleep.
Q: Is acupuncture safe to have while taking HRT?
Yes. It can be safely combined with HRT and often enhances overall wellbeing by supporting emotional balance and improving energy.
Q: How often should I come for treatment?
Weekly sessions are recommended at first, then spaced further apart as symptoms stabilise. Most patients find it offers both physical relief and emotional steadiness.
Western Approach to treatment
Conventional treatment often focuses on replacing declining hormones through HRT (hormone replacement therapy), alongside medication for specific symptoms such as sleep aids or antidepressants. For some women, this approach can be transformative; for others, it can bring unwanted side effects or feel incomplete — addressing the symptoms but not the deeper sense of disconnection or depletion that can arise at this stage.
While medical support plays an important role, many women find they also need something that works with the body — helping it adapt naturally rather than overriding its processes. This is where acupuncture offers a complementary and holistic alternative.
The Five Element Acupuncture Lens
In Five Element acupuncture, menopause is understood as a time of transformation — a recalibration of energy that affects every level of being. The hormonal shifts are seen as part of a wider energetic rebalancing, where the body is seeking a new state of harmony.
Each woman’s experience is unique. One may feel hot and restless (signs of excess Fire); another may feel tired, flat, or emotionally detached (signs of declining Water or Earth). By identifying which elements are out of balance, treatment is tailored precisely to your individual needs — addressing both the physical symptoms and the emotional or spiritual shifts that accompany them.
This approach doesn’t pathologise menopause; it honours it as a natural passage, guiding the body gently back into alignment so this stage feels empowering rather than depleting.
How Acupuncture Can Help With Menopause and Perimenopause
Acupuncture helps by calming the nervous system, regulating hormonal fluctuations, and improving circulation — all of which ease common menopausal symptoms. Treatments can reduce the frequency and intensity of hot flushes, improve sleep, lift mood, and stabilise energy levels.
But beyond symptom relief, acupuncture supports the deeper emotional landscape of this transition. It can ease anxiety, bring clarity, and restore a sense of groundedness and connection to the body. By balancing the autonomic nervous system and supporting adrenal function, acupuncture also helps the body adapt more smoothly to the reduced hormonal output from the ovaries.
Over time, many women notice a profound shift — not just fewer symptoms, but a renewed sense of strength, self-assurance, and calm. The aim is not simply to “get through” menopause, but to move through it feeling more whole, balanced, and aligned.
