# Acupuncture seems to be working



## Murrmurr (Apr 30, 2021)

I'd been going every week to get 8 tiny needles stuck in my backside, including my hips, the backs of my knees, and my ankles. Then I just lay there for 20 minutes or so under a heat lamp. After the first 2 treatments I didn't notice any results. Well I woke up really hungry after the first one, which is a good thing cuz I hadn't felt hungry for months and I lost about 15 pounds. And I wasn't overweight to begin with. But, while I wolfed down my bacon, eggs and toast, I wasn't sure that feeling hungry had anything to do with the acupuncture. The treatments were prescribed for pain, so I can reduce the pain medication, or even not have to take it at all.

So anyway, the second day after the first treatment, I wasn't hungry again. But after the second treatment a week later, I was. And I stayed pretty hungry all week. I was cooking again and absolutely devouring at least one hot meal a day. When I saw my regular doctor after the 3rd acupuncture treatment, I was all excited because I'd put on 3 pounds.

Maybe I was too distracted by the loss and recovery of an appetite to notice that I also had significantly less pain after the 3rd acupuncture treatment. I didn't even realize it until I went to fill up my daily pill dispenser one morning and saw I'd forgotten to take the evening dose the day before. The evening dose is the one I usually need pretty desperately because I'm most active in the afternoon.

You have to fill out this form every time you go in for your acupuncture treatment. It asks about your pain level and where it hurts and all that, and it has a couple areas where you can "explain" your answers. So last week, before my 5th treatment, I wrote down that my pain was reduced by a solid 40%. Dr. Yoon got all excited about that and scheduled all my subsequent appointments with the chief acupuncturist, Dr. Gocke (fortunately, she asked me to call her Christine).

Yesterday, for my 6th treatment, Christine stuck in 10 needles. The 2 extra ones went in the calves of my legs. Interestingly, the right calf, the one that gets these frequent, extremely painful cramps...that needle hurt. So Christine and I talked about that. She said she'd noticed excess neurological impulses in that area and chose to stick pins in it, and I told her that I normally get those horrible leg-foot cramps 3 to 5 times every night, but now they only happen maybe twice in a week.

So here's the overall improvements after my 6th week of acupuncture treatments:
Currently, lower back pain reduced by a good 50%
My appetite keeps getting better. I've gained back 12 out of 15 pounds
Excruciating leg/foot cramps down from 3 or more per night to like 2 per week (Christine recommended magnesium supplement)
Easy-peasy bowel movements
I walk better; posture is great, spring in my step, knees take the impact really well

And I just feel good. _Really_ good! 

I'm scheduled for weekly acupuncture treatments for another 6 weeks. Meantime, most days I'm fine just taking 1 or 2 pain pills a day instead of 3. The goal is zero pills.


----------



## Keesha (Apr 30, 2021)

This is fantastic news Murrmur. 
It’s great that you were open to alternative treatments. Happy healing.


----------



## Murrmurr (Apr 30, 2021)

Keesha said:


> This is fantastic news Murrmur.
> It’s great that you were open to alternative treatments. Happy healing.


Thanks, Keesha.
I forgot to mention, Christine asked if I was sleeping better and it wasn't til I got home that I remembered that lately I feel sleepy at around 6 or 7pm. So sleepy that if I sit in the recliner, I doze off for about 2 hours. That's not so good because then I'm wide awake until after 2 or 3am, so I'm gonna talk to her about that. But I am sleeping better at night.

I wasn't 100% sure about acupuncture, maybe even a little skeptical, so I'm kind of surprised at the improvements. I mean, I thought maybe it was partly (if not entirely) mental, you know? Like, if you believe it'll work, it will. I've been proven wrong. For me, it definitely works.


----------



## Keesha (Apr 30, 2021)

Acupuncture is a very powerful traditional method successfully used for healthy healing  for centuries.  Apparently it helps bring blood and energy flow to areas in the body that need healing the most which creates balance.  There’s always room for the placebo effect but this IS an alternative healing method with incredibly high results in improvement.
You’ve just reminded me how great this can be. After quarantine I will find a good acupuncturist.


----------



## rgp (Apr 30, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> I'd been going every week to get 8 tiny needles stuck in my backside, including my hips, the backs of my knees, and my ankles. Then I just lay there for 20 minutes or so under a heat lamp. After the first 2 treatments I didn't notice any results. Well I woke up really hungry after the first one, which is a good thing cuz I hadn't felt hungry for months and I lost about 15 pounds. And I wasn't overweight to begin with. But, while I wolfed down my bacon, eggs and toast, I wasn't sure that feeling hungry had anything to do with the acupuncture. The treatments were prescribed for pain, so I can reduce the pain medication, or even not have to take it at all.
> 
> So anyway, the second day after the first treatment, I wasn't hungry again. But after the second treatment a week later, I was. And I stayed pretty hungry all week. I was cooking again and absolutely devouring at least one hot meal a day. When I saw my regular doctor after the 3rd acupuncture treatment, I was all excited because I'd put on 3 pounds.
> 
> ...



Continued good luck to you .......... I had my first acupuncture today @ my scheduled therapy . Ten needles in each lower leg & tops of the feet.


----------



## hollydolly (Apr 30, 2021)

Fantastic...long may it continue to keep the pain at bay ...


----------



## Murrmurr (Apr 30, 2021)

rgp said:


> Continued good luck to you .......... I had my first acupuncture today @ my scheduled therapy . Ten needles in each lower leg & tops of the feet.


They always ask if I want to lie face up or face down and I've always said face down. The pain is in my back, so it seemed logical to me. But now that I know more about it, and I'm curious, I'm gonna go with face up next time.

Best with yours, rgp!


----------



## PamfromTx (Apr 30, 2021)

Awesome news, @Murrmurr


----------



## IrisSenior (Apr 30, 2021)

I have had acupuncture for tendonitis in my elbow a number of years ago. It was great and did help me. I have also used acupuncture before my cochlear implant (head) surgery on my right side. The difference from the pain and recovery from the first side (left) done, was amazing. For my shoulder pain - I decided to go with physiotherapy and the shoulder is getting better.


----------



## Murrmurr (Apr 30, 2021)

IrisSenior said:


> I have had acupuncture for tendonitis in my elbow a number of years ago. It was great and did help me. I have also used acupuncture before my cochlear implant (head) surgery on my right side. The difference from the pain and recovery from the first side (left) done, was amazing. For my shoulder pain - I decided to go with physiotherapy and the shoulder is getting better.


Did the tendonitis return? I'm wondering if I'll have to keep getting treatments for the rest of my life and I'm pretty sure that if I finally get off the pain medication, it'll be practically impossible getting it prescribed again if I need it down the road (it's an opioid).


----------



## asp3 (Apr 30, 2021)

My wife had a neck injury from a car accident and after several months of pain after she'd been to several doctors she finally tried acupuncture.  The first treatment took away a lot of the pain, the second treatment took away the rest and the third and final treatment had her feeling less stiff.  She never had to return for treatment for her neck but did have treatments for other things a few times over the next 20 years.  It worked very well for her.


----------



## Mr. Ed (Apr 30, 2021)

I had success with acupuncture


----------



## IrisSenior (May 1, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> Did the tendonitis return? I'm wondering if I'll have to keep getting treatments for the rest of my life and I'm pretty sure that if I finally get off the pain medication, it'll be practically impossible getting it prescribed again if I need it down the road (it's an opioid).


No it never returned


----------



## Nathan (May 1, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> *Acupuncture seems to be working*
> 
> I walk better; posture is great, spring in my step, knees take the impact really well
> 
> ...


@Murrmurr - glad to hear, sounds like you're gaining back mobility too...awesome!


----------



## Ruthanne (May 1, 2021)

That's very good news.  I've never tried Acupuncture but it's been recommended to me at times.  Does insurance cover it?


----------



## fmdog44 (May 1, 2021)

WHAT?! Not taking drugs? How un-American can you be? Glad to hear something is working for you.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 1, 2021)

Ruthanne said:


> That's very good news.  I've never tried Acupuncture but it's been recommended to me at times.  Does insurance cover it?


Medicare covers it....finally.


----------



## Ruthanne (May 1, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> Medicare covers it....finally.


Cool.  I don't have Medicare yet only Medicaid.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 1, 2021)

Ruthanne said:


> Cool.  I don't have Medicare yet only Medicaid.


Medicaid is my secondary insurance but I don't know if they help cover it - I haven't gotten a new statement yet. My guess is they don't but your doctor could find out for sure.


----------



## Ruth n Jersey (May 1, 2021)

@Murrmurr I'm so happy for you. Great that Medicare covers it. I may look into for my weak leg muscle problems. Physical therapy did nothing for me.


----------



## timoc (May 1, 2021)

Acupuncture​
I've thought about having it several times, but then, putting all those needles into me would release all my wind, I'd deflate like a balloon, and besides, I've already got an orifice to let my wind out.


----------



## Tish (May 1, 2021)

So happy for you Murrmurr.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 20, 2021)

Today I'll be going in for my 8th acupuncture treatment.

My lower back pain is 90% gone for, I'd say, 80% of the time during the day and almost 100% of the time during the night. The extremely painful leg-foot cramps that woke me up 3 to 5 times every night don't happen at all, so I'm sleeping much better. All night.

When I get out of bed in the morning, I have some pain and stiffness in my back. The pain is maybe only level 3 or 4, but I take my morning meds to "stay ahead of the pain" (doctor's orders). Depending on how active I am, I don't need another pain pill until about 3 or 4pm and I usually don't need another one later on. But even when I'm active, like if I vacuum and mop or go outside to play, my pain level doesn't ever get worse than level 6 or 7, and it goes away completely if I just sit down for about 15-20 minutes. Completely goes away.

One tiny drawback is that, now that my back pain is totally tolerable, the pain in my neck seems more acute. I have a bad disk in there and a little bone spur and arthritis. But the neck pain really isn't all that bad, just very annoying. And I'm gonna mention it to my acupuncturist today. She can't treat it yet, because the insurance approves only one issue at a time, but she can request separate treatments.

I can totally recommend acupuncture for pain.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 20, 2021)

timoc said:


> Acupuncture​
> I've thought about having it several times, but then, *putting all those needles into me would release all my wind*, I'd deflate like a balloon, and besides, I've already got an orifice to let my wind out.


That can happen, actually. Acupuncturists are used to it, I was told...for no particular reason.


----------



## Keesha (May 20, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> Today I'll be going in for my 8th acupuncture treatment.
> 
> My lower back pain is 90% gone for, I'd say, 80% of the time during the day and almost 100% of the time during the night. The extremely painful leg-foot cramps that woke me up 3 to 5 times every night don't happen at all, so I'm sleeping much better. All night.
> 
> ...


This is great news Murrmurr. It sounds like you found a good acupuncturist. Your recovery is inspiring. It’s good that you are open to trying alternative therapy.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 20, 2021)

Keesha said:


> This is great news Murrmurr. It sounds like you found a good acupuncturist. Your recovery is inspiring. It’s good that you are open to trying alternative therapy.


The results are amazing. I thought you had to totally believe in it, but I was very skeptical, so apparently it's not about mental attitude or faith.

And hey, I talked to the acupuncturist about my neck. She treated it today and will keep treating it, and she's not going to bill for it!


----------



## Keesha (May 20, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> The results are amazing. I thought you had to totally believe in it, but I was very skeptical, so apparently it's not about mental attitude or faith.
> 
> And hey, I talked to the acupuncturist about my neck. She treated it today and will keep treating it, and she's not going to bill for it!


You got yourself a good acupuncturist. 
That’s great service. Do you both wear masks while getting treatment? Does the acupuncturist wear gloves? How long are your treatments?


----------



## Murrmurr (May 20, 2021)

Keesha said:


> You got yourself a good acupuncturist.
> That’s great service. Do you both wear masks while getting treatment? Does the acupuncturist wear gloves? How long are your treatments?


I take my mask off during treatment. She's fine with that. She wears hers all the time and puts gloves on while she inserts the needles. Once the needles are all in place, I lay under a heat lamp for 20-30 minutes. We always discuss results before treatment, talk about any changes and whatnot, and after treatment she tells me stuff I need to know about subsequent visits. Like, today she told me I have 4 visits left before Medicare will approve the next 20, but I only have 2 weeks to do the 4 treatments, so for the next 2 weeks I'll go twice a week instead of once.

She is very good. She has 15 years experience doing acupuncture and was a holistic care provider for 8 years before that.


----------



## Keesha (May 20, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> I take my mask off during treatment. She's fine with that. She wears hers all the time and puts gloves on while she inserts the needles. Once the needles are all in place, I lay under a heat lamp for 20-30 minutes. We always discuss results before treatment, talk about any changes and whatnot, and after treatment she tells me stuff I need to know about subsequent visits. Like, today she told me I have 4 visits left before Medicare will approve the next 20, but I only have 2 weeks to do the 4 treatments, so for the next 2 weeks I'll go twice a week instead of once.
> 
> She is very good. She has 15 years experience doing acupuncture and was a holistic care provider for 8 years before that.


Thank you for sharing. 
That sounds like exceptional service with excellent communication. I’m jealous. Lol 
I’d love to find someone like that around here. 
You are very fortunate. You have done a very good job of healing your body back to health through a variety of resources. It’s really nice seeing other people get healed successful. 
Good stuff.


----------



## Jules (May 20, 2021)

Glad to read more good news from you, Murrmurr.  I had it too in combination with physio.

There are acupuncturists who will work on pets too if anyone has an aged animal with joint pain.


----------



## terry123 (May 21, 2021)

So glad to hear that Murr!  Through the years I have heard similar stories like yours.  Anything to keep off some of the pain pills.


----------



## Keesha (May 21, 2021)

Jules said:


> Glad to read more good news from you, Murrmurr.  I had it too in combination with physio.
> 
> There are acupuncturists who will work on pets too if anyone has an aged animal with joint pain.


Our Yorkie had acupuncture and it worked very well on her. I’d like to find a holistic veterinarian here.


----------



## Lethe200 (May 23, 2021)

One of the best things about marrying an immigrant from Hong Kong was getting to meet their family acupuncturist! He had just emigrated - did not speak much English yet in 1975 - and was the *eighth generation* of his family to be acupuncturists. His son, born in the U.S., now practices with him. The son is actually a licensed Western doctor as well as a licensed acupuncturist, so he is the ninth generation!

We were in our 20's when I met him, so only used him sporadically over the next two decades. But in-laws used him regularly after having heart issues with multiple angioplasties. The Western doctors were very impressed how fast FIL would recover from procedures and how few side effects he suffered, LOL. In those days acupuncture was viewed with great suspicion by Western doctors.

After my spouse suffered a stroke at age 50, we immediately got him on weekly visits to the acupuncturist and twice-a-week visits to our acupressurist. He did that for six months and then tapered off gradually. His HMO doctors are very impressed by how well he recovered from what was a major stroke. They can't believe he walks without a cane and speaks clearly/quickly.

Spouse later developed diabetes so was put on Metformin. A side effect is gout - and gout medication has really awful side effects. I suggested we just visit the acupuncturist a few times. Sure enough, one treatment took care of the gout pain although he went twice more, just to be careful.

About five years ago we decided we would both visit the acupuncturist once a month for "tune-ups". Keeping the energies balanced is easier when imbalances are still minor issues - no different than Western medical views, actually.

BTW, acupuncture is especially helpful in recovering from colds or flu, as well.


----------



## Prairie dog (May 23, 2021)

Very interesting read Murrmurr.Glad it is helping you..Please keep us informed.Many thanks.

I started Acupuncture for my lower back pain.The Chinese lady told to try 6 treatments.Would work or not.I had 3 treatments.Then I had a bad fall in the bathroom.Saw my Gp.as I had pain under my right breast ,  over 9"x 6" bruise on my big bum.
Good that I had the lard there or I would of broken my hips.Dr said bruise will be there for a long time.He said I had bruised ribs..My next appt for acupuncture ,she worked on my bruised ribs & bruise.After 1 week I was back.Pain was gone so was most of my big bruise. Then started on my back again...But then we had a shut down because of covid.

Our numbers are bad here...Will go back in time..first on my back & then I have bone on bone in my knees.Don't want surgery.


----------



## Butterfly (May 23, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> Thanks, Keesha.
> I forgot to mention, Christine asked if I was sleeping better and it wasn't til I got home that I remembered that lately I feel sleepy at around 6 or 7pm. So sleepy that if I sit in the recliner, I doze off for about 2 hours. That's not so good because then I'm wide awake until after 2 or 3am, so I'm gonna talk to her about that. But I am sleeping better at night.
> 
> I wasn't 100% sure about acupuncture, maybe even a little skeptical, so I'm kind of surprised at the improvements. I mean, I thought maybe it was partly (if not entirely) mental, you know? Like, if you believe it'll work, it will. I've been proven wrong. For me, it definitely works.


I've had excellent results from acupuncture for pain and muscle spasms in my back and also, surprisingly to me, for a bout of chronic gastritis a few years ago.  My MD had been prescribing stuff for it for a while and it wasn't getting any better and I was facing unpleasant(!) tests to get to the bottom of it.  Two acupuncture treatments and it was gone.

I find acupuncture treatment also to be extremely relaxing.


----------



## Butterfly (May 23, 2021)

Murrmurr said:


> The results are amazing. I thought you had to totally believe in it, but I was very skeptical, so apparently it's not about mental attitude or faith.
> 
> And hey, I talked to the acupuncturist about my neck. She treated it today and will keep treating it, and she's not going to bill for it!



I always thought acupuncture was a bunch of hooey, and only went the first time for back pain because a co-worker was pestering me to death to try it.  I certainly was not a believer going in.


----------



## Murrmurr (May 23, 2021)

Butterfly said:


> I've had excellent results from acupuncture for pain and muscle spasms in my back and also, surprisingly to me, for a bout of chronic gastritis a few years ago.  My MD had been prescribing stuff for it for a while and it wasn't getting any better and I was facing unpleasant(!) tests to get to the bottom of it.  Two acupuncture treatments and it was gone.
> 
> I find acupuncture treatment also to be extremely relaxing.


It is. I meditate while I lie there like an oversized pin cushion. I'm alone in the room under a heat lamp with just the right kind of music at just the right volume, so I fall into a deep state pretty fast.


----------

