Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis

Conditions & context

Living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis involves more than controlling intestinal inflammation. Even when medical treatment is working and the disease is in remission, fatigue, digestive discomfort, joint or musculoskeletal pain, disrupted sleep, and other symptoms may persist. Recovery after a flare can take time, and the cumulative effect of living with a chronic and sometimes unpredictable illness can affect how you feel well beyond the digestive tract.

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine can be used alongside your medical treatment to address this broader picture. Our focus is on helping you feel better and function better — reducing pain and digestive discomfort, improving energy and sleep, supporting recovery, and improving overall quality of life.

For many of our long-term IBD patients, treatment becomes part of maintaining greater stability over time, while their gastroenterologist continues to manage the underlying disease.

What patients come to us for

• Persistent fatigue, including fatigue that continues during remission
• Abdominal discomfort and cramping
• Bloating, irregular bowel function, and other digestive symptoms that persist when inflammatory disease is well controlled
• Joint, back, and musculoskeletal pain
• Recovery after a flare or hospitalization
• Nausea, poor appetite, and digestive discomfort associated with illness or treatment
• Sleep disturbance
• Stress and anxiety associated with living with a chronic and sometimes unpredictable illness
• Appetite, weight, and nutritional concerns
• Recovery after abdominal or bowel surgery
• General support between flares, with the goal of improving day-to-day function and quality of life

How we work

Treatment is individualized according to where you are in the course of the disease.

When IBD is stable or in remission, we may focus on symptoms that remain — fatigue, digestive function, pain, sleep, appetite, or the effects of prolonged illness and treatment. Acupuncture is generally weekly to begin, with treatment spaced farther apart as symptoms improve and the patient becomes more stable. Some patients with longstanding IBD choose to continue periodic treatment over time because they feel better with that additional support.

During a flare, treatment is gentle and focused on supportive care for symptoms such as pain, nausea, poor appetite, sleep disturbance, and exhaustion.

Moxibustion may be incorporated into treatment, particularly when it fits the Chinese medical diagnosis. Gentle warmth over the abdomen is often comforting and may be used alongside acupuncture.

Hands-on treatment may also be helpful for some patients, particularly when abdominal tension, surgical scarring, musculoskeletal pain, or restriction through the diaphragm and abdominal wall is contributing to discomfort. Treatment is adapted carefully in anyone with previous abdominal surgery, active inflammation, or significant tenderness.

Nutrition and IBD

Dietary advice in our practice comes primarily from the perspective of Chinese medicine. Rather than prescribing a single “IBD diet,” we look at how you are eating as well as what you are eating, and at which foods and methods of preparation your digestive system seems to tolerate best.

For many patients, this means emphasizing warm, cooked, easily digested foods, particularly when digestion is fragile or appetite is poor. We may suggest incorporating soups, broths, cooked grains and vegetables, or congee — a traditional rice porridge that can be adapted with different ingredients according to the individual. Meal timing and eating regular, nourishing meals can also be important.

These recommendations are adjusted according to the person and to where they are in the course of their illness. Someone recovering from a flare may need a very different diet from someone who is stable and trying to broaden the range of foods they can comfortably eat.

We are also mindful of nutritional adequacy. If someone has significant weight loss, nutritional deficiencies, intestinal strictures, extensive bowel surgery, or other more complex nutritional needs, we may recommend working with an IBD-experienced registered dietitian in addition to their gastroenterologist.

Working with the rest of your care

We want to know what medications you are taking, whether your disease is active or in remission, and what your recent testing has shown, as this helps us make appropriate decisions about treatment. If you have recent laboratory results, imaging, or endoscopy reports, you are welcome to bring them with you.

We are also happy to communicate with your gastroenterologist or other physicians when that would be helpful. If your symptoms change significantly, we will recommend appropriate medical follow-up.

Common questions

I’m in remission but exhausted all the time. Can acupuncture help?

Fatigue can persist even when Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis is in remission, and it is one of the most common reasons people with IBD seek treatment with us.

We also want to understand what may be contributing to it. Anemia, iron or vitamin deficiencies, sleep problems, medication effects, inadequate nutrition, and other medical conditions can all contribute to fatigue, so we encourage appropriate medical evaluation alongside treatment.

How often will I need to come?

We generally begin with weekly treatment. As symptoms improve and the condition becomes more stable, visits can be spaced farther apart. Some patients come for a defined period, while others with longstanding IBD choose to continue periodic treatment because they feel better with that additional support.

Does the abdominal treatment hurt?

No. Abdominal acupuncture and hands-on treatment are gentle and adapted to the individual patient. Let us know about previous abdominal surgery, scars, significant tenderness, or anything else that might affect how we work in the area.