electromyography (emg) and ci's

Hear Again said:
the acupuncturist placed needles all over my wrist and it hurt like h*ll. he told me it wouldn't hurt, but it did. keep in mind though that this was back in the mid 90s when i wasn't yet diagnosed with cts. at the time, my neurologist was simply treating me for wrist pain and nothing else. i also had 2 cortizone shots that were unsuccessful.
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Acupuncture needles generally speaking shouldn't hurt. The reasons they may hurt is because the acupuncturist does not put in the needles with qi (energy), the muscles are tense and contract around the needle, or because the meridian is severely out of balance. Each pain is pretty distinct. In my experience the muscle tension pain is by far the most painful. It sounds to me like it was painful for you because your acupuncturist places the needs at the site of pain--which acupuncturists are advised to avoid. My acupuncturist massages the point and manipulates qi (energy) with her fingers to relax the muscle and to somewhat balance out the meridian before inserting the needle into a point she thinks may be particularly painful. You might consider asking your acupuncturist to do this if you plan on receiving acupuncture in the future. You could also request that they stay away from your actual wrists.
 
no, i'm not going to have acupuncture again. no thanks. once is more than enough. having said that, my acupuncturist did not massage my hand or wrist at all, so it's no wonder it hurt as much as it did.
 
To be honest, Hear Again. I really am surprised that your acupuncturist placed needs in your wrist. It sounds to me like s/he didn't know what s/he was doing. I'm sorry you had such an awful experience with acupuncture.

If you would like, I can suggest some types of therapy/bodywork that have similar results to acupuncture but that don't involve needles of any kind and that aren't the least bit painful.
 
Hear Again said:
no, i'm not going to have acupuncture again. no thanks. once is more than enough. having said that, my acupuncturist did not massage my hand or wrist at all, so it's no wonder it hurt as much as it did.
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lol sounds like that acupuncturist is either white or modern type. That's the worst kind. You need to see the REAL acupuncturist... typically old asian man whose office SMELLS bad with herbal stuff in some China Town.
 
Jiro said:
lol sounds like that acupuncturist is either white or modern type. That's the worst kind. You need to see the REAL acupuncturist... typically old asian man whose office SMELLS bad with herbal stuff in some China Town.
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:laugh2:

yes, my acupuncturist was a caucasian american.
 
My acupuncturist is excellent and happens to be Caucasian American.
 
Nika said:
To be honest, Hear Again. I really am surprised that your acupuncturist placed needs in your wrist. It sounds to me like s/he didn't know what s/he was doing. I'm sorry you had such an awful experience with acupuncture.

If you would like, I can suggest some types of therapy/bodywork that have similar results to acupuncture but that don't involve needles of any kind and that aren't the least bit painful.
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well, my physical therapist says my left wrist is beyond help with the exception of cts surgery. according to her, my left hand is over 50% weaker than my right. she described it as being "very, very weak" and my right hand as being "very weak."
 
Hear Again said:
:laugh2:

yes, my acupuncturist was a caucasian american.
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yea no wonder. there are 2 types - academic and apprentice. AVOID THE ACADEMIC TYPE! They don't know SQUAT! I've been to 2 "academic" acupuncturists and they suck big time but they are very good with herbal medicine.

Apprentice-type approached the problem holistically but academic-type approached it way too scientifically. He used some ghostbuster-like equipment to uh... find some "imbalance" in my body and I did not improve at all. My old acupuncturist didn't even use any of those tools! All she did is feel my pulse at different place, closely observe me and then she already figured out what's wrong with me.

I've been going to my old acupuncturist for a very long time. I stopped going about several years ago because I was completely "cured." She was taught by some old wise man. She fixed a lot of things in me with a holistic approach and it works for real. She can heal my damages usually 50% faster. For example - huge joint sprain, negative/imbalance flow (hard to explain), bolstered my immune system to Superman Level, and a couple of nerve-related problems on my hand and foot. My brother gets injured a lot - broken bone and bunch of nasty sprains. He gets healed up 50% faster and he went to see doctor for regular check-up on his injury. The doctor was :-o at his rapid recovery rate. :laugh2:

The reason why I tried new acupuncturist is because she is very old now. I didn't like the new acupuncturist so I tried ANOTHER academic acupuncturist that specialized in sport-related / accident injuries. His way of treatment is to use the conventional medicine along with acupuncture. Jesus H. F****** Christ (sorry for using his name in vain) I wanted to punch him and push him into a hole full of needles. It was a horrible, painful experience. So I went back to old one but it was done by her long-time colleague. She recently taught him to carry on the healing knowledge but he's just bit rough on the edge.

I hope you can find a good acupuncturist nearby. It's usually easier to find one in asian-dominated neighborhood like China Town.
 
Jiro said:
yea no wonder. there are 2 types - academic and apprentice. AVOID THE ACADEMIC TYPE! They don't know SQUAT! I've been to 2 "academic" acupuncturists and they suck big time but they are very good with herbal medicine.

Apprentice-type approached the problem holistically but academic-type approached it way too scientifically. He used some ghostbuster-like equipment to uh... find some "imbalance" in my body and I did not improve at all. My old acupuncturist didn't even use any of those tools! All she did is feel my pulse at different place, closely observe me and then she already figured out what's wrong with me.

I've been going to my old acupuncturist for a very long time. I stopped going about several years ago because I was completely "cured." She was taught by some old wise man. She fixed a lot of things in me with a holistic approach and it works for real. She can heal my damages usually 50% faster. For example - huge joint sprain, negative/imbalance flow (hard to explain), bolstered my immune system to Superman Level, and a couple of nerve-related problems on my hand and foot. My brother gets injured a lot - broken bone and bunch of nasty sprains. He gets healed up 50% faster and he went to see doctor for regular check-up on his injury. The doctor was :-o at his rapid recovery rate. :laugh2:

The reason why I tried new acupuncturist is because she is very old now. I didn't like the new acupuncturist so I tried ANOTHER academic acupuncturist that specialized in sport-related / accident injuries. His way of treatment is to use the conventional medicine along with acupuncture. Jesus H. F****** Christ (sorry for using his name in vain) I wanted to punch him and push him into a hole full of needles. It was a horrible, painful experience. So I went back to old one but it was done by her long-time colleague. She recently taught him to carry on the healing knowledge but he's just bit rough on the edge.

I hope you can find a good acupuncturist nearby. It's usually easier to find one in asian-dominated neighborhood like China Town.
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that's really interesting, jiro.

i don't know if you can identify what kind of acupuncturist i had, but he was associated with our local hospital, so i'm guessing he was an academic.
 
my doctor and physical therapist think i've had cts in my left hand ever since i was treated by a neurologist and had acupuncture and 2 cortizone shots. i experienced the same symptoms back then as i have today, but they weren't as severe.
 
Hear Again said:
that's really interesting, jiro.

i don't know if you can identify what kind of acupuncturist i had, but he was associated with our local hospital, so i'm guessing he was an academic.
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yup most likely. I call it "academic" because you need to be certified/licensed and there are schools for that. My acupuncturist is not but that doesn't bother me because the result is good. Of course... there are some academic acupuncturists who are good but because of my bad experience with them.... I avoid them like a plague unless he has an excellent referral.
 
Jiro said:
yup most likely. I call it "academic" because you need to be certified/licensed and there are schools for that. My acupuncturist is not but that doesn't bother me because the result is good. Of course... there are some academic acupuncturists who are good but because of my bad experience with them.... I avoid them like a plague unless he has an excellent referral.
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i know what you mean. this is a little off-topic, but not completely.

i feel the same way about "ordinary" psychiatrists who do not specialize in addiction. i found 2 WONDERFUL psychiatrists who specialize in addiction medicine who were *very* patient and believe in doing everything they can to involve me in my treatment plan and make med changes as often as necessary until we find a correct med combo that works. my current pdoc promised to help me reduce my rapid cycling and said he will keep trying until he finds a combination of meds that give me some relief. my last twit of a pdoc wasn't an addiction psychiatrist and was someone who ignored your symptoms when you told him you were manic and/or rapid cycling, sent you out the door quickly and told you to see him in 3 months. :roll: that's the last time i see an "ordinary" psychiatrist again. by the way, something else i've discovered about addiction psychiatrists is the fact that they tend to be more knowledgeable about mental illnesses in general.
 
Hear Again said:
off-topic...

doc,

my doctor told me that if i experienced pain having acupuncture on my left wrist (which i did), she said the emg will hurt even worse. is that true?
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Sorry for the late response...went away for the weekend. Brrrr.

Anyway, the short answer is they do not correlate terribly well. While some people find acupuncture excruciating, others say they feel no pain. With an EMG, we've had kiddos laugh through the test and others scream. Sometimes the parents are worse than the kids.

FYI, there are two components to an EMG. The first is the nerve conduction part, which involves no wires/pins/needles and consists of tiny shocks administered on the arm and wrist (in the case of CTS). They may actually do both sides to compare. The actual EMG, or electromyogram, involves measure the electrical activity inside the muscles using extremely thin "wires" or "needles". Advanced nerve damage will result in abnormalities of the muscle itself. They may or may not include the "EMG" or may just do nerve conductions, depending on the results. I had a pretty comprehensive EMG done recently on both arms, and had very little discomfort, all of which resolved by the time I left.
 
Hear Again said:
i need to make a huge correction for anyone reading this who may have an emg. cochlear told me that an emg for my cts was safe as long as it was performed MORE THAN 1 cm away from my ci's.
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Trust me, they will be much farther away than that. The only study that could come close would be a facial nerve study such as for a Bell's palsy or a study for myasthenia gravis. 99% of all EMGs are in the limbs and trunk.
 
DeafDoc1 said:
Trust me, they will be much farther away than that. The only study that could come close would be a facial nerve study such as for a Bell's palsy or a study for myasthenia gravis. 99% of all EMGs are in the limbs and trunk.
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thanks, doc. :)
 
DeafDoc1 said:
Sorry for the late response...went away for the weekend. Brrrr.

Anyway, the short answer is they do not correlate terribly well. While some people find acupuncture excruciating, others say they feel no pain. With an EMG, we've had kiddos laugh through the test and others scream. Sometimes the parents are worse than the kids.

FYI, there are two components to an EMG. The first is the nerve conduction part, which involves no wires/pins/needles and consists of tiny shocks administered on the arm and wrist (in the case of CTS). They may actually do both sides to compare. The actual EMG, or electromyogram, involves measure the electrical activity inside the muscles using extremely thin "wires" or "needles". Advanced nerve damage will result in abnormalities of the muscle itself. They may or may not include the "EMG" or may just do nerve conductions, depending on the results. I had a pretty comprehensive EMG done recently on both arms, and had very little discomfort, all of which resolved by the time I left.
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this makes me feel a whole lot better about having the procedure done. i'm a wimp when it comes to any kind of pain. :giggle:
 
I've seen some amazing things with energy work, Hear Again. Nothing is "beyond repair" in my book. If I were you I'd definitely give some other energy work a try but of course it's your call. If you want some names of different types of therapies the offer is still up in the air. <smile>

I really hope that if you get surgery or whatever you do for your CTS, that it is successful.
 
thanks, nika. i plan to discuss my surgical options with my neurologist. at this point, i'm not sure about other alternatives because the pain in my left hand is just too great.
 
HearAgain,
Did you have your emg today? Hope it wasn't too uncomfortable for you. I truly doubt you are a wimp as you claim to be. How bad/good is your CTS?
 
doc,

i didn't have my emg done today. i had problems this morning with hearing voices due to my bipolar and had to go to the er. i'm back home now. i'm still hearing voices, but they aren't as loud or angry as they were this morning. as for my cts, it hasn't been bothering me too much as of late because of the warmer temperatures (in the 30s).
 
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