Flying with acupunture

 

Lately my right knee has been hurting. Interestingly not when I ran 8 miles, but when I ran 4. It hurts a lot more when I walk than when I run. I did not want to go back to my doctor for another shot, plus it had only been one month since the last one. I tried heating and icing. I tried more yoga. I tried less yoga. I tried more swimming. I tried less swimming. I even tried less running. Aleve seemed to help, but I do not want to pop Aleve every day for the rest of my life. so I Googled things to do to manage arthritis pain and acupuncture popped up.

 

I had heard that acupuncture is good for many things, but I had never tried it. The more I Googled the more convinced I became that I should try it. There were many testimonials from people and even my Facebook friends chimed in about the benefits. And we all know that if it is on Facebook, it must be true! On a practical level  I figured it is minimally invasive and the worst thing that would happen is that it would not work. It isn't knee surgery (which I am trying to avoid).

 

I had butterflies in my stomach a couple hours before my appointment. I had read everything I could find on acupuncture and yet the fear of the unknown loomed large. The nurse was very friendly and quickly handled all of the paperwork. She told me what to expect.

 

The procedure did not hurt. I did flinch when one needle was placed. The hardest part was relaxing for 25 minutes while the needles were inserted. My mind kept running and I did not do a very good job of turning my head off. those 25 minutes seemed a lot longer.

 

When the needles were removed my knee was not as stiff as before the treatment. I was warned that my pain could intensify and that was normal and the treatment might not work the first time. All can I say is that today is the first day I woke up without the need to pop some Aleve. I will go back a couple times next week and hopefully that will be all until it flares up again. It is too early to tell if this is a long term solution, but I am grateful for the break from the pain.