Alternative Treatments: Acupuncture

I’ve been getting acupuncture regularly now for a while and today I was reminded of just how much it helps. My chiropractor originally started giving me acupuncture when I first started having issues with TMJ and nothing else seemed to be helping my migraines (this was before we even realized it was TMJ). I don’t remember if it helped then or not. Once we realized what was going on, for whatever reason, he went back to his usual treatments (electrostem & ultrasound).

This summer when I started having more problems with my TMJ again (after they started putting the braces on again), I asked him about giving it another try. After just a short time I knew it was helping more than the electrostem had been. He still does the ultrasound at each visit, as well. Some days it seems to make more of a difference than others. Most of the time it doesn’t really hurt at all, but some days there is one or two spots that just hurt so bad when he puts the needles in. Today was one of those days.

I woke up this morning feeling awful. I was tight and achy and could barely move. I’ve had a good week overall, but it’s been busy. Yesterday, I was starting to drag a LOT, but still had more I had to do. This morning I felt like I’d done too much. I was moving slow and thinking slow. I hurt so bad. I barely made it to the chiropractor and seriously considered not even going. The one thing that kept me from skipping was the knowledge that I didn’t think I’d make it through the weekend if I didn’t go (and my chiro isn’t open on Fridays). So I went. The adjustment itself was no fun, but the acupuncture was just torture. There were two places that just screamed in pain when he inserted the needles and one that hurt through the entire time the needles were in.

All that said, an hour and a half later and I’m feeling a lot better than I was before I went. I’m still not feeling great by any means, but I feel much better, much more focused, my concentration is better and I don’t hurt nearly as bad as I did before the treatment. As I said, it seems the days I need it the most are the days it hurts me the worst… but some things are worth the price.

I should mention that he isn’t doing the electrostem treatment anymore, at all, and I don’t miss it. I realized after he stopped doing it that I think it was actually making things worse, at times. While I love electrostem on my hips/lower back when that area is bothering me, my neck has always been more sensitive to it (requiring a lower setting). I don’t miss it. I rarely ever use my TENs unit anymore and only do so when my hips or lower back start bothering me really bad (which doesn’t typically happen as long as I’m walking regularly).