So. I've had it for a couple of years (started bec. of nasal cavities that demanded more and more antibiotics and it seemed kinda weird to be feeding on extra-strong ones for most of the winter, as they helped until taken. And the lady I go to has medical background and all.). My spouse says it's placebo. Despite the thousands of years of practice behind it.
But then one would have ot admit the 'energies' exist.
What's your experience? Or opinion? (just asking, not for medical decisions, I'll keep on going there anyway :p).

What does it matter if its the placebo affect or not? If it works, go for it.

Despite the thousands of years of practice behind it.
They have also been going on about the effects of eating tiger penis, rhino horn etc for about the same amount of time but that is generally frowned upon nowadays. Just because people have believed in something for a long time does not in itself make it real or true. But as this involves sticking needles into yourself rather than into someone else to effect a cure then there is probably no real problem.

I do know people who have had accupuncture and swear by it.

As to the op, SWMBO has also had problems with her sinuses for years and after seeing a specialist it was recommended surgery be tried as a scan showed the tubes were all blocked and there was some infection. After surgery she feels a lot better and migraines have reduced. Surgeon commented that hers were the most snotty he'd had to deal with. :ooh:

Sorry for any of you trying enjoy pea and ham soup for lunch. :E

problems with her sinuses for years and after seeing a specialist it was recommended surgery...

regards! I was too much of a coward to do this - no need to any more. I remember the spring when everything smelled just divine, even the maple buds, no blossoms visible yet, and I told the acupuncturist, and they laughed - just this spring, aha! and then I realised it's my nose that's different, not the spring air :p!

I tried a course of acupunture some years ago in an attempt to ease the pain of a complicated back injury, having been told by a specialist that traditional surgery wasn't possible. It was administered by a traditional Chinese practitioner, who advised and practised at a hospital. Unfortunately for me, I found it quite unpleasant and although it did have some beneficial numbing effect, it was short lived and not much better than taking a few paracetamol. It was far more expensive and I had to drive thirty miles each way to get to the surgery.

As they say, the benefits vary with the individual so I hope it works for yourself. Good luck.

Unfortunately for me, I found it quite unpleasant and although it did have some beneficial numbing effect, it was short lived and not much better than taking a few paracetamol.

- just what the males around here claim :ugh:. Are wimmin more patient? It didn't work wonders with me within a couple of months either, but has a lasting effect?

I have used an 'Electrical Acupuncture' locator.This finds the acupuncture points and then treats them. Seemed to help with the headaches. For the electrical engineers among JB ers,these points have a negative impedance with respect to the surrounding skin.???????:confused:

Two experiences:

Mine was that I was suffering from pain in my knee joints from worn out cartilage. Went to a elderly German doctor (Dr Demel, sadly deceased many years ago) who had learned acupuncture while in China. Two sessions, knee pain gone for about twelve months. In fact may have been longer as I have no pain today and have had no surgery. One thing I do recall is that the acupuncture caused snot to pour from my nose like Niagra Falls. Dr Demel handed me a tissue and said "that often happens".

My colleague Alex was a chain-smoker who wanted to stop (note that, he had motivation). However he had tried several methods to quit, all failed. As a result of my recomendation, went to the same doctor I mentioned above. Doctor gave him the first of two acupuncture sessions, adding "but I can tell you that you'll never smoke again".

Alex came back to work around lunchtime, told us this, adding "but I don't believe it". Someone handed him a cigarette, he lit it, put it in his mouth, drew smoke in and spat it out. "Ugh, that tastes awful" he said.

I knew Alex before and after this incident - still correspond with him today, for that matter - and I know he never smoked a cigarette again. That day, the scene, when that he tried to smoke and and his reaction, is still in my mind today, about 24 years later. Very impressive.

Re: is acupunture painful ? Yes, some areas are sensitive. Under the nostrils, between toes, around the eyes. Also the little twiddle the doctor gives the needles half way through the session. But c'mon, are we trying to achieve something here or not ?

Oh yes and Mrs OFSO uses the little electrical gadget if she has a migraine. She says it works. Finds the acupunture points and sends a mild shock into them.

For the electrical engineers among JB ers,these points have a negative impedance with respect to the surrounding skin.

This sounds reasonable. Superconducting skin at body temperatures - someone should patent this at once.......:D

..or perhaps they meant "reduced"?;)

Ripline

I've had acupuncture here and there over the years and on the whole found it to be very helpful. As OFSO said the 'twiddling' and moving of certain needles during the treatment was momentarily uncomfortable, but fine all in all. One session that I remember was a regular maintenance session. I had been feeling great, almost superhuman :} for the previous few weeks and told the practitioner of this. He took my pulse here and there and confirmed that I was indeed firing on all cylinders and would burn out if he didn't alleviate this state. One quick needle in a point and boom! Just like that, superhuman energy was gone and back to being Clark Kent again. It was impressive just how quickly the energy changed. As said, if it works, use it.



SHJ

I seem to have been cured of asthma by a couple of courses of acupuncture when I was about 10. My mother was trying it for relief of back pain and asked if it might help me. I remember going to a place over the shops in Hounslow High Street, maybe 20 or so times. The guy would stick the pins in me in various places, leave them for about 20 minutes, then come and take them out again. I still recall that there were some in my face that were rather uncomfortable as they went in and out.

So from my experience it works.

The thing is though, if anybody else told me that they had been cured of something by acupuncture I would be very sceptical.

The thing is though, if anybody else told me that they had been cured of something by acupuncture I would be very sceptical.

:D. Exactly. I've got the feeling recently there might be more things nobody tells as they know no-one would believe anyway? What is it with us, then? We believe that there are millions of galaxies and do not believe that acupuncture works? :E

It is claimed that there are more galaxies than there are grains of sand on Earth.

Can this be true?

I think we should be told.

I had pretty severe sciatica in the mid 1990s; so much so that I was having difficulty in walking. I went to Chinese doctor, no choice in China, and he gave me three sessions with acapuncture and physical bone rearranging. I don't know which one worked the most but I have not had the remotest trouble with my back since.

Are wimmin more patient?

They might be (or more gullible) but it was costing me over £30 a session plus a day off work. A pack of paracetamol was only 16 pence, for more or less the same effect.

An osteopath finally did some good, by deep muscle massage and spinal manipulation.

Horses for courses, methinks.

:D. Exactly. I've got the feeling recently there might be more things nobody tells as they know no-one would believe anyway? What is it with us, then? We believe that there are millions of galaxies and do not believe that acupuncture works? :E

I use EFT every morning but don't tell anyone 'cos they would laugh.

Whoops.

I just did.

OK, so laugh - but the test is does it work ? For me it does.

Consulting a doctor in China about aches and pains brings about treatment by acupuncture automatically. I do not believe that even they believe that it is an instantanious cure for all ones troubles. What it does is relax. after the stings of putting them in have gone, the muscles so that more extreme treatment can be utilised and believe me I have seen some people bashed about. It is a good fix for strains and spains of everyday accidents for a few hours but for it to work the needles have to be in for some time; twenty to thirty minutes.
Normally, in my experience of four occasions of treatment, it copes until the strain has partially cured itself and if it still hurts you get another session.

Curing anything that Western medicine cannot cope with? Not a chance.

No Western medicine; grin and bear it.

I suspect it works, but there's no money in proving it.

I was out the door as soon as I heard someone behind me say "you're going to feel a little prick."

This sounds reasonable. Superconducting skin at body temperatures - someone should patent this at once.......

..or perhaps they meant "reduced"?


The electricity is being' sucked' out in negative impedance. It is believed the nerves do this,a sort of amplification. :ok:

I renched my neck about 8 mths ago and all the various modern medicine techniques and treatments were having no effect.

The Physio who was trying to sort it out suggested acupuncture. I said give it a go.

8 tiny needles, 2 treatments. Fixed.

Dont know how or why it worked, it just has, so result.

Alwayz

A few years ago, my dad tried it for iritable knee syndrome (which basically means while sleeping his knee hurts like hell and he gets woken up). Two sessions later. he was sleeping through the night and maybe it was the increased sleep or maybe it as the acupuncture, he looked 10 years younger to the extent he was accused of having a facelift.

It works and with a regualr top up (once a month at his suggestion), the problem has gone

Acupuncture causes a lasting reaction (usually positive) when used on unconscious patients and animals, so a placebo effect is hard to explain.

Acupuncture points, as mentioned above, can be detected by "conventional" physics and blind testing of doubting subjects can elicit an extreme reaction when the points are probed (with or without a needle) suggesting that they are quite real.

And I have witnessed at first hand (my hand, as it happens) acupuncture resolving problems that are completely unresponsive to every kind of Western diagnosis and therapy.

Had quite severe back pain several years ago.
Conventional Quackery failed to sort anything out so I went to
an Accupuncturist. That was a lot more expensive, and also failed
to sort things out. Went back to the Quack, and eventually saw a
specialist chappie who whisked out one of the lower discs that had
"popped", Been fine ever since. Mind you, it took SEVEN months to
get it sorted.

a few years ago, on a Monday night, I ran down the road after dark to post a letter. As I went to cross the road I mis-judged where the kerb was and sort of stepped on/over the edge causing my ankle to roll over the step and throwing me full length into the road. I hobbled to the post box and then struggled back home. It was agony.

The following morning I was still in much pain so Er Indoors drove me to the doctors where they took one look and a tentative squeeze, whereupon the air turned blue. The doctor diagnosed a possible broken ankle and sent me to hospital to get it X-rayed, pronto.

We spent most of the afternoon at the hospital and in the end they decided that nothing was broken. They wanted me have it all strapped and up and not to use it for a few days.

Not what I wanted to hear. I was due to leave for 2 weeks skiing on the Friday morning.

Er Indoors knows an "alternative treatment" specialist and rang for advice. Accupuncture was the best they could suggest.

Anyway, I had 3 sessions between Tuesday evening and Thursday evening and the swelling subsided. By Thursday morning I was able to walk normally and despite my ankle and foot being all purple and yellow I went on my skiing holiday. All was well.

I don't know what it does or how it works but it saved me missing my holiday.

Rans6....

I had an accident which caused my back muscles to go into spasm so I couldn't stand up. I had three or four acupuncture sessions which sorted it out - for the first one I hobbled into the physiotherapy clinic, bent over with pain of it. At the first session, I felt a dull ache as the needles went in and then the pain settled - they repositioned them a few times. After about thirty minutes I was able to stand up and walk out upright.

It worked for me :)