I decided to try acupuncture and had 3 treatments this week. Not only did it not help, I am hurting much worse. I should not have gone in after the 1st day. I would like to hear from others who perhaps initially had an increase in pain, but then the pain got better.
He did take away the soreness along my hairline in the back on the upper neck and the soreness in my groin. I did not complain about either of those but he said those areas were connected. He reached up after pushing in an area just above the groin and then reached up and felt my neck and asked me how I felt. The soreness was totally gone. It would normally have taken several visits to the chiro to even achieve a lot less relief than that. So I would definitely return if I my neck gets in that shape again. And it has been that way for quite some time. I know that if I sleep wrong and have neck pain, then my TN is worse. But I didn’t realize the soreness just under the hairline was related or the groin area. My TN has been getting worse and my upper neck area has been sore for months. I do believe it is related.
I was amazed at where he put the needles in in an attempt to help my face pain. He placed them in my feet, forearms, forefingers, neck, face, legs and an unmentionable area. He kept saying I am a good doctor I know what I’m doing I am a 100% good, or words similar. Then on the 3d visit he looked at my chart and hummed and shook his head up and down and said that the pain is very stubborn. So I got the impression that he thought I would be feeling better by then.
Please post your experiences with acupuncture and where or not the treatment was successful and how long you sought treatment before you had a positive result.
I don’t believe I can return after hurting the way I have this week unless some of you initially did not respond and also your pain worsened.
Hi Liz, similarly I have attempted acupuncture, and I also tried 3 times but it just didn’t work out at all. I was not experiencing any benefit at all neither did I have the budget to go any further. So I can’t help at all except that I can offer you a link to a website page “Relieve TN with acupuncture” which talks favourably about this treatment (but they would wouldn’t they!) and a lady from this site has already made a comment at the bottom of the page. Sorry not to be able to offer you any valid or positive experience, good luck and I sincerely hope that you are feeling better soon http://acupuncturechicago.blogspot.com/2009/05/relieve-trigeminal-neuralgia-with.html
Thanks Liesl,
I know some have had some positive results. And I would consider trying a little longer, if I wasn’t in more pain. I regret trying it. At this point I’m not as upset about the cost as I am about my pain. The doctor kept asking me if I felt better as he was doing the treatment. If I said no he continued to ask until I said maybe. So evidently one is supposed to feel better right away like I did with the neck soreness. I just hope I soon recover from the increased pain. Liz
Sorry to hear that Liz, I hope it subsides soon. In the meantime here’s another page that has collated sites on acupuncture and TN…you’ll need some time to have a look but maybe there could be something that will help to explain matters http://althealth.mitrasites.com/acupuncture-for-trigeminal-neuralgia.html
Hi Barbara,
Thank you. A lot of us have been through so much more. Your MRI didn’t show tumors or cancer but did it show a compression? When you said just TN I wasn’t sure if you meant just TN because of your pain or if it showed why you are having the TN pain?
Liz
I have decided to not try typical drugs or surgery; both have been advised to me. I asked my ENT about Oriental medicine (which my family has been using for almost everything for about 25 years), and he told me to absolutely check it out, and let him know how it went. And so here I am. My first acupuncture treatment for TN was on 12/20/10. My TN has been horribly painful, and I got about 30% pain reduction for about 24 hours, which I was very pleased with. Each subsequent treatment has brought even better results. I am being seen by two OMDs, one manages the herbs and the other manages the acupuncture. I still have some ferocious episodes of pain, but I also have less simultaeous symptoms, and my energy level is coming back, which I am very pleased about. I am very comfortable with Oriental Medicine, and will be happy to share my experiences as time goes by.
