Pain caused by arthritis has never been easy to treat. Arthritis drugs that are unpalatable and/or toxic are the ones often used to help control and alleviate arthritis symptoms. Acupuncture can bring about significant relief of arthritis pain and thus offer an alternative arthritis therapy for tens of millions of arthritis sufferers all over the world. Acupuncture treatment for arthritis is described below.
What is acupuncture and how can it provide relief for arthritis pain?
Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese healing art practiced for thousands of years that can provide relief for all types of physical pain including arthritis pain. It is now widely used by western medicine and doctors to treat chronic pain.
Acupuncture is about the use of fine acupuncture needles inserted into different acupuncture points scattered all over the body. These points are usually near the affected part of the body and can be very tender to touch. There can be other acupuncture points used for relief of arthritis pain that are far from the affected site and these points are known as distal points. There may be various forms of techniques that the acupuncturist can use but one should expect to have around a couple to twenty needles inserted when you come in for treatment.
Studies about acupuncture’s effectiveness in treating arthritis pain have been done. Arthritis and joint pain relief are one of the most commonly heard of complaints by doctors and acupuncturists alike, and so they are one of the most common reasons for acupuncture treatment in Western countries. A lot of individuals who suffer from gout, degenerative arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, or osteoarthritis can find relief from pain with acupuncture either in lieu of or alongside other arthritis treatment or their arthritis medication.
Typically sufferers of arthritis pain require between three to six sessions of treatment before they experience substantial relief of their pain. Acupuncturists use acupuncture needles that are ultra thin- as thin as human hair- and left inserted into the skin for around 20 minutes during treatment. People react differently to acupuncture treatment and there is no way to predict how much relief from pain a person can get. Oftentimes, it is a matter of trying it and seeing what happens.
How is acupuncture used in arthritis pain relief?
Initial treatments may go on for an hour while the succeeding sessions may last less than an hour. For the treatment of arthritis, the acupuncturist may stick as few as a coupe of needles to as many as twenty needles into your body. This may sound like a painful procedure but virtually all those who have undergone acupuncture state that a slight stinging sensation is felt as the needles enter the skin-no pain at all after the needles are in place in your body. Oftentimes, the acupuncturist rotates or turns the needles to bring about stimulation of the nerves and accelerate the treatment.
Unlike the needles used in clinics and hospitals, acupuncture needles are solid and very thin with a smooth point. They do not generate pain unlike hospital needles used for vaccination, IV therapy, or anesthesia. For complex and longstanding arthritis problems, the patient may be required to undergo one or two treatments a week for a number of months.
A lot of individuals do not have any side effects from acupuncture although there are a few who may experience infection, or bleeding especially if the therapist is not licensed or certified. There are other patients who may experience dizziness during or after their first acupuncture treatment. Arthritis sufferers should consider trying acupuncture to get the relief they have been seeking for a long time.