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I hear time & time again from patients that as they begin to feel pain relief, they find they have so much more time & energy. Being pain-free allows them to sleep better at night, go back to exercising & be able to return to doing the things that they love.
The truth is pain, while often not serious, can sap energy and be difficult to manage because the brain is sending constant messages that something is wrong. Sadly, for most of us, no one has told us what to do to get relief. Cortisone & muscle relaxers offer temporary, and sometimes necessary relief. However, they don’t treat the underlying problem. To do this, it’s important to understand how pain develops and why it can persist long after our bodies have healed from an injury. We experience pain when special nerve endings called nociceptors detect harmful stimuli and send electrical signals to the central nervous system. There are 3 types of nociceptors that respond to three types of harmful stimuli:
Unfortunately, when pain goes on for a long time it causes the nervous system to be overly sensitized. All kinds of sensations are recognized as threats, creating a feedback loop that perpetuates pain even if there is nothing fundamentally wrong & no immediate danger. It’s not clear to many of my patients why this is happening, making the situation even more frustrating. And pain, unlike more serious diseases such as heart disease, kidney disease and cancer, is often unrelenting. Nerve endings continue to send signals to the brain, sometimes after the injury has healed. Ideally, we figure out what is causing the pain & with the help of acupuncture, craniosacral therapy & simple adjustments to posture, as well as some gentle movements, the body heals & the pain goes away. I see this happening over and over again. But honestly, particularly with chronic conditions, this takes time. What to do in the moment, when there is real discomfort? I recommend these strategies from the Mayo Clinic’s website 4(26.7%) :
Feel free to reach out to me for a free consultationif you are looking for a way to get pain relief. With you on your journey towards health!
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 Pain is one of those pesky things we think we have to live with. You, like many of my patients, may have experienced sciatica. It’s something that generally isn’t serious in a life-threatening way, but creates so much distress and discomfort. If you have sciatica, you probably will be in pain doing your normal daily activities, like walking, sitting or sleeping.
Your doctor may want to help you, but has minimal tools – anti-inflammatory drugs and cortisone shots – both of which come with side effects. Also, they don’t fix the problem. Here’s where being open to trying a new modality like acupuncture can be helpful. Treatments reduce inflammation, relax muscles and treat areas of the spine that may be pressing on the sciatic nerve. That’s what Phil Chmura found out when he came to see me. Phil suffered from severe sciatica. The pain interfered with his daily life to the extent that he couldn't stand for more than 3 minutes before the pain started and continued to increase. He had already tried treatments like chiropractic and anti-inflammatory drugs to no avail and he wanted to avoid cortisone shots. He finally decided it was time to turn his life around and came to see me after getting encouragement from his daughter and friend of mine, Amber Ladley. After just nine weekly treatments, we were able to virtually eliminate his pain! Phil was able to get back to biking – one of his favorite activities. When I reached out to him, about a year and a half after treatment, he responded with these words: "I have fortunately been relatively pain free since the completion and have just recently signed up for my second bike trip across the USA. I cannot thank Bonnie enough for getting my life back to normal and would highly recommend her services." I thank Phil for sharing his story. With pain, you have options. By being open to complementary forms of treatment, like acupuncture, you can find ways of reducing and eliminating pain. You might be a little nervous to try something new. I understand that. People have concerns about the needles, the safety of treatment, trying something outside of Western Medicine. That’s why I offer free ½ hour, online consultations. I’ll listen to what is causing you pain and discomfort, review your health history and honestly let you know how I can be helpful. Please know that you don't have to suffer in silence if you're in pain.
Sciatica is caused by inflammation of the sciatic nerve – the longest and widest nerve in the body. It’s about the thickness of your little finger. While sciatica often isn’t serious, it can create a lot of discomfort. From an acupuncture perspective, there are two meridians (energetic pathways) that are involved, the bladder and gall bladder meridians. Note: Inflammation in these meridians does not mean that you have bladder or gall bladder problems. When there is the smooth flow of energy through the meridians, there’s health in the body. Notice how the meridians run along the same area of the sciatic nerve. Treatments can help: -open up restrictions in the meridians -reduce inflammation along the spine in areas that are pressing on the sciatic nerve -relax muscles that are contracting and causing pain -teach you to eat in a way that reduces inflammation in the body |
AuthorIn practice for over 20 years, Bonnie Diamond offers individualized, heart-centered care using a pain-free, Japanese style of acupuncture. Her work is influenced by her nine year struggle with and complete recovery from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. 
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