Accupressure And Reflexology Anyone?

[roxie]

HI! Yesterday I was watching oprah with dr oz and he was talking about how he uses accupressure and reflexology with all his patients to do this like reduce stress, ease headaches, and even help with digestive issues. Has anyone tried this? Has it helped at all?

i tried doing the one that is supposed to help with headaches and I felt weird and lightheaded for the rest of the day.

If anyone has any experience with this stuff I'd love to hear about it

Bananas

[Kyler]

I was wondering the same thing including massage, accupuncture etc.

I can't find any info on the net about alternative rx of POTS. I was worried that the massage aspect could cause too much vasodilation and make it worse?? I would love to know if anyone has experience with these things.

[anjuu]

I have been doing acupuncture for over a year to help alleviate symptoms. I have had decent results with it.

There was one or two times where too much of my 'qi' was moved, and I felt light-headed, had serious vertigo (I thought the floor of the room was warping beneath me), light flashed before my eyes, and felt like I was going to pass out. My acupuncturist then used a few points to bring the qi down to my legs, and within minutes, most of the symptoms disappeared.

The only sucky thing about ACU is the fact that you need to establish a rhythm...you can't just do it once or twice and expect full benefit. Therefore, it can be hard to gain anything positive out of it if your schedule is not willing, if you are not receptive to your own energy, or if the acupuncturist does not have an acute intuition of maximum benefit for the sufferer(s).

[potsgirl]

I so looked forward to getting an hour-long massage, which was a gift from my son for Mother's Day, and at least in my case, it made me really sick. The room was warm, the massage bed was warm, but it felt pretty good during the process. About 10 minutes later I was shaky and nauseous, felt like passing out, and had a nasty headache. I wouldn't do it again.

I do have a friend who uses acupuncture (she also has dysautonomia), and she thinks it's helped her. She goes regularly though, once a week.

Hope this helps,

Jana

[MamaTrain]

I tried acupuncture 8 times and each time I would have an episode come on about an hour afterward. Sometimes it would last an hour or for several hours! I have not been back to try again as I was tired of dealing with the episodes. I guess my nervous system couldn't handle all the energy moving around! :-) I feel weird after massages but it goes away quickly....kinda like when I see the chiropractor. Good luck!

[EarthMother]

Traditional massage was hard on my system ... though when I was able to work I regularly saw a massage therapist who did a light "powder massage" usually reserved for the terminally ill -- so she explained.

I also use to see a reflexologist -- ear, hands and feet. That I could handle! And I loved it.

I also tried accupuncture over the years and while it totally cured a prolonged case of vulvadynia (literally gone completely after one session after suffering for 9 months and trying everything the GYNO world could offer by way of traditional treatments) ... I was unable with continued treatments to see any improvements in the POTS.

My own sense is ... each of these modalities are different and work differently on different people and perhaps even differently on the SAME person from one year to another... or from one practitioner to another.

Good luck finding something that helps you.

[gertie]

I've tried accupressure & accupuncture & neither helped me. It seemed to make me more tired & with accupuncture I had huge bruises everywhere I had a needle. I was told never to have lymphatic massage only light massage.

[ladyt]

hi..

have tryed accupresure and reflexology befor whit out possitive effects.. Now I am trying acupuncture in hope that it will help whit my insomnia and pain.. time will show..

[heathmcev]

I tried acupuncture once a week for 6 or 7 weeks and had a crash/POTS episode for 2-3 days after every treatment. It was too much for my system - and this was with the acupuncturist 'taking it slow'. I didn't stick with it cause it was just to over-stimulating.

I have since found some success in craniosacral therapy with an Osteopathic Doctor. It's also the ONLY thing I've found that can make my migraines go away!! The first few sessions I didn't feel anything, but then there was a breakthrough. Overall, it's a calming experience for me and can help during crashes. I go about every 2-3 weeks - more if I'm particularly POTSy. I do have to take it slow after treatments as I am spacey for a few hours, but it passes.

best of luck

[kitchmill]

I have used acupuncture successfully for migraines, but as others have mentioned, it is a committment. But it helped me go from 175mg of Topomax to 0! And, I rarely have to take migraine meds anymore for an actual migraine. My whole point in going for acupuncture was to stop the migraine meds because they gave me weird side effects (due to the chemical sensitivity). I don't mind taking occasional Excedrin though.

My acupuncturist also said that with a few sessions he could get rid of IBS. I haven't gone for that yet, but he DID fix my period! He got rid of super heavy, long, cramps-that-make-you-pass-out periods! Love that guy.