General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Top cancer hospitals across the country treat their patients' PAIN with "woo." [View all]laundry_queen
(8,646 posts)the mechanism is likely the same as 'TENS' pain relief (does anyone remember hearing about that? I learned it when studying about birth...) where you put electrodes on your back (for back labor) and turn it up...it creates a buzzing feeling in your back and is supposed to relieve pain in labor. There were studies about its effectiveness.
My doctor used electricity through the acupuncture needles and you would feel a light, regular, "zap, zap, zap" it was seriously a distracting sensation. That's probably how it works - it distracts you and stimulates other nerves in the area taking away the pain sensation. Like adding 'noise' to the nerves so the brain can't 'hear' the pain.
I have this peppermint oil migraine roll on that works like that - when I get a migraine, I rub the stuff on my forehead and temples and neck, and the top of my head. Before too long, the intense cooling sensation blocks out the pain of the migraine. All it is, is adding 'noise' to the area to drown out the pain signals to the brain, IMO.
That said, my doctor tried to induce my labor with acupuncture - didn't work. Tried to help treat my messed up back and hip with acupuncture - didn't work. Total waste of time. Chiropractic, however, worked wonders on my hip (not so much on my upper back). So some things work for some things, and not for others. Just like all chemo doesn't work for all cancers. Just like I can take tylenol and it helps my headache, but my mom doesn't get any relief from tylenol and takes advil. Some treatments are highly individual. Nothing is a cure-all.