Do you experience chronic neck pain? Then you might be interested in hearing that acupuncture and Alexander Technique have both been found to "significantly relieve" the pain.
The supersized study from the UK's University of York, and published in Annals of Internal Medicine, made a profound conclusion – that both treatments lowered pain and disability over a year when compared to conventional care (medication, doctor visits, and physiotherapy).
The research team took a group of 517 people from across the country and separated them into three groups:
- Group one: received 20 Alexander Technique lessons and standard care
- Group two: received up to 12 sessions of acupuncture and standard care
- Group three: only received standard care
The people who had acupuncture reported an impressive 32 per cent reduction in pain. For those receiving Alexander Technique, pain was lowered by 31 percent. This was in stark contract to pain reduction for people undergoing conventional care.
Besides that, the people who tried the alternative approaches also found it far easier to manage their chronic neck pain, without having to pop a pill or other medical treatment.
A Sciencedaily article quoted Dr Hugh MacPherson from the university's Department of Health Sciences: "Our key finding is that there are significant reductions in neck pain associated with Alexander Technique lessons and acupuncture at 12 months. This is an important finding because for the first time we now have clear evidence that these two interventions provide longer-term benefits for chronic neck pain."
You might like to try seeing an acupuncturist or Alexander Technique practitioner in your area for yourself and see if it works for your chronic neck pain – or any other pain you're experiencing. It could just be more effective than other treatments.
Our articles database also has a wealth of information on both acupuncture and Alexander Technique, including how they benefit the body and mind.
Originally published on Feb 15, 2016
