May is a month loaded with great awareness campaigns—most of which we see routinely in our clinic: Lyme, Mental Health, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, and Celiac Disease. Two of those are largely genetic—Celiac Disease and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome—and while we can’t change your genes, acupuncture, herbs, and appropriate nutritional support can greatly improve the quality of life for patients with these conditions.
Our favorite supplements for Ehlers–Danlos Syndrome are available below; but please note these options are not all vegan or gluten-free so please contact our office for help choosing replacement products for this protocol if you need to avoid mammal or gluten:
Celiac Disease & Gluten Intolerance—What’s the Difference?
As far as Celiac Disease, there is a wide range of experiences: from those with an allergy to gluten creating the sensitivity, to those with true Celiac disease who simply won’t be able to effectively process gluten, to those who aren’t allergic—but react to the lectins in gluten and have an inflammatory response to these grains. While conventional thinking says allergies can only be managed and not treated, we are seeing people’s allergies actually go away (even as measured with IgE in the bloodwork) as a result of a highly specialized technique called “Soliman’s Auricular Allergy Treatment” pioneered by Dr. Nader Soliman, MD, LAc. While this technique is most widely known for helping people with alpha-gal allergies (an allergy to a carbohydrate found in mammal products triggered by tick bites) it actually is effective for most allergies.
We have helped people with nut allergies, dairy allergies, animal allergies, and even severe environmental allergies—not just pollen, dust, and molds, but more rare allergies such as sunlight and water! Gluten allergies also respond very well to this treatment; which brings me back to my earlier point about allergies vs. genetic limits vs. inflammatory response to other elements of gluten. For someone coming in with just a gluten allergy, this treatment will normally allow them to eat gluten without a reaction if they had a measurable IgE response to gluten in the past, and in many cases, this will disappear. Those with a genetic intolerance (what we refer to as “true Celiac”) still can’t eat gluten routinely after SAAT, but if they are accidentally exposed to gluten, they report that the reactions are greatly reduced. A similar effect is reported among those with lectin intolerance; they can’t always eat as much as they want, but small amounts and cross-contamination don’t cause the severe reactions they used to have.
For those with true Celiac—the reduced reactivity is a welcome relief; allowing them more options to enjoy meals with friends and family who may not realize what “gluten-free” really means even with the best intentions. For example, many people know that wheat has gluten, but they don’t realize most beers contain gluten. Foods like soy sauce and many spice blends contain small amounts of gluten as well, and for people with Celiac disease, even small amounts can create distressing reactions. Worse yet, labeling requirements are very bad in the US and many products contain unlabeled sources of gluten! In more severe cases, even topical exposure to gluten through lotions, soaps, or hair care products can create a reaction (though so far those reactions seem to be greatly reduced even in the most severe cases after SAAT).
Have someone in your life who needs to be gluten-free?
We created this handy guide of safe foods and hidden sources of gluten for reference!
The Hidden Cost of Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease may be one of the most pervasive and least frequently diagnosed conditions in the US. The current standard test, the ELISA test is estimated to be 70% accurate, but some independent testing has shown the current standard of combining an ELISA test with a Western Blot Test (which is reported to be 99% accurate) may be off more than 50% of the time, especially in cases of neurological Lyme. Worse yet, most doctors haven’t read the research about how a history of concussion or whiplash can make someone up to 80% more likely to develop chronic neurological Lyme because of damage to the blood-brain barrier. If there are other underlying chronic pathogens such as Epstein Barr Virus or Covid, those numbers very quickly get much worse. Diagnoses of Lyme Disease from Columbia University Medical Center
So in a month of Mental Health Awareness—why am I writing about misdiagnosed Lyme?
“People with psychiatric disorders related to Lyme disease may experience symptoms like fatigue, depression, anxiety, brain fog, rage, sleep disturbances, Bipolar disorder, and more. The longer that Lyme disease goes untreated, the more likely a patient is to develop these symptoms and disorders.”
The Effects of Lyme Disease, igenex.com
Chronic Lyme can also cause autonomic neuropathy. In these cases, the range of symptoms that can emerge is extremely broad and often leaves providers perplexed because the usual tests for those conditions will all be “normal”. Autonomic Neuropathy, Medscape
Arguably this subject can fill a book (one that I am working on) but suffice to say, many of the treatment strategies that are key to recovering from Lyme are beneficial for mental health, even in the absence of Lyme. Without going too far down into the weeds, it’s important to feed the body real food, minimize sugars (even hidden sugars like grains and breads), focus on nutrient-dense veggies for about 70% of your diet, and then find a balance of grains, fruits, and meats for the remaining 30% that keeps you feeling good. The same goes for mental health—better nutrition supports better mental health. In addition, nutrition to support the mitochondria in the cells can make a huge difference. Some of our favorites can be found here:
Feeling overwhelmed with how to eat healthy? Check out our free Facebook group, Raja Wellness Ways to Health for recipes, tips, inspiration, and to share those techniques that work for you!
Need one-on-one support? Clean Good Eats is a great resource—they have group classes on healthy cooking, or you can reach out to Dr. Sakinah Bunch for private coaching.
Yours in Health,
Jenny-Marie
Millions of women suffer from gynecological complaints each year. Endometriosis (11% of women in the US) and fibroids (26% of women in the US) are two of the most common and painful issues women face. That’s over 30 million women in the US alone and these numbers are arguably under-reported as many less severe cases are often dismissed as PMS, depression, or part of some other syndrome. Conventional biomedicine has little to offer women in these cases beyond hormone therapies (often with intolerable side effects) or surgical options that can scar and affect future fertility, or as a last-ditch effort—simply offering a hysterectomy (often taking the ovaries as well) and throwing the woman into early menopause. Symptoms of these conditions can be painful and quite literally, draining, as women struggle with heavy, unrelenting bleeding.
These are not conditions new to women. Endometriosis was first identified 300 years ago in Western medical texts, but references to the condition trace back over 4000 years under the older diagnosis “hysteria”. Similarly, uterine fibroids have a long history. Uterine fibroid lesions were initially known as the “uterine stone.” In the second century AD, they were called scleromas. The term fibroid was first introduced in the 1860s. Uterine fibroids are the most common pelvic tumors among women of reproductive age, affecting more than 70% of women worldwide, particularly women of color”1. It is not surprising traditional medicines have ways to treat these conditions.
In my practice I have found acupuncture and herbs together provide the best treatment outcomes for these conditions, and if only one can be used, the herbs are the more important piece (although it takes longer for them to achieve the same results when used without acupuncture). Fortunately, I have been able to work with patients who not only were able to report their progress through improvement in their physical symptoms but also provided me with ultrasounds and other diagnostics from their OBGYNs.
In one case of a woman in her 40s—her uterine fibroids shrank on average more than 7mm each in a 3-month period, and after 6 months had no visible blood supply. She was no longer a candidate for surgery as her fibroids were effectively “cured”. 4 years later, even without maintenance herbs—her fibroids have not returned. Her heavy periods, severe abdominal pain and fatigue are a thing of the past.
In another case, a woman in her 20s came in for endometriosis and fibroids. Hormone therapies had failed and she was hoping to retain her uterus and chances to have children in the future but she was living with crippling pain that radiated from her abdomen to her back. She described it as “living with barbed wire wrapped around her torso and her spine—like I am being torn from the inside out”. In addition, she had fibroids and chronically heavy periods resulting in fatigue and anemia. To top it all off, she dealt with the emotional stress of the constant pain and fear of losing her chances at motherhood. Within 3 months of treatment, her periods were more normal and the pain was no longer constant but limited to around ovulation and onset of her menses. At 6 months, her cycles were normal and she was pain-free! She had follow-up imaging to evaluate her need for surgery and while endometrial tissue and fibroids were still present, the fibroids were visibly smaller and the endometrial tissue appeared less pervasive on imaging than it had 6 months before when she started treatment. At 9 months she was due for laparoscopic surgery to remove some of the endometrial tissue, and remarkably only 40% of the expected tissue was found and the fibroids were 70% smaller than on the initial imaging. The doctors were able to remove the excess endometrial tissue and fibroids easier than expected. 6 months later she was pregnant with her first child and now has a happy, healthy little girl, and her cycles continue to be normal.
Cases like these highlight why herbs and acupuncture have been used for thousands of years. Together they help women optimize their health safely and effectively. In combination with modern medical techniques, they can give even the most severe cases relief. I highlight the second case in particular because I don’t believe the herbs and acupuncture alone could have reduced the damage enough to help her get pregnant—perhaps if we had started the herbs years earlier before the progression was so severe. It’s important to work with all available resources for optimal health care. So please, if conventional treatments have failed or you want a more natural alternative—find an experienced acupuncturist and herbalist to work with!
Call us at 270-506-3853 or click here to book an appointment today!
1 Qiwei Yang, Michal Ciebiera, Maria Victoria Bariani, Mohamed Ali, Hoda Elkafas, Thomas G Boyer, Ayman Al-Hendy, Comprehensive Review of Uterine Fibroids: Developmental Origin, Pathogenesis, and Treatment, Endocrine Reviews, Volume 43, Issue 4, August 2022, Pages 678–719, https://doi.org/10.1210/endrev/bnab039
In honor of Black History Month, I wanted to share some of the stories of how acupuncture came to be a legitimate practice in the US largely through the activism of some unlikely proponents—the Black Panthers and the Young Lords. Our medical history is full of examples of people of color being exploited by the medical industry, of people suffering in experiments because it was assumed their skin color prevented them from “really feeling pain” and other abominations that continue in less obvious ways to impact access to effective and safe health care for people of color. It took radical, focused, and illegal actions to improve access to health care for people of color in New York, and the Lincoln Detox Center still stands as an inspiring story of community activism for positive change. The model of the Lincoln Detox Center for treating addiction still stands as the gold standard for effective treatment.
In the 1970s acupuncture went from something in the back alleys of Chinatowns across the US to a vital element in community clinics founded and run by leaders in the Civil Rights community and became a subject of national interest after Henry Kissinger’s seminal trip to China, where doctors demonstrated acupuncture anesthesia during surgery. In 1974, California became the first state to openly license acupuncture after public outcry following the arrest of Dr. Miriam Lee. If it hadn’t been for the very public use of acupuncture in these community clinics and building awareness of the efficacy of acupuncture, I doubt the public outcry would have been very loud, and acupuncture might still be unregulated (as it is in a handful of states including Alabama, Oklahoma, and South Dakota). Thanks to these pioneering efforts, acupuncture has become recognized as a primary treatment option for pain, addiction, anxiety, and more.
Of note, at that time in China, acupuncture was part of an outreach to provide basic health care to the poor, rural regions of the country as part of the Barefoot Doctors. Elements of the traditional practices of acupuncture had been simplified into a standardized practice by Chinese physicians called “Traditional Chinese Medicine”, which is the foundation of most acupuncture training here in the US. One doctor who was on one of these trips to China, Tolbert Small, MD observed the acupuncture demonstration and asked for treatment for himself. He was intrigued enough to ask for more information. He was able to record 4 hours of lecture on the use of acupuncture and estim (electrical stimulation), procure some needles and an estim machine, and proceeded to practice on himself and his family after his return from China. Back in Oakland, he obtained an English translation of a Chinese Medicine text to study and expand his understanding of acupuncture.
He then incorporated acupuncture, mostly electro-acupuncture, into his practice in his community clinic and pioneered the use of acupuncture for the treatment of the symptoms of sickle-cell anemia. Dr. Small primarily used acupuncture to treat various kinds of pain. He was also pivotal in bringing national awareness to the plight of people with sickle-cell anemia and garnering more funding for testing and research of treatment. He even used acupuncture to ease his wife’s labor pains during two of her deliveries and may have been the first MD to do so in the US. To learn more about Dr. Small, I recommend this interview.
On the other side of the country in the South Bronx, Matulu Shakur (stepfather of Tupac Shakur) was one of the providers in the Lincoln Detox Center who heard about acupuncture for the treatment of addiction in Hong Kong in a New York Times article, and took an interest. He went to Chinatown to purchase acupuncture kits and books from doctors, then went to Montreal for training. There he studied how to treat addiction with acupuncture and later traveled to China, Switzerland, and other countries where acupuncture was used more openly. He was later licensed in California as an acupuncturist and founded an acupuncture school in the Bronx. His work along with those like Michael O. Smith, MD, DAc, lead to the development of the NADA protocol—a simple 5-point ear acupuncture protocol that is now used throughout the country for the treatment of addiction.
The Lincoln Detox Center was also notable for the development of the first patient bill of rights—changing the relationship between doctor and patient to protect patient rights and give them a voice in their care. Cleo Silvers, while not an acupuncturist, was a community organizer and advocate who was instrumental in authoring the patient bill of rights to ensure patients had access to quality care, their medical records, and the right to not be experimented on without their knowledge or consent—things that were grossly lacking especially among patients of color that we now take for granted.
Another key leader in the Lincoln Detox story was Richard Taft, MD; who was likely murdered during his tenure, though his death was staged to look like a suicide. He was working to publicize the dangers of methadone and promote acupuncture and other treatments for true detox at the time of his death. Today acupuncture continues to provide a safe alternative to methadone in the treatment of addiction, while at the same time continuing to be underutilized in many treatment centers and not readily accessible for the people who most need it. It is my hope that as awareness grows, access to acupuncture becomes a standard practice for addiction for all people.
When it comes to the heart and the question of “Can Acupuncture really help with that?” the answer is a resounding yes! From angina to issues of rhythm and blood flow, there is ample research to show acupuncture helps with no documented adverse effects during study periods—even with severe heart diseases.
Acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy improves treatment outcomes and pain relief for patients with Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) related angina. We’ve seen this repeatedly in our clinic as well.
Atrial Fibrillation (Afib): 1x weekly acupuncture for 12 weeks showed improved structural remodeling of the heart in patients with afib. This was fascinating to me, as I knew regular acupuncture of 2-4x per month extended the time between problems my afib patients had by 50-70% over what they experienced before acupuncture; but to learn it helped positively remodel the structure of the heart?!?! That’s huge!
Acupuncture has consistently been shown to increase blood flow and exercise tolerance in patients with chronic heart failure. This reduces stress, helps maintain a healthy weight and immune function, and improves patient quality of life without negative side effects!!
There are some well-understood mechanisms at play here such as the ability of acupuncture to regulate the balance of the sympathetic nervous system and vagus nerve, to help increase peripheral circulation, and to improve patient well-being; but to see that acupuncture is positively changing cell-signaling and structure of the heart itself shows there is much more than just a placebo effect going on. So yes, acupuncture helps. We even have some incredible herbs available to support and enhance treatments.
The bad news: Acupuncture isn’t a miracle cure (nothing alone is!). I probably sound like a broken record to some of my patients at this point, but for all the wonderful things we can do with acupuncture, herbs, and FSM to help with heart health—the choices you make at home each day about what foods you eat (or don’t eat) and what you do for stress management are critical to successfully managing and possibly even reversing heart disease. If you are taking blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds, or diabetes medicines, you aren’t healthy—you are masking an underlying disease process that will negatively impact your quality of life (if not the quantity of it as well). All the acupuncture in the world can’t overcome bad food choices. So to encourage heart health, we are including an eating guide to help you as well as resources for more help if you need it! And while you fix your diet, let acupuncture help you along the way!
1 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8778603/
2 Kristen AV, Schuhmacher B, Strych K, Lossnitzer D, Friederich HC, Hilbel T, Haass M, Katus HA, Schneider A, Streitberger KM, Backs J. Acupuncture improves exercise tolerance of patients with heart failure: a placebo-controlled pilot study. Heart. 2010 Sep;96(17):1396-400. doi: 10.1136/hrt.2009.187930. Epub 2010 Jun 15. PMID: 20554511.
3 Middlekauff HR, Hui K, Yu JL, Hamilton MA, Fonarow GC, Moriguchi J, Maclellan WR, Hage A. Acupuncture inhibits sympathetic activation during mental stress in advanced heart failure patients. J Card Fail. 2002 Dec;8(6):399-406. doi: 10.1054/jcaf.2002.129656. PMID: 12528093
Football Season is underway and did you know many top players keep themselves at peak performance with acupuncture?
This recent article quotes one of my instructors, Matt Callison, LAc—an internationally recognized expert in acupuncture & cupping for sports medicine, on the benefits of acupuncture and cupping not just for injury recovery, but for prevention as well. His style of acupuncture is heavily influenced by a deep understanding of trigger points and muscle physiology.
I attempted to produce a complete list of teams who use acupuncture, but after talking to some of the acupuncturists who work with these elite athletes, many consider acupuncture to be their “secret weapon” and don’t advertise who they work with for fear of another team or player “luring” them away!
One of these fabulous acupuncturists is Lisa Ripi who manages a grueling schedule to care for players on 4 different teams! She uses Japanese-style acupuncture which is similar to what I was trained in. Dan Domingues, LAc is another one of those gems—he shares his role as the team acupuncturist for the Buffalo Bills.
Cupping is often a big part of these treatments—even National Geographic took notice in 2018 when James Harrison (then with the New England Patriots) shared his use of cupping and acupuncture. So odds are, your favorite teams probably have acupuncture and cupping in their arsenal as tools to recover quickly and be ready for the next game!
Did you know our own Robert Cecil, LAc has extensive training in Master Tung points (great for recovery from injury), and cupping (fabulous for both recovery from muscle strain and other injuries)? In fact, just one session of cupping can increase the range of motion of the treated muscle groups in athletes—and alongside other techniques, can greatly reduce recovery time after an injury.
Acupuncture and cupping in combination with Frequency Specific Microcurrent treatments can target specific types of injured tissue to speed healing. So, regardless of if you are out on the field or cheering on your favorite players—remember we can help improve your performance!
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A frequent question we get in the clinic is “Can you get me off my diabetes medicine?" The simple answer is “no”. Acupuncture and herbs alone are potent allies in healing, but especially with diabetes, the choices you make each day have far more impact than anything anyone can give you. The more complete answer is “it depends”:
It is also important to know that we cannot make changes to prescription medications, so it’s important to work with your doctor as well as your acupuncturist when you decide that you are ready to make the changes you need for better health.
So why try acupuncture and TCM for diabetes?
Acupuncture and herbal medicine are not a “one-size fits all” treatment approach—each patient is unique and we chose our specific formulas and acupuncture points for each patient based on the presentation of the entire patient; not just a set cookie-cutter treatment. As a result, not only do we see the diabetes symptoms improve, the patient experiences better health overall. By choosing the right approach for each patient we avoid the spiral of “take this medication for this, and this medication for that, and this medication for the side effects of the first medication and yet another medication for the side effects of the second medication….” that so many patients experience.
Now as to the pesky diet and exercise thing:
If you continue to overload your body with too much of the wrong foods and not enough of the right exercise—even the best treatments and formulas, plus the medications your doctor prescribes—won’t be enough to keep the disease from progressing!
I highly recommend anyone who has diabetes or even a risk factor for diabetes (which is pretty much everyone) read “Why We Get Sick” by B. Bikman. It’s a great book based on solid research that helps you understand what happens with diabetes and more importantly, what you can do to change it. If you need help getting off the sugar, we have amazing and compassionate coaching and nutrition partners who can help you!
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Sources:
1 Wang KX, Liang FX, Chen S, Luo ZH, Chen B, Chen ZQ, Zhang YL, Chen J, Gu XL, Zhou T, Yan P, Xu XY. Effect of electroacupuncture of "Biao-Ben" acupoints on renal function and hemorheology and eNOS level in patients with early diabetic nephropathy. Zhen Ci Yan Jiu. 2022 Jan 25;47(1):46-52. Chinese. doi: 10.13702/j.1000-0607.20210036. PMID: 35128870.
2 Wang H, Chen X, Chen C, Pan T, Li M, Yao L, Li X, Lu Q, Wang H, Wang Z. Electroacupuncture at Lower He-Sea and Front-Mu Acupoints Ameliorates Insulin Resistance in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus by Regulating the Intestinal Flora and Gut Barrier. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2022 Jul 30;15:2265-2276. doi: 10.2147/DMSO.S374843. PMID: 35936053; PMCID: PMC9348137.
3 Dimitrova A, Murchison C, Oken B. Acupuncture for the Treatment of Peripheral Neuropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Altern Complement Med. 2017 Mar;23(3):164-179. doi: 10.1089/acm.2016.0155. Epub 2017 Jan 23. PMID: 28112552; PMCID: PMC5359694.
It’s that time of year again! That’s right, at 2:00 am on Sunday, November 6th it will be time to dial our clocks back an hour as daylight savings time ends. Some of us can’t wait to fit in that extra hour of coveted sleep, while the rest of us are wondering what kind of cruel joke the universe is playing by completely throwing off our internal clocks.
Whether we’re “springing back” or “falling forward”, the seasonal time changes can cause quite the disconnect between your body’s internal clock and your typical daily schedule. Sunlight helps to govern the physiological cues (or circadian rhythm) that tell your body when to sleep and when to wake up. Our sleep cycles and circadian rhythm can easily become disrupted by the change in daylight hours. These disruptions can affect much more than sleep—think mood, metabolism and weight loss, cardiovascular health, and alertness. With a few time-change survival tips for keeping your sleep schedule intact, you can escape the season unscathed:
It’s easy and rather normal to feel “a little off” as our bodies and internal clocks adjust to fewer daylight hours, but it’s easy to get back into the swing of things! Luckily, most folks find it easier to adjust to the shorter days of fall and winter than to the longer days of spring and summer. Remember these easy tips for keeping your sleep cycle in check and on the mend! And don’t forget: acupuncture is an excellent way to bring the body back to homeostasis, improve your quality of sleep, and boost your mood. If you need further help sleeping soundly and adjusting to the upcoming hustle and bustle, we’re here to help!
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One question we hear from patients quite often is, “If I’m getting acupuncture, is it ok to see the chiropractor?” or vice versa. Chiropractic care and acupuncture are actually rather complementary to one another! In fact, we have some exciting news: Beginning October 2022, we will have chiropractic care available at our Magnolia location with Dr. Nowelle Altman-Sigman!
Chiropractic care is a manual, hands-on treatment that focuses on correcting misalignments of the joints, especially those of the spinal column. This is a viable treatment for those experiencing neck, back, or joint pain and for those suffering from headaches and neuromusculoskeletal problems. Chiropractic treatments are an effective, non-invasive and holistic approach to many ailments, providing pain relief and in many cases, relief from further issues stemming from blockages in the body caused by misalignment. Often, patients of chiropractic care also note improvements in quality of sleep, digestion, energy levels, and even mood.
Acupuncture is an entirely different modality—using fine, sterile needles inserted at specific anatomical points on the body. While acupuncture treats a wide range of ailments by promoting the body’s natural healing abilities, releasing feel-good endorphins and restoring the body to homeostasis, it does have commonalities with chiropractic care. Both are holistic, drug-free options for care with a patient-centered approach that promotes natural healing and optimal health. Acupuncture and chiropractic care both share the objective of balancing the body’s structure and its support systems.
When both acupuncture and chiropractic treatments are combined, you can expect to see more improvement over less time. While a chiropractic adjustment corrects the body’s structure and eliminates blockages in the body caused by misalignment, acupuncture further relaxes the muscles, reduces pain and inflammation, and assists the flow of energy through the body where these blockages once existed; more importantly, it helps the body adapt to and maintain its corrected structure.
These two treatments working together offer an unmatched, supportive and holistic approach to pain relief. If you’d like to incorporate chiropractic care into your acupuncture routine we will begin offering treatments with Nowelle Altman-Sigman, DC starting October 2022!
She will be available on Wednesdays at our Magnolia location and we couldn’t be more excited! Along with chiropractic adjustments, Dr. Nowelle Altman-Sigman will also offer craniosacral therapy, visceral manipulation, and functional medicine. For further information or to be added to her waitlist, call our office at 270-506-3853, and stay tuned to our website for more updates!
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Let’s face it, acupuncture doesn’t always have the best public image. People think of Kungfu Panda or Pinhead—needles randomly poking everywhere. Or maybe they’ve been on Instagram and seen some photos and videos of poorly done dry needling (through clothing, dangerous needle placement over organs, etc) and equate that with acupuncture. Who wants to risk an infection or organ puncture—no thank you! Then someone says they are going to stick needles in your ears and help you feel better—truly, I understand the skepticism! Now, let me break down some of the mysteries.
Acupuncture isn’t a singular practice. There are dozens of different systems and styles and a myriad of variations among those. Acupuncturists have many resources to address your issues with those tiny little needles. One of these systems is Auricular (Ear) Acupuncture. Amazingly the entire body, internal and external, including the emotions are reflected in the ear.
Don’t believe it? Here are some photos and video of the changes one patient experienced after having her knees locked straight for years after her bilateral knee replacement. This immobility in her knees made it hard to walk, and uncomfortable to sit; caused problems in her knees, hips, back, and feet…and repeatedly she was told her case was hopeless. Even trying to force the knees to bend under sedation didn’t work. She originally came to see me for allergies (also resolved), but her knees were so clearly painful and her legs just stuck out straight even sitting on the edge of the chair. I asked her if I could see if some extra needles might help with the pain.
She agreed. I placed a tiny 3mm long needle in just the right spot aiming to simply reduce her pain and within a few seconds the knee had bent a little and the pain was greatly reduced! Encouraged and amazed, I continued on. Another needle, another increase in range of motion. 3 needles and her knee had gained a visible range of motion. Fast forward 2 months—her knee was now bending even more, almost to 90 degrees if she really focused on it, with no pain and no further treatment. We then decided to do the same thing for the opposite knee…same result.
An “impossible” case was getting nearly immediate and long-lasting relief. Sounds too good to be true, I get it! This is why I love what I do. Changing people’s lives for the better without drugs and working with the body, instead of against it. And that’s the point, helping people live better, one person at a time.
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