Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group Possible scientific basis for acupuncture

I bet I'm not the only one around here who has been skeptical that sticking needles into someone could reduce their pain instead of increase it...

http://www.livescience.com/health/etc/100531-study-suggests-why-acupuncture-might-work.html

i enjoyed reading this, thanks!

Didn't have time to read the whole article...
but one thing I will say is - I certainly wouldn't fancy having toothpicks stuck all over me!! They can't be serious!

i have had the acupuncture on a few occasions and boy does it knock me for six!

all the needles were placed in my spine and ankles for about ten minutes or so

when i was finished i felt and looked as though i had just finished 6 beers and a couple of joints!

talk about relaxed? i could NOT have drove home,my eyes were a dead giveaway of someone drunk and/or stoned

managed the pain for a while but i thought it was more useful for AS related anxiety/depression

far out man
john

If you get the proper acupuncturist such as a Chinese trained one you can get great results. I have such a one. The needles themselves dont hurt going in but she twists them to cause what she says in broken english "no shock no pain no good". She doesnt baby me. It is a bit uncomfortable but as an adjacent therapy it is great. No side effect like NSAIDS give you and I look at it like something that helps while I try to figure out a better treatment option. If I go twice a week it will reduce my pain 75 percent.

Cool article. And there were some interesting links at the bottom of the page (and several other pages after that...).

I'm with Kurumi....how do acupuncture needles and toothpicks compare???? Eeeek. And they probably stuck the toothpicks under the fingernails, too.

Interesting reading, thanks for posting. Still not sure about acupuncture though.

Tim

all I know is thai I was a skeptic until my neck pain was unbearable Then I was convinced there was nothing to lose. I wen tonce, felt no different. I went a second time and thought maybe a bit of a change for the better, but maybe I just wanted it. I went a third time in a two week period and the next day an unbearable spasm and pain cycle was broken.

It still seems to work like thqt with a series of hits. I am a believer

Acupuncture didn't do anything for me either, I tried it like ten times (maybe more?) from various practitioners over the years

My ex-girlfriend's sister has become dedicated to it, and includes me on her newsletter list, citing this study or that, I always take a look.

But the thing that I always come back to, is the first thing she said to me to convince me to keep an open mind, was that this form of treatment has been around literally for thousands of years, there must be something to it

just wanted to add that i'm not sure i could explain everything going on in my body, but acupuncture definitely had an effect on me.

i did a few sessions in the fall when i was in the worst flare to date and was desperately seeking things out, so not necessarily the best testing situation.

the good: it was very cathartic. also, don't know if it was coincidence in timing or was the acupuncture, but the gastrointestinal issues i had been having for over a month seemed to disappear overnight after my first acupuncture session.

the not so good: the needles going in didn't hurt so much, but several generated quite severe muscle spasms in me. the one that worried me was the lower back lat spasm as he was taking the needle out of my SI joint. it did settle on its own thank goodness, but that one surprised me. i decided at that time that my body was just too sensitive and i would have to wait until i was in a better place to try again. maybe if i had kept going at that time, the muscle spasms from the needles would have lessened, don't know. but do think acupuncture is one of those things kept on my list of possibilities for the future.