Input wanted: Acupuncture, other alternative therapies?

[Ron]

Apparently my dog knew that. He refused to do yoga.

Not even "Downward Facing Dog" ?

 

[Jilly]

I love my chiropractor and her tens unit! She also got me in with "Brad the bruiser" for massage. He's good on sport injuries. But I have to remind him, it's my shoulder, not my ass. Even if the muscles and tendons are tight, I'm here for the shoulder...

I will be in to see both once the ski season ends. Part of issue is the damn bed at the condo....so no sense wasting money this week, to sleep again on that crappy thing.

 

[Monique]

Oh, while I'm on the topic of massage - different therapists are better at different things. My long-time massage therapist is aces at deep tissue and also relaxation - she knocks me right out. I can be high strung, and I definitely count that kind of relaxation as necessary self-care. Great at trigger point, too - she made a huge difference when I had crippling wrist issues.

On the other hand, when I was interested in lymph drainage, she pointed me to another MT - who turned out to not just be great with that, but also with my knee. Scar tissue, sure, but she does *something* with the muscles, bands, and fascia surrounding my knee - when I go in, it hurts my knee to lie on my back with my foot up in the air and then slowly bend the knee. When I come out, the same motion is painless.

 

[Ron]

I love my chiropractor and her tens unit! She also got me in with "Brad the bruiser" for massage. He's good on sport injuries. But I have to remind him, it's my shoulder, not my ass. Even if the muscles and tendons are tight, I'm here for the shoulder...

I will be in to see both once the ski season ends. Part of issue is the damn bed at the condo....so no sense wasting money this week, to sleep again on that crappy thing.

LOL, hmm......

 

[Monique]

He's good on sport injuries. But I have to remind him, it's my shoulder, not my ass. Even if the muscles and tendons are tight, I'm here for the shoulder...

LOL, hmm......

MTs always want to work on stuff they notice, not necessarily the stuff you want. Usually I go with the flow unless, like Jilly, I have something specific that is definitely screaming.

 

[Jilly]

You got it Monique. Really he is professional and just a big teddy bear.

 

[Rudi Riet]

As a person who had a femoral repair in January 2014, and is now suffering from avascular necrosis (AVN) of said femoral head (and will have total hip replacement within the next few weeks), I can speak to a lot of alternative treatments.

First of all, my physical therapy for both the femoral repair and the avascular necrosis has included dry needling. Dry needling and acupuncture are a bit of a "Jets vs. Sharks" argument. I grew up in a household with a trained acupuncturist, and that worked well for relaxation. But dry needling is another thing, entirely, and has made my life a lot easier. In the throes of AVN, dry needling - in conjunction with a lot of dynamic and traction stretching, massage, balance, and strength training - is the bee's knees. It allows my compromised hip joint to open up and function more normally (at least as "normally" as one can function with a femoral head that closely resembles a dying coral reef). It is painful, it isn't for the feint of heart, but it works very, very well. This season, it was the difference between being able to ski and coach, and having to sit out many days due to range-of-motion loss.

I'm also a huge proponent of massage, especially deep tissue massage. After long-distance cycling events, the post-ride massage is the difference between being able to function normally and being a cramp-riddled, limping mess. Granted, a lot of if depends on the abilities of the massage therapist: some are far better than others, especially with athletes or those with an athletic disposition.

The previous comment about consistency of treatment is spot on: a proper regimen of PT is a long-term commitment, not something that's done on a whim. So try things out, commit to a course of action, and follow through on said course.

Good luck!

 

[Brian Finch]

 

[scott43]

I would agree on the massage. Pro riders get daily massages..they wouldn't be doing it if it didn't work.

 

[Monique]

It is painful, it isn't for the feint of heart, but it works very, very well.

So far, dry needling has never been incredibly painful for me. Extremely weird, yes, feeling my muscles bounce around.

I think the most painful was the jaw, but it was still a lot less painful than the rolfing and MAT I've had done.

YMMV, etc. Just saying, it may not be excruciating for everyone.

 

[Tricia]

I've had prolonged shoulder and neck pain since my bike crash (nearly) six years ago. A little over a month ago I started to use a TENS device to relieve the knots in the shoulder, which has given me a tremendous amount of pain relief in my neck AND shoulder. I'm wondering why I didn't do something like this sooner.

 

[Rudi Riet]

So far, dry needling has never been incredibly painful for me. Extremely weird, yes, feeling my muscles bounce around.

YMMV, etc. Just saying, it may not be excruciating for everyone.

I think it also depends on where you have the dry needling done. Mine is primarily in the gluteus group, which is a powerful set of muscles and runs alongside what is essentially the "funny bone" nerve for the leg. And sometimes the needle hits that nerve and... well, it's something.

But I think a lot of the pain aspect depends on what the dry needling is treating. In my case, it's a degrading joint and the body trying to protect said joint by shutting down muscles in the hip area. So the needles are used to reactivate the muscles by force - that's likely why there is a pain aspect to my dry needling experience.

I agree about the weirdness of the muscles firing. To make it weirder, add electrical stimulation to the needles - that's what I get, more often than not, simply to get the muscle firing more than just the one time the needle loosens things up.

 

[Monique]

I think it also depends on where you have the dry needling done. Mine is primarily in the gluteus group, which is a powerful set of muscles and runs alongside what is essentially the "funny bone" nerve for the leg. And sometimes the needle hits that nerve and... well, it's something.

Yes! I was warned about that. I had some crazy charlie horse behavior around my left hip a few months after the ACL surgery. Massage helped, but dry needling helped LOTS. It felt pretty intense, but I was lucky never to get a needle to a nerve. I think I only had one, maybe two treatments in that area.

Anyway, your situation sounds ... ughh. I can't even imagine.

 

[va_deb]

Thanks a ton for all the advice and insights, y'all. I obviously came to the right group to ask! Sounds like many of you have had far worse things to deal with, and I wish you good thoughts for continued healing.

He did try massage therapy (although most were at a chain place; some decent, others just okay) but should look into it again. When I dragged him to the alt medicine place for a consult he got MT with a guy from the Czech Republic who looked like a mini, but stockier Ah-nold. He was a former bodybuilding champ in the CR and now teaches MT with a PT emphasis in the states. What he did helped, but I don't think he is actively practicing any more. I should ask about some local mentees/proteges of his though.

@VickieH, I'm glad acupuncture helped your dog! We did some alt medicine for our cancer warrior after she became a Tripawd, and it really does help dogs in a big way. Water treadmill therapy is great for dogs with hip and walking issues. OT PSA for anyone who has a cancer dog: if they mention amputation, keep an open mind and don't rule it out until you at least explore the option. We agonized over it. Soon after recovery we had a super-fast happy three-legger who starting acting like a puppy again. For evidence, check out this one-minute YouTube video of Lexie with her Tripawd younger boyfriend (she's in the red).

@Jilly and @Tricia, glad to hear that TENS has been helpful for you. He has a TENS device and used it for a while, then it didn't seem to help as much. Recently he did get a Brookstone / Sharper Image / now-defunct airline shopping catalog-ish in-home massage unit. You can put it in a recliner, on a couch, or even a dining room chair. For not being a human, it is pretty damn amazing. I'll find out who it's by and will add it to this thread if anyone is interested. It has heat, too.

@Rudi Riet, lol about acu and chiro being akin to "Jets vs. Sharks." Good luck with your upcoming procedure. Have friends and relatives who have had great results with theirs.

Anyway, lots of good food for thought here. If any of you are Tahoe locals and have a good MT or MT/PT hybrid rep that you think might be good based on what I described, please let me know.

Thanks again!

 

[Ron]

@Rudi Riet - Best of success to you, your anesthesiologist and OS. - I always wish them well. My surgery is Thursday. we can trade surgery pics

 

[BoofHead]

Osteopath

 

[Varmintmist]

Chiro. Chiro. Chiro.

You have to find a good one, IMHO that is NOT a heavy manipulator, ie a crack dealer. A sports and chiro place.

I was hit by a tractor trailer and driven into another. It was a 88 F150 in 1990, I walked away because of a seatbelt and Ford engineers. However, it came back to haunt me. I was first cracked by a MD, then later I started with a chiro. He would crack, and 2 weeks later I was hurting. He was out of town and I was in need so I stopped at one on the way home. This guy got me in and put me face down on the table started with his thumb on my back. I remember thinking that I just wasted money coming here when the entire right side started to spasm. He said, that he guessed he needed to work on that side to. He prodded for a while, then cracked me and I was good for 6 months. I have been going when needed to him ever since.
The wife went to him for foot pain, said it was the first morning she woke up not in pain in a long time. Hundreds at the farriers and hundreds on inserts and stuff.

If you are really messed up, then you might have to go 3-6 times initially, but if they want you there every two weeks for life, time to look for someone else.

For Jilly, the reason that they want to adjust parts that are not where it hurts, is because its all connected and moving stuff over there will help over here. At one point I was having wrist pain, thought it was carpel tunnel, was told it was carpel tunnel, got cracked, and the carpel tunnel was gone. In your case maybe he just likes your butt though.

 

[BS Slarver]

Late to the discussion here and didn't see any posting of wedge therapy for back issues.

My wife got turned onto these by a fellow ski friend who couldn't even walk a few years ago let alone ski!
It turns out several skiers we know use them for maintenance and so far so good in helping to releave pain for her bulging disc.
Refered to a chiro in NYC who does VERY mello adjustments and gives guidance on how to use them and then it's used at home.

http://www.chiroblocksboards.com/

Hope it helps

 

[karlo]

One friend said acupuncture permanently (cured?) pain he had, in one butt, when sitting (sciatica?). My trainer said one client had acupuncture that eliminated the pain, but only hid an injury that got worse, since the client didn't feel the pain from further damage he was causing by his activities.

I am told that I have some pereformis (sp?) issue that is irritating my sciatic nerve. An hour of deep tissue massage helped a few days, but its effect dissipated.

My only solution so far is to take Advil when I am engaged in an activity that inflames the condition: long flights, skiing, etc.

 

[coskigirl]

One friend said acupuncture permanently (cured?) pain he had, in one butt, when sitting (sciatica?). My trainer said one client had acupuncture that eliminated the pain, but only hid an injury that got worse, since the client didn't feel the pain from further damage he was causing by his activities.

I am told that I have some pereformis (sp?) issue that is irritating my sciatic nerve. An hour of deep tissue massage helped a few days, but its effect dissipated.

My only solution so far is to take Advil when I am engaged in an activity that inflames the condition: long flights, skiing, etc.

Things like massage, dry needling, ART, etc can't be a cure with a single treatment. To really get things worked out you need multiple treatments and home self-care. I had some dry-needling done today to help with patella tracking but I'll need a few more treatments plus I need to be better about rolling and stretching at home.

I've had my piriformis needled a few times and have gotten relief.