I am thinking about trying acupuncture to restore nerve function in my stomach. (Gastroparesis)
I had a friend that had surgery and he could not use his vocal chords or talk afterwords. Nothing would help until he did acupuncture and he now talks just fine.
Has anyone else done acupuncture for nerve pain or nerve function???
Also, are there any articles out there talking about lyme neurotoxins affecting nerve function?
Posted by Leelee (Member # 19112) on :
I did acupuncture several years ago for severe breast pain which I now believe is related to Lyme and cos.
From what I understand most people have tremendous success with it. Unfortunately, after several months of sessions nothing improved. I can only assume it was because neither the practitioner nor I really knew what was wrong with me.
Posted by dguy (Member # 8979) on :
I tried a few months of it, felt no better in the end
Posted by cottonbrain (Member # 13769) on :
i only did one session -- i got really anxious because the practitioner kept grotesquely hacking--and not a hand-washing facility in the site -- and no protective gloves or mask --
i broke out into a cold sweat and developed a massive headache which i just knew any second
would develop into an explosive aneurism which would splatter my brains all over his unhygienic torture chamber,
and indeed, i detected on the wall beside me some curious spatter marks left by previous victims no doubt--
he came in to spin my needles, asked me why i was so nervous and i couldn't even tell him, Its because you are a flippin germ incubator, dr frankenstein!
i just grunted and rolled my eyes until he released me from his dastardly clutches.
a true story
Posted by aMomWithHope (Member # 19255) on :
Cottonbrain--you're too funny! My daughter had a similar experience as yours with one of her acupuncturists. He came highly recommended, but he did nothing for her in terms of her pain. But she feels the same way as you do regarding the unhygienic environment and Dr. Frankenstein feel to the place.
Fortunately her other acupuncturist experience wasn't as horrific-but it did nothing to help her either.
Buster, We have heard from many friends though that have had great success with acupuncture so I'm not quite sure why it didn't work for her.
I would suggest you give it a try. If it is going to help you, there is supposed to be a noticeable difference rather quickly. Although we were told that you should go for at least 5 visits before making the decision to continue or stop.
Good luck. I hope it works for you!
Posted by painted turtle (Member # 7801) on :
i went to an acupuncturist once a week for several months toward the end of last year, mainly to focus on the
trigeminal neuralgia aspect of the lyme,
plus everything else that cycled.
it was helpful.
i think the far infrared light he used in combo on my jaw helped
it did not heal me but certainly helped.
finding a good practitioner is really important.
the other thing is,
they speak a different language
with regard to
diagnosis.
they will look at it entirely differently, speak about what is going on differently,
it doesn't matter,
it is the same thing, just a different way of looking
the main thing i learned is
it is a wind condition, the lyme
like wind,
always moving (cyclic) so we were always just chasing it around my body
but i do feel as though it helped so
it was worth it.
Posted by painted turtle (Member # 7801) on :
p.s.
Timing was crucial.
i tried acupuncture right after diagnosis
did NOTHING to help at all.
but,
a few years into it, after the antibiotics,
it helped.
Timing is everything!
Posted by Ocean (Member # 3496) on :
I haven't done it yet, but I want to try it. Those stories do scare me though...eeek!!!
Fortunately there is an MD about an hour from us who does it (my grandma goes to her), she does it in her home and also the hosptial she works at has a whole accupunture wing! Which is very inventive for a small Ohio town!
Good luck if you try it, let us know how it goes!
Ocean
Posted by lyme2health (Member # 19981) on :
Just like any other medical professional, there are good acupuncturists and there are quacks. I'm so sorry so many who have replied here have had such bad experiences. I have found acupuncture very helpful. It doesn't heal lyme, but it helps your body fight lyme.
Shop around. Ask, network, find out who is well known and recommended and particularly if they have worked with lyme patients.
Interview them ahead of time. I ask for acupuncturists to stay with me in the room so they can put needles in and out as needed. With neuro lyme I'm much more sensitive and take fewer needles for less time than most patients. I also work with acupuncturists who will chose points with me instead of them deciding.
Buster, I think restoring nerve function could be done with acupuncture, worth giving it a shot.
Posted by nomoremuscles (Member # 9560) on :
Acupuncture was the first thing to offer any relief. This was before I knew I had Lyme and pals and was suffering awful neuro syx. I'd go in the evenings, and the relief lasted until midday the next day. Nothing else touched it.
Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
I tried acupuncture for musculuskeletal pain. I did not respond well.
My LLMD does it. He's hygienic, skilled, and lyme literate.
I agree with painted turtle -- timing is important.
It was too early in my treatment(about 3 mos.) It stirred up too much trouble.
I believe I will try again if needed, after I've cleared out some of the active infections (lyme & co).
Posted by MariaA (Member # 9128) on :
I had/sometimes still have, this phantom pain that feels like a burning on my skin.
Acupuncture did a great job of making that go away. I was getting needled every couple of weeks and the pain would disappear for about 10 days. Your results will no doubt be different than mine. I hate getting acupuncture so I haven't kept up with it, though.
Everyone I've talked to about it (which is quite a few people involved in Traditional Chinese Medicine) says that you need to go for several months to really see the effects.
Also, the cost will vary drastically from one city to another. In some places it's $25 for a treatment, in others, over $100. It isn't necessarily a reflection on the practitioner.
PM me if you'd like to know of one in Chapel Hill NC who's good, or one in San Francisco who's familiar with Lyme.
Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
I forgot to mention:
My SIL is a massage therapist who sees alot of patients who have acupuncture also, for various reasons.
She has told me that you need to go for at least 10 sessions. I've heard a similar timeframe from others as well.
My neice was treated (acupuncture being the only treatment she received) for stomach/intestinal troubles (otherwise healthy)and was very happy with the results.
I think she'll need maintenance, but hasn't gone yet. It's been over a year.
Good luck.
Posted by nenet (Member # 13174) on :
My husband had a terrible headache that lasted for 6 months, non-stop, without abatement. That was the first time I started learning about Lyme, because it came up in searches for unusual, long-lasting headaches. We are still not sure if he might have Lyme, but he is functional and relatively healthy, so he is not currently pursuing treatment for it.
Anyway, all the Doctors and Specialists he saw could not determine what was wrong, and were on the edge of labeling it as "all in his head", as they do when their knowledge is taxed and they are getting nowhere with a patient because of it.
I started researching alternatives, and found out about acupuncture. He figured there was nothing to lose at this point, and went (I did sessions along with him). The practitioner was/is the son of the founder of a very large Traditional Chinese Medicine University in China. He is very good, and his wife helps him.
He told my husband that he had a blocked meridian (I forget the exact one at the moment), and that he should experience some relief in a couple of sessions, and that if he could not remove the headache completely in 12 sessions, then he could do nothing more for his headache.
Sure enough, with each successive session, the headache would decrease by about half during the session, and a portion of that relief would linger for longer and longer afterwards. By the 10th session, the headache was gone.
I went for sessions too, because I was experiencing worsening of "Fibromyalgia" symptoms at the time (Lyme and co-infections), and they did their best. It would help me relax quite a bit, and relieved some pain, but they told me that whatever was wrong would need more than acupuncture, and that my condition was beyond their abilities to remove completely with acupuncture.
They helped me with some Herbal medicines, but I didn't stick with them due to the foul taste, and not being familiar with all the ingredients. I would go back for acupuncture and moxabustion treatment in a heartbeat, every day if I could only afford it, and was well enough to leave the house regularly. It was heavenly, very very relaxing, and I would always leave the place very calm and contented, for a long while.
Another long story, just to say that after all the medicines and tests from the usual route that did nothing, acupuncture cured my husband's debilitating headache, and it has never returned. We will never forget that.
[ 05-23-2009, 05:46 PM: Message edited by: nenet ]
Posted by ICEiam (Member # 7519) on :
I had Migraines from my teens until well into my 30's. Horrible pain and they would knock me down for a week or more.
I went to accupuncture for a very long time for various things. Panic attacks included. It did me a world of good.
I don't think I would have survived had I not found relief. I went to a wonderful man that studied in China for years to perfect his treatment.
I think like with any ohter treatment for Lyme and Co's, what works for one, doesn't always work for the other.
Cotton, I am so very sorry you had such a horrible experience. I never had any bleeding nor any pain from my accupunturist.
Just the normal dull ache when they hit the Point, but that dulls quickly and I wouldn't call it pain.
He was wonderful and gentle.............and CLEAN!!
I would try it and see if it helps you, you won't know till you try.