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Complementary Therapies

On Ess's advice I'm trying this again with more clear wording.  :)  I hadn't meant to imply "alternative to DMD" but additional therapies.  Does anyone use any *complementary* therapies?  Have you had postive results with them?

I'm asking because the TN and occipital neuralgia pain had gotten so bad I was having a lot of muscle tension in my neck and back from the pain.  I decided some massage therapy couldn't hurt and might help.  The massage therapist also recommended cranio-sacral therapy.  It seems quite goofy to me and the scientist and sceptic in me just can't be quite won over.  I actually do feel significantly better, but it my case it's difficult to tell what's the massage (I know the muscle tension from the pain couldn't be helping issues), titrating up the Lyrica to double the old dosage, and the cranio-sacral therapy.

The one funny tihng I noticed was that within a few hours of the first session, my sinuses (which have been blocked since November) drained!  An unexpected benefit, I guess.

My plan is to go for two more sessions and see how I feel.  In this case, I'm confident nothing I'm doing would cause any additional harm, and it *might* help, so I'll try it.

They also recommend acupuncture, but I haven't tried that yet...

Stephanie

***********************

Poll Question:

What alternative therapies have you tried?  Please post and tell us whether you've had positive, negative, or neutral experiences with these therapies.
7 Responses
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382218 tn?1341181487
Massage for relaxation, temporary pain relief.  Covered by my employer benefits, 100% up to $1500 per year, and I don't take nearly as much advantage of it as I should.
Helpful - 0
634733 tn?1316625992
I voted for acupuncture as it had the most positive result on my leg pain that had driven me crazy for months. As Lulu says it is expensive I had 5 treatments on the NHS but cannotclaim anymore and now have to pay.

I also use massage therapy and reflexology every 2 weeks. The massage helps a lot with muscle tension in my shoulders often triggered by problems with my right arm and shoulder.

The reflex has no basis in science BUT it has helped me for over 5 years as I came through limbo and menopause at the same time. It was one hour a fortnight that was just for me and my therapist now knows me and my body well. She also had a sister who had PPMS the most aggresive type and so knows just how to take care of me.

I also exercise using Pilates methods and use my exercise bike several times a week to exercise without weight bearing due to arthritis in my knee and being overweight - huh!

Pat x
Helpful - 0
738075 tn?1330575844
I voted for Acupuncture, just because I can only vote for one.  I also use Massage Therapy, and when the Baclofen doesn't deal well enough with my spasticity, I've occasionally used Cannabis.  I practice Yoga for 90 minutes 2x/wk.

Cheers,
Guitar_grrrl
Helpful - 0
1045086 tn?1332126422
I voted for massage because that is the biggest part of the complementary therapy that worked well for me.  The woman I went to called what she did energy work.  She was unlicensed but had experience with a chiro manipulations, therapeutic massage, acupressure, and the energy meridians of the body.  She brought these all together with a unique talent to locate problem areas with light touch.  

I met her at the barn where we board our horse.  She had been called upon to work on one of the horses there.  Without going into details, she worked a miracle of sorts on that mare.  After observing her work on my own horse, I decided I had to see what she could do toward relieving the considerable pain I was having at the time.  This was prior to my official MS diagnosis.

Many times I could feel tremendous heat in her hands as she worked.  She always zeroed in on the areas that needed the most healing without me saying a word.  She charged by the treatment rather than the hour.  I was seldom there less than 90 minutes and she never took more than $50.  Unfortunately for me, she left her husband and the state in search of sunny skies and a longer riding season.

This does remind me though that I have a massage gift certificate from my children waiting for redemption.  I think now would be a good time to cash in.

I have also had success with relaxation/hypnosis therapy and Reiki and become a believer in supplements.  At the moment I am trying a biofeedback type device that will help me regulate my breathing and hopefully reduce recent cardiac symptoms as well as the considerable stress inflicted by my cardiac physicians.  Maybe it will even help with muscle tension/spasms and sleep problems.

It's funny for me to see this long list of successful therapy compliments.  For years I was a by the book with drugs and therapy person.  When I started experiencing more side effects than therapeutic benefits I starting looking "off label".  Finding solutions to my challenges over the years has proven to me that the best answers are usually the least complicated ones in the end.

Mary
Helpful - 0
562511 tn?1285904160
These are the alternative treatments I've used:

Chiropractic - the results are always very good.  Caution- no forceful twisting of the spine.  I've used chiropractic care before my MS.  It helps keep me aligned and I feel much better.  I could use a visit right now.

Accupuncture:  I've had this a few times for painful muscles, not MS related????

Massage:  Great way to relax.  I always feel good afterwards.


Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
I have had the most significant improvement using alternative, non drug remedies for my ms.  I think the detoxification and chelation therapies helped me more than anything else.
Helpful - 0
572651 tn?1530999357
Stephanie,
I am all in favor of complimentary therapies - I just wish my insurance felt the same way because it gets pricey coming out of my own money.

I could only vote for one of these, so I picked the massage therapy because that is what I do the most.

The massage therapy I get is positional release, which is based on accupressure points.

She also does some cranial-sacral work.  Like you, it does give me relief to my sinuses, which is a definite bonus.  I'm not sure I buy into the whole theory of this one, but figure it is doing me no harm.


Accupuncture has been good for me, too.  It is something I wish I could do more often.  My massage therapist thinks the accupuncture would be very good for my peripheral neuropathy to try to clear those nerve pathways.  It is actually a very relaxing treatment - the needles are super thin and you barely feel them.  Last year I was able to go repeatedly for accupuncture because there was a school teaching it - the treatment was half-price.  Unfortunately they have closed the school.  :-(


I would go lightly with the chiropractic work - if I'm remembering correctly this is discouraged for MS patients with spinal leisons - can anyone out there tell us why I'm thinking this?

Hopefully something in this helps - I would be happy to discuss particular treatments if you have a question.

be well,
Lulu




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