Pins and Needles

I have been going long enough now that I feel comfortable writing about my acupuncture experiences. I'll tell you that I am a believer. I'm not sure what kind of voodoo it is but it sure does work. This is how it works: you go in for you initial visit and you meet your acupuncture doctor. You have to fill out a number of papers with all sorts of info including what you are thinking you want them to work on. They can work on more than 1 thing at a time which is pretty cool. I didn't know that! So I gave my list of issues over to my doctor and laid down. Based on where you have your problems, they stick needles in appropriate places to deal with those.
Let's start w/ my old 44 year old knees. Yep, I abused my knees starting in high school w/ marching band. Add to that being overweight and the knees have had some abuse. I had a MRI last year to figure out what kind of cyst I had in my knee (ganglion, by the way), I also found out I have a little bit of arthritis there. Again, add it up - knees that hurt on occasion. The first visit and my knees feel great. Sure there is still a little twinge here and there but nothing like they used to feel. Especially when exercising or just walking longer periods of time. Then take last week, my calves were just knots after my training visit. I told my doctor about it and they were really tight when I got there. When I left, they were so loose and relaxed that they didn't hurt me any more. It was awesome! The last thing I'll tell you about is how acupuncture has helped my lungs. A few years ago, I had bronchitis 3 times in the year. Since then, with any exertion I would have tightness in my chest and cough for up to 1/2 an hour afterwards. I get some relief from using an inhaler I got from my allergy doctor (who has also worked some miracles) but it still didn't fully take it away. So after the first session, I went to a ballgame and had to walk a few blocks and go up stairs. I didn't use my inhaler and I was okay. Normally that would have been enough exertion to cause my breathing issue but it didn't this time. The only thing I could think of as a reason was my acupuncture. I have since then gone to the gym and had a full workout without using the inhaler and done very well.
I am a believer in acupuncture. It is really working well for me. Luckily, my insurance covers 20 visits per year at just a co-pay price. That certainly helps being able to go. I would say to those interested, there are ways around the expense of it by going to the acupuncture school and to the student clinic. It is all supervised so there is nothing to worry about. I highly enourage going. If you want any more info, please contact me.