Acupuncture

[Karyn]

I wish people all the best if they find acupuncture helpful but personally I don't see any evidence for it.

I am actual evidence of it!

[kat]

Acupuncture has helped me with pudendal pain, sacrum pain, obturator pain, leg pain, muscle spasms, sleeping and heart palpitations. I go 3 days a week and get heat and electricity therapy with the needles as well. Electricity is when they put clips on the needles and electric pulses go through the needles. It takes some getting used to, but it works WAY BETTER then the Tens unit. The needles are more exact and can turn the pain off for up to 8 hours.

I also do self pressure point massage daily for insomnia (due to pain) and for chronic pain. I use the book

Curing Fibromyalgia Naturally with Chinese Medicine By: Bob Flows (14.95)

I highly recommend it.

Good luck

[ranithax]

Can acupuncture help tendons and ligaments in the knee heal faster? My knees have developed a chronic problem. After some research, I believe it might be tendonitis/tendonosis or ITBS. But without seeing a doctor, it could be anything including a tear in the lateral ligament or tendon. Would acupuncture be worth looking into? Has anyone been treated with acupuncture and can you give me some details as to what it accomplished for you?

[Karyn]

Hi ranithax,
I'm not sure if acupuncture would work for someone with a ligament tear. I'd be happy to ask my acupuncturist when I see her on Friday, or if you don't want to wait that long, you could call someone local to you and inquire over the phone. I have/had adductor tendinosis and the treatments have been very effective.
Warm regards,
Karyn

[elephants27]

Wow! I am so sorry for all those who have tried accupunture. I have been going to my accupunturist for 7 years now, and actually started seeing her for endometriosis, and it worked. But don't give up on it just yet. Check your health insurances. Mine covers it and it is cheaper to see her than my pcp. It never hurts to check. I also have vulvunynia as well as pne and well she did some new treatments on me, where i let her stick needles all around my pubic bone and on my sides and even around my vaginal area. I thought it would hurt but it didn't, It actually helped! It works really well for making sex not painful, which is wonderful!! We tried this new way about 2 years ago, now she does it once every 3-4 months. I have to have someone drive me for those appointments. But I hope it works, if insurance doesn't cover it, check your local listings, they have people that do accupunture in a group area where it ranges from $20-40, a session some need no appointments you just show up. I understand about the money!! I'm jealous about the massages, I would love to have one now! So thanks I will ask about bundle packs! great idea. Good luck everyone!

[Alan1646]

I've started having accupuncture / Chinese herbs in the UK. After two sessions and two weeks of taking the herbs I have had no reduction or difference in my symptoms, but I'm going to continue for a few more weeks.I'll post again with the results in a few weeks.

[Karyn]

After two sessions and two weeks of taking the herbs I have had no reduction or difference in my symptoms, but I'm going to continue for a few more weeks

Good for you, Alan! I've never tried chinese herbs. Although I've had some tremendous success with treatments, my acupuncturist said she didn't have any herbs/supplements that would benefit me. Unfortunately, acupuncture is NOT a quick fix. Until you start to notice improvements, you really need to go twice a week for several weeks. Then you can begin to minimize your appointments. It's been my experience that acupuncture is very helpful with healing areas of the body that aren't "blocked". For instance, it was very effective for my myofascial pain but not for PN entrapment. The chi can't penetrate dense scar tissue or alter structural issues.

[deBBieW]

Karyn,
I agree with you. I tried acupuncture for several weeks, and no luck. Oh how I wished..... but I think it's great for lots of other problems. And I would do it again, but it was not helpful for my PN.

[Alan1646]

I started having accupuncture/chinese herbs in March and have decided to stop because I have not had any improvement from it. It may well work for other people but in my case it hasn't and I can't afford to carry on in the hope that it might start working at some point in the future.

[Jax87]

I had my first accupuncture treatment today. The accupuncturist's office is in the same building as my PT, so I decided to go for it. She says that it will take 4-5 times to see any difference. It was very relaxing, and not at all painful. I will keep going and post an update for everybody. I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much because, like the rest of you, I have been let down so many times. But, fingers-crossed for some relief.

The accupuncturist says she has one patient with vulvodynia from PN that is getting PT and accupuncture at the same time like me. That patient's symptoms have been reduced a whopping 80%! I'm not sure how long that patient has been going. Now she only sees her once every three weeks. The patient is getting PT at the same time, but the PT said she noticed a huge difference once the patient started accupuncture. Very interesting. It is always good to hear about someone's pain getting better, right?

With hope, Jackie