How Acupuncture Complements Western Medicine to Mitigate Medication Side Effects

I am frequently asked two questions: 1) Does acupuncture treatment cause pain? 2) Can I undergo acupuncture treatment while taking prescription medication? My typical response is: "it depends".

Each individual is unique, and therefore, each person's experience with acupuncture is different, just as everyone reacts differently to medication.

While we often recommend herbal supplements alongside acupuncture, we usually perform acupuncture to help our clients deal with the side effects of Western medicine. Other times, we perform acupuncture to help regulate their body function so that their doctor can reduce the amount of medication they are dependent on for the rest of their life. Here are two such cases:

• A patient who had contracted Tuberculosis (TB) experienced rashes all over her body due to her medications, leading her to discontinue them for 2 weeks. After an in-home session with us, her rashes disappeared within 24 hours. Subsequent sessions helped stabilize her condition, allowing her to resume her medication without further issues.

• Another patient experienced uncontrollable bowel movements as a side effect of a diabetes medication, even after dietary changes. We first addressed her reaction to the prescription drug without interfering with her ongoing medication. Subsequently, we treated her diabetic condition using only acupuncture needling. In six weeks, we stabilized her condition to a pre-diabetec stage, and her primary provider reduced the dosage of her medication. We continue to work with her to transition to a non-diabetic state and discontinue her diabetes medication.

Acupuncture can serve as a complementary treatment for various conventional medical therapies, such as neuropathy resulting from chemotherapy. We increasingly receive referrals from other medical providers to supplement their treatment plans.

Suppose you are experiencing allergic reactions to your medication and have not found a solution with your primary provider. In that case, you can schedule a free 15-minute consultation with us to explore whether acupuncture is suitable for you.