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has anyone tried acupuncture for pain relief

Posted , 5 users are following.

lynn_eda
lynn_eda

hi....I broke my wrist in February and the bone is healed. I now have crps and cannot move my wrist, hand or fingers. I am in physical therapy 4 times a week plus 2 days a week in a group pain management therapy. my arm is in pain from shoulder down to fingertips. I have had a nerve block twice with no pain relief at all. we are now discussing acupuncture. has anyone with crps tried it with positive results??? I need the pain to subside so I can do more in therapy to get my hand working!!! I'm looking for any feedback at all. thank you.

1 like, 10 replies

10 Replies

  • browneyes58
    browneyes58 lynn_eda

    Posted

    Hi Lynn Eda,

    I had acupuncture 3X a week for like 7 months

    They also did massage therapy seasons on me. I personally didn't receive much benefit from it. It might of eased the pain for an hour or so. Then other times I would have more pain after a treatment. The Dr finally told me that he might be able to give me small gaps of relief, but that acupuncture would never be beneficial to me in the long run. Also, my insurance didn't pay and it was expensive!

    Just fyi if you didn't know, with CRPS we have to be careful of needle sticks or any kind of trauma to our bodies due to it causing flair ups or spread to other parts of our body.

    Hope this helps!

    Browneyes58 in TX

    • lynn_eda
      lynn_eda browneyes58

      Posted

      Hi browneyes,

      ?Thanks so much for your input.  I haven't had any positive feedback on acupuncture at all which is why I am on the fence about it.  I am so sorry it hasn't given you relief.  Thanks again.

      Lynn Eda

    • browneyes58
      browneyes58 lynn_eda

      Posted

      Lynn Eda,

      In my opinion and experience, acupuncture is more harmful than helpful in CRPS patients. INeedle sticks or any body trauma just elevates CRPS pain and can also cause it to spread to other parts of your body. I didn't know these things about CRPS when I was getting acupuncture treatments.

      As I said in my last message, I have tried just about everything, except off label treatments, (my dr does not do off label) and my pain pump has benefited me more than anything else.

      I do caution you, if you have a pain management dr, you must be careful to comply with his rules and the contract you signed with him/her, or you could position yourself to loose your Dr. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, discuss any treatmment plan with your pain mangement Dr before going forward if he/she did not order it! And if you have CRPS, you never want your dr to drop you! Reason being, if one dr drops you, you would probably have a hard time finding another one to take you. We are at the mercy of our pain management Drs. I thank God I have a great one!!

      Hoping and praying you find some relief soon!

      Browneyes58

    • lynn_eda
      lynn_eda browneyes58

      Posted

      Hi browneyes....thanks for yor input. I am working very closely with my pain doctor. I think I need to skip the acupuncture at this point. no positive feedback. I am looking for a longer term help with pain so I can get my hand functioning. thanks again and saying a prayer each day for all of us with crps to find some relief.
  • Princess1970
    Princess1970 lynn_eda

    Posted

    Hello Lynn. I have not tried acupuncture for the reason my hand could not handle the needles I can not tolerate touch at all. I now have a nerve stimulator which was my last result for pain relief. I've had it 3 months now and the pain from the battery pack is pretty bad,i thought it was not worth it and was thinking of having it removed,until one day my battery died and the pain in !y hand was so bad I had tears! I had forgotten how bad the pain really was.so the stimulator does work. It's something to look into but read on it alot before making that decision..I hope you find some relief..

    • lynn_eda
      lynn_eda Princess1970

      Posted

      Hi princess....thanks for your input. I'm so sorry for your pain. praying you have relief soon. I think I have to skip the acupuncture at this point. I put another question out last night but it was held for soon reason and didn't post. I'm wondering g if anyone has tried medicinal marijuana??? I know it helps pain for cancer and other diseases with pain. cold it possibly help with crps ?? my doc has not yet mentioned the nerve stimulator. I will ask. thanks so much.

    • browneyes58
      browneyes58 Princess1970

      Posted

      Hi Princess!

      BTW, love the name!

      I saw where you cannot tolerate touch. Me too. But while I was in a long term care facility, one of my therapist told me to keep rubbing my leg to take the sensitivity out. I rubbed my leg, with my hand, for hours a day. This has helped with the sensitivity quite a bit. I know some therapist have you use different textures for rubbing, such as different fabrics, rubber balls, feather dusters, etc., to help the sensitivity. I still have trouble with different textured clothing on my leg some days. I can't wear anything tight or heavy anymore like jeans....they are a definite NO every day! Some days just walking outside and the heat or cold hitting my leg will send me back inside quickly. Also, some nights I can't even let a sheet lay on my leg or the air movement of a ceiling fan hit it. My husband has a hard time(it's not that he doesn't believe me) wondering why I can rub my leg all day but he can't touch it. I don't really understand that either, but it's true. If your not living it, people might have sympathy, but they just don't, nor can they, understand. But believe me Princess, I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND this nightmare we're locked in and can't wake up from!

      Hope and prayers for better days and less pain for my fellow CRPS and chronic pain sufferers!

      Browneyes58

    • lynn_eda
      lynn_eda browneyes58

      Posted

      Hi browneyes.....I know exactly how the sensitivity is. same with me. I sometimes can't put the sheet over my arm and hand at night. the air blowing on me either a fan or the wind outside is sometimes really uncomfortable. I am also touching, rubbing, massaging my arm and hand to desensitize. using different textures helps too. some days I wonder how I am going to get a t-shirt on over my arm and hand. cotton sometimes feels like sandpaper. although my husband has read up on crps and mentally understands what's going on sometimes he looks at me with an expression that says huh??? he knows the pain is real and yet it's hard to believe unless you are experiencing it. unfortunately for some of us we know all too well that the pain is real. prayers to all of you for some relief.

    • dawn63519
      dawn63519 browneyes58

      Posted

      Hi, sorry to hear about your pain, i have just posted my history of crps, so i wont tell you again, but mine is in my breasts, but worse of my right side, i was told to touch my chest with a soft cloth, a sponge etc. it was very painful, in answer to your question, my husband doesnt understand either, why can i do it a little, but he cant touch me at all.  i think its because we know how hard to touch it, and when it hurts, we stop, but my husband isnt feeling the pain, so he wouldnt know when to stop touching. hope that this helps.  i saw an article to take vitamin c 1000mg a day, i bought dissolvable tablets from boots the chemist, they re cheaper that physiotherapist, and i have been taking them for 4 days and i do a few gentle exercises a day, and so far i am pleased with the result, i am feeling a little better, but the article did say that you may  need to take it for 3 months. hope that this helps.  dawn63519
  • dawn63519
    dawn63519 lynn_eda

    Posted

    Hi, I am knew to this website, sorry to hear that you are so poorly, when i was 14 years old, i did a handstand up a wall, and i fell awkwardly onto my right shoulder, it hurt for a long time, but i didnt see a doctor, when i was 16 years old, i was on my way to work, as i walked i was in agony with both breasts being very painful, but worse on my right side.  i had seen many doctors, but i was told it was because i had lumps in my breasts, but nothing to be worried about. i have been in 2 car accidents, hurt my back 3 times, guess all of this has added to my pain.  last october i lifted 3 heavy objects in a course of 3 days, then i got a frozen shoulder, even more pain, i went to see a physiotherapist, i told her about what had been going on, she said i have CRPS, i wasnt thrilled by the thought of that, something else to deal with, but at last someone had recognised my condition.  i have done some researching on the internet, apparently it is difficult to find the right medicine, some of what they suggested i cant have, because of other medicine that i take. and i cant come off of those, it said to have physio, but to make sure that they are specialised in crps, because if there arent, the exercises and treatment will cause more pain. see your doctor, get him or her to send you to the hospital to see a physiotherapist.  my physiotherapist helped my frozen shoulder pain, but her massaging my pectorial muscles and stretching my shoulder, puts me into agony.i have been seeing her for 3 months. so i cancelled my next appointment, i am doing 2 exercises a day, very gently exercises, to stretch the muscles. the pain felt better, i then read an article about taking vitamin c tablets 1000mg, it can help, i have been taking it for 4 days, and the pain is a little better, so that is what i am going to take, the article said you may have to take it for 3 months.  i got soluble tablets in boots the chemist, a lot cheaper than paying for a physiotherapist. let me know how you get on.
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