Thread: Acupuncture: adverse side effects

Has anyone here gotten adverse side effects from acupuncture? I tried a few sessions to relieve a sciatica-like condition (not presenting as true sciatica) that I've had for years. I'm perpetually trying to increase my mobility and flexibility in my hamstrings for dance purposes, and I was hoping that the acupuncture would a) relieve the pain I experience when sitting at my desk for longer than 15 minutes and b) free up the resultant stiffness and increase flexibility in my hams.

The acupuncturist was also working on my thyroid condition and resultant fatigue.

I wasn't expecting instant miracles, but I also was not expecting the pain to worsen like that. After three sessions spread out over the course of three weeks, the pain is now so severe that I have to take occasionally pop NSAIDs to sleep (never needed to do that before), and can feel that bloody sciatica all the time instead of just when I'm sitting. The stiffness in the one leg has increased significantly, undoing a whole bunch of flexbility training I did at a dance conditioning class during the summer.

Needless to say, I'm pretty ticked. But my comments at the clinic were treated with shock and disbelief (one person went on about needing to heal my mind), and I can't find anything online that mentions acupuncture actually aggravating certain conditions.

Anyone else experienced this, or am I just a whacked-out freak on this point? .w.:

Originally Posted by halftruths

Needless to say, I'm pretty ticked. But my comments at the clinic were treated with shock and disbelief (one person went on about needing to heal my mind), and I can't find anything online that mentions acupuncture actually aggravating certain conditions.

Are these persons patients or people who work in the office?
I was getting acupuncture from a Chinese doc and whenever he put the needle in my left arm on the side of my inner elbow pain (quite like an electric shock) would travel to my fingers - it was so strong sometimes I would scream. It's because the nerves are really close to the meridians around that area - what he told me in his broken English. I would find a different, better acupuncturist if I were you. Of course the people who work there in the office are going to be shocked. They work there and it's their business to take that tone.

I haven't heard of acupuncture doing this but maybe someone else has.
Have you tried chiropractic and deep tissue massage? Those would have been my first choices, followed by yoga like stretching.

I've had acupuncture now for at least five years. I've experienced no side effects for treatment for aches/pains. However, when I tried the treatment for face lift I was quite ill the next day (nausea, dizziness). Thinking it might be a fluke I had another treatment and the same thing happened. My acupuncturist (excellent, trained in China) at the time said I "had too much head energy" (peculiar, huh). It would seem to me that your case is unusual also and that you need to find someone else.

Originally Posted by jasani

Are these persons patients or people who work in the office?
I was getting acupuncture from a Chinese doc and whenever he put the needle in my left arm on the side of my inner elbow pain (quite like an electric shock) would travel to my fingers - it was so strong sometimes I would scream. It's because the nerves are really close to the meridians around that area - what he told me in his broken English. I would find a different, better acupuncturist if I were you. Of course the people who work there in the office are going to be shocked. They work there and it's their business to take that tone.

Oh, it was from people in the office, of course - and that was taken into due consideration. I was expecting some pain and discomfort during and immediately after the procedure (when in reality I found the acupuncture itself to be very relaxing and interesting), but it was when the condition flared up in the days following the procedure and continued to worsen over time that I started getting anxious. Needless to say I'm not going back to that acupuncturist, but truthfully it's made me leery of the whole procedure.

Originally Posted by mrsnj20

I haven't heard of acupuncture doing this but maybe someone else has.
Have you tried chiropractic and deep tissue massage? Those would have been my first choices, followed by yoga like stretching.

Tried deep tissue massage, but never chiropractic (although that is on my list of things to try). My doc has scheduled me in for a CT scan to see if we can find out what's going on. I do stretch and do yoga, and will be starting two yoga classes next week.

It isn't so much the condition that I'm wondering about - I've learned to recognize what triggers it and now that I have benefits I want to go about seeing if it can be fixed. It's more this issue with acupuncture having an aura of miraculous efficacy around it. It's like criticizing the procedure is taboo once you've actually had it done.

Originally Posted by bgordon2020

I've had acupuncture now for at least five years. I've experienced no side effects for treatment for aches/pains. However, when I tried the treatment for face lift I was quite ill the next day (nausea, dizziness). Thinking it might be a fluke I had another treatment and the same thing happened. My acupuncturist (excellent, trained in China) at the time said I "had too much head energy" (peculiar, huh). It would seem to me that your case is unusual also and that you need to find someone else.

Strange effects in the day or two after the procedure are certainly to be expected. I'm as sore as hell the day after a good deep tissue massage. But a flare up the day after leading to continued worsening is a different matter.

The acupuncturist I went to is a lovely person working in a respectable clinic. She has trained quite extensively in China in acupuncture, TCM, naturopathy, and reiki. I quite like her, but this outcome isn't acceptable.

I'm in a graduate program for acupuncture and oriental medicine (herbs) so I hope that my response will help you find a different practitioner or at least understand what may have happened...

The 'electric shock' feeling is tapping into the meridians, but (as far as I know, I am still learning, but my professors have told us) it usually doesn't continue after the clinician is done manipulating the needle. So, my question to you is:

1-what is your acupuncturists licences? Because a lot of medical clinicians (like chiropractors, MD's, etc) do a 100 hr certificate and all of a sudden they're able to needle people.

My program is 3.5/4 years and that is the normal length of program time. It's a M.S. so a graduate degree in acupuncture and TCM/OM is awarded by both the USDE and AAAOM, and then there are national license boards to sit for after you've recieved the degree...Check to see if the practitioner you see is a L.Ac because if they aren't, then it is my opinion that they should not be needling you. It's not just about learning meridians, it's learning the entire theory of why the meridians work and how they communicate with each other, manifest in your body, and the treatment plan differs with every single patient. The training is too extensive and way too involved to just cover in a 100 hr certificate course...

2- Open to all of you- have your acupuncturists discussed with you what your experience and treatment plan would be like? Did they include the fact that acupuncture is much like physical therapy-in the way that sometimes your ailments might feel worse, sore, tender, achy, unpleasant after your appointments-because your treatment plan involves those symptoms to heal? If not, please talk to your practitioner and explain to them they need (need) to give their patients better feedback and how your experience has been less than stellar. Until a practitioner hears the feedback, they aren't going to know. This type of communication from your acupuncturist is a standard of care that should be happening. And it should be happening with any type of treatment. I remember working in a physical therapy office and patients calling, surprised that they were in pain after their appt. This type of communication is crucial and almost as important as seeking the treatment itself.

Just like a deep tissue massage might leave you tender to the touch a day or two afterward....you need to be prepared for the symptoms of healing-because they aren't always pleasant....which makes me think that's why they said they need to "heal your mind"...which- again, IMHO, is kind of silly, being in a western culture and expecting people to immediately understand the eastern frame of mind that acupuncture is based on. Especially with something as old school as acupuncture...the office should realize who their patients are and what culture they're offering services too.

And lastly....I hated acupuncture at first. So I do understand what you all are saying and I sympathize so very much. And I want to thank you for posting this...because it's important that people communicate and others receive the feedback.

sorry for the soapbox. I just really have a hard time not saying anything when it comes to things like this...

I've done acupuncture and have only had good results, but I've heard that some people can have side effects. I guess it depends on your body. As suggested, you might try a different practitioner. But it might just be you're not an acupuncture-type of person and need to find another treatment.

Sorry to hear you're in pain...

Originally Posted by taobellydancer

Just like a deep tissue massage might leave you tender to the touch a day or two afterward....you need to be prepared for the symptoms of healing-because they aren't always pleasant....which makes me think that's why they said they need to "heal your mind"...which- again, IMHO, is kind of silly, being in a western culture and expecting people to immediately understand the eastern frame of mind that acupuncture is based on. Especially with something as old school as acupuncture...the office should realize who their patients are and what culture they're offering services too.

Heh - this'll make you really roll your eyes - the "heal your mind" comment was given by one of the other doctors (no idea if she is an MD or not) in the clinic who was assisting with the invoice, and she outrightly stated that the pain very likely has a large psychological component.

Uhhhh...yeah...because if the treatment doesn't work it MUST be in my head. And clearly something that has been present for years, through good times and bad, sickness and health, presents in extremely predictable ways with predictable reliefs and in very specific physical positions (sitting) can only be mental, otherwise the needling would have worked.

I've been through lengthy and painful healing procedures before, and can accept the fact that the process can be far from pleasent. This is abnormal. It's infuriating when health practitioners (Western and Eastern) treat you like an uninformed idiot and have the presumption to tell you what you are feeling.

To my acupuncturist's credit, we did discuss the treatment quite extensively, she was very concerned when I told her how bad the symptoms were getting, and let me know that if they didn't start to at least settle down within a few procedures, that she would not continue needling for that condition and recommended an MRI. Like I said, she's a lovely person, it's just that the outcome was quite undesirable.

*whew* I'm glad that she did recommend further tests....and you're right, my eyes rolled so far into the back of my head they were stuck for a minute...
wow, it seems like you've been through a lot, and I hope that you'll have some better results soon!!

Sorry to hear you've had a bad experience with this. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I'd like to suggest that you try rolfing (also known as structural integration). It's a type of body work that seeks to correct alignment issues at the level of the fascia. It has done wonders for me.

If you decide to try it, look for someone who seems to have a good dose of empathy - for example, someone who does reiki, massage, etc. The reason is that the poking and prodding goes deeper than a deep-tissue massage, and it's important to have a therapist who is sensitive to you.

After a rolfing appointment, I sometimes have a week in which I'm kind of stiff and sore all over my body, because the alignment work causes my muscles to tug at my skeleton in ways they're not accustomed to. But the end result has been elimination of some pain and reduction of other.

It seems possible that the accupuncture did absolutely nothing, and that the condition was worsening for still undiscovered reasons, and would have regardless of whether you had done the accupuncture or not.

Remember that sciatica is usually caused by a compression or misalignment between the L3 - L4 - L5 vertebra. Mine if L4 - L5. If there was a block which was keeping the pain minimized and the acupuncture opened that up, you may be experiencing additional pain. I found relief with chiro and deep tissue massage. Oh, and pilates. Which I need to do more of!

Get the MRI and see what is going on there. Then I would suggest that, working with your Drs. out together a plan which makes sense to relieve you of the pain and help to heal you.

{{{HUGS}}}

I'm so sorry to hear that. I have never had anything but amazing results from accupuncture. It cured those migraines like nothing else. I hope you get it figured out quickly!

Since you have a medically documented condition can you have a special chair prescribed for you? It's awful you can't sit longer than 15 minutes without hurting.

My mom had sciatica and she would have my dad put pressure on a specific pressure point on her lower back and the pain would evaporate. Maybe accupressure would work for you?

Healing vibes coming your way!

Originally Posted by Doozer

Since you have a medically documented condition can you have a special chair prescribed for you? It's awful you can't sit longer than 15 minutes without hurting.

My mom had sciatica and she would have my dad put pressure on a specific pressure point on her lower back and the pain would evaporate. Maybe accupressure would work for you?

Healing vibes coming your way!

Doozer, this thread is over two years old.

While this is a Zombie thread, I would still love to find out what halftruths prognosis was, the plan which they out into place and her progress.

But yes, the suggestion of adjusting ergonomics is a good one.

{{{HUGS}}}