Acupuncture (chinese medicine) for ptsd?

[Pandora040]

I once tried acupuncture for a throat infection that never seemed to go away, and was amazed when it actually worked, alongside the herbs they gave me.

I've been reading that acupuncture can be a great treatment for ptsd and any anxiety issues, but wonder if anyone here has tried it before? Wanted to share incase you hand't heard. I'm considering giving it a try. If anyone has a fear of needles... they don't actually hurt at all (you can always just close your eyes), and the whole experience I found very relaxing. I dozed off last time :)

 

[SophiaWisdom]

Acupuncture is my MAIN mode of treatment for EVERY health thing in my life and has been for 2 years now. It cured me of a million chronic (I thought) issues that western meds couldn't touch, including physical therapy. I have cured:

- insomnia
- bad periods
- food allergies
- neurological tremors from CPTSD
- gastritis
- a foot injury (I was dancing after 3 sessions, when PT couldn't fix me after a month)
- bursitis
- tight psoas
- hip issues
- sore throat
- headaches
- nausea

the list goes on. I've completely gone off supplements and vitamins b/c of acupuncture and it's where I run to whenever I have an issue that conventional meds can't heal. I tend to go to acupuncture FIRSt actually. I can't rave about it enough. I would be crippled and maybe dead without it.

 

[PDH]

I started having acupuncture a couple of months ago and have found it to be really helpful.
Its also been really interesting reading up on the different meridians that my practitioner is targeting and how they relate to all the different emotions I've been feeling leading up to the appointment.

 

[EmmaOwl]

I used to get acupuncture on a regular basis to manage chronic pain. I found it helpful...but it never did anything particular for PTSD. Still, I would keep with it if it was possible - I was working with a very talented guy, who simply clicked with me in a very positive way.

I had to stop going because I was allergic to many of the aromatics and oils used in the office. - this is a problem for me in so many off-beat treatments; I'm not sure why they always have to go side-by-side. It has also prevented me from finding a good yoga studio. They will say, "Oh, I won't burn these candles while you are here" but the scents stay in the air and can be insidious for those with severe allergies or other immune problems.

It's a shame, how often alternative medicines of all types cross over with aromatherapy and so on. I mean, if I get near a pillow with lavender in it I'm likely to end up with an asthma attack. Not exactly the nice calming stretching that I am looking for.

-There's another overlap - smoking pot and burning incense! god I miss college lol. nah I did not partake b/c marijuana always made me depressed..but still, so many places, it was inescapable. But I was healthier then, and tolerated it. Now? I have no idea how I would react. Probably not well - and I'm sure anyone reading this understands why I'm not eager to experiment.

Oh to go back to the point - yes I found it helpful for pain but not ptsd itself. It did help manage my ptsd in a smaller way - less physical pain is less stress, whether it be mental or physical.

 

[Eagle3]

I use accupressure, not accupuncture, because of a needle-phobia, but it sure does wonders for me! I'm actually reading an Energy Psychology textbook and its explaining the science behind the Eastern medicinal approach. I LOVE this stuff, it really gets to the heart of the matter, and I'm able to take a much more holistic approach to my own healing. I've seen HUGE strides forward! The key is to find a practitioner who KNOWS what they are doing, and how manipulating the energy fields will change thoughts and emotions. Its truly a fascinating study, I'm enjoying the heck out of it! Just hoping I can be sensitive enough to be able to incorporate these techniques when I finally become a therapist myself...

 

[Llith]

I have found it does help with PTSD, but I recommend seeing a therapist at the same time. Deep levels of relaxation can bring on intense flashbacks and 'release' hidden memories.

I have also found it has all but cured my insomnia, which is insane. I had been having real issues sleeping: getting to sleep, staying asleep, nightmares, you name it xD. But for the last month or so I have been sleeping properly every night! Its insane ahhaha.

I would recommend it as a way of dealing with things, but remember you still need to processes what has happened, it is not just a magic cure all. Or it wasn't for me anyway. I don't know if there is a difference between how people with PTSD vs C-PTSD have reacted to it, I have C-PTSD which can make things more difficult lol.

 

[Muted]

I have found it does help with PTSD, but I recommend seeing a therapist at the same time. Deep levels of...

Did you have flashbacks or the memory thing during or after the acupuncture? I don't know much about it, but I don't understand how it has an effect like that.

 

[Llith]

Did you have flashbacks or the memory thing during or after the acupuncture? I don't know much about i...

After the acupuncture, normally within the week. I was having the acupuncture originally for migraines, and I found out that it also caused the release of hidden memories etc. Some of them I had hidden for years and years.

If the acupuncturist knows at the time that you have PTSD, they should be able to avoid it by doing slightly lighter acupuncture, however I asked my acupuncturist later on if it was a known side effect and he said yes it can be. I don't think anyone really knows how it works, so the results may be different for different people.

I wish you all the best though, my T thinks its awesome. I am not so convinced -_-; ahaha, I guess it does help in its own way. On the upside its really helped the migraines ;) ahahhaa.

 

[MatthewNY]

My experience is that acupuncture triggered my PTSD. I was getting massage treatment for nerve pain, and the practitioner suggested acupuncture. While I had the needles in me I was dissociating - feeling like I was 6 inches above my head (major anxiety - mild ptsd). When the practitioner used gua sha on me, I had the biggest PTSD flashback of my life. I thought she was going to start abusing me like when I was a kid, and had turned evil.

Acupuncture and gua sha are some of the most PTSD triggering things you can experience outside of getting re-abused, and should be used with extreme care for PTSD. A PTSD triggered combat veteran might start fighting to defend themselves, thinking they are being attacked.

 

[Tornadic Thoughts]

It's been a major game changer for me regarding multiple issues, not limited to ptsd.

I found a practitioner in my community who is also a master herbalist and who is also willing to barter. She doesn't include aromatherapy with sessions, only if specifically requested. I, too, am sensitive to smells, but mostly the artificial ones.

She began treating me for a shoulder issue I was told would only ever be remedied by having a complete shoulder replacement, and later, for a gall bladder issue I was also told would definitely and eventually need surgery.

However, after having acupuncture treatments, along with my drastic diet changes, increased movement and activity, and other various treatment tools, I now have complete range of motion back in that shoulder and experienced many other improvements in managing a wide array of other symptoms, including but not limited to keeping my gall bladder.

The calmness and grounded feelings I experience during and after my acupuncture sessions are like that of no other treatment I engage in. I have a major fear of hypodermic needles, but these points don't bother me in the least. I find it fascinating to see how the needles let you know when they're ready to be inserted and released, too. If there is any discomfort experienced, just as soon as the next point goes into the next spot, it releases the pain from the previous one. An endlessly fascinating experience of connect the dots, and I really dig that sort of thing.

The meridian fascinates me, along with the fascia, the lymph system, and all the systems that make up this being known as me. It seems many systems were barely, if ever, touched upon in our many years of schooling. They seem to have left a lot of significant shit out in our teachings through the years. These alternative and complementary methods have prompted me to unlearn much of what I thought I, and many professionals, already knew and enabled me to become more self-empowered in my self-care routines. Everything is energy and everything truly is connected.