Why is it so hard to know how many acupuncture treatments it will take?
As you know if you read my blog, this is where I speak a bit more conversationally rather than being stuffy. So, that being said, I will answer this as if we were hanging out at a pub.
“How many treatments will I need?” is the biggest question to answer and I promise you that it is just as frustrating for practitioners as it is for patients.
If you say, “It depends” (which is the absolute, real, behind -the-scenes truth, I swear!) patients may think you are conning them or don’t know what you are doing.
If you try to give a definitive answer, you’re tempted to underpromise and overdeliver which can be great but then some patients get scared off if you tell them 15 treatments when you think you can fix it in 10 treatments because you want to give yourself a little bit of space. It can be an investment to get a real course of acupuncture. Believe me, I know! Whether it’s therapy or acupuncture I’ve needed, I have ponied up some big bucks for treatment.
You don’t want to scare anyone off, but you don’t want to say “Sure! I can fix your heart arrhythmia in 5 treatments!” when they may not show a ton of change in 5 and would lose faith in you.
Are you starting to see how difficult this is?
Example: I had a patient a couple weeks ago who has such bad trigeminal neuralgia that wearing a mask, brushing his teeth, and even TALKING are excruciating for him. He’s telling me all the things he’s tried: massage, cupping, some serious pharmaceuticals, CBD, etc. Nothing. No help at all. These kinds of cases are both exciting, because I love a challenge, and daunting. Acupuncturists are used to being the “last resort” treatment, but you also hold in your heart that this person is likely despairing at this point and that is a heavy load to bear. So, back to the patient: Even though trigeminal neuralgia can often take 2-3 treatments a week for 4 weeks, THIS particular patient experiences the following after one treatment: He didn’t feel much other than incredibly good sleep for 2 days and then all of a sudden had an 80-90% reduction in pain. We still need to treat to get rid of the pain entirely, stabilize that relief, and then address what underlying factors predisposed him to this and other health problems, but I may only need 5-7 more treatments to do so because he is fit and has a very healthy diet.
I’ll go through the factors in a sec, but this is my favorite analogy for how much your personal condition and self plays into how much acupuncture you need: Let’s say you come to me and ask me to make you a Black Forest Cake. Here’s the catch—-The ingredients you give me are a few Legos, flour, a salami, an old bath towel, one cherry, two pigeon feathers, a gallon of antifreeze, and some rusty bolts you found. A couple of those are ingredients (flour and a cherry), but I’m mostly creating something from less than ideal ingredients at this point. Someone who exercises regularly, has good nutrition, is a non-smoker, is not a heavy drinker, and has a positive outlook on life gets better much faster than someone who is sedentary, eats a lot of dairy and meat but little vegetables, and smokes. This isn’t to say you can’t be helped if you have a lot of health conditions, a poor diet, or feel like a flat-out hot mess; it just means it’s going to take more treatments over a longer period of time. I always give patients work they can do at home that helps speed their progress. It’s up to you to do it.
When we are trying to make big changes, we may schedule you 2-3 times a week. I’m not trying to run up the meter, I’m trying to not waste your or my time. If you’re trying to push a boulder, you don’t walk up to it once a month and give it a little shove. You push hard, try to get some friends to help, and keep at it until it starts to roll and gain momentum. That’s how acupuncture works.
If you want the best answer, schedule an appointment or a consultation. What I see when I look at you, talk to you, and read in your medical history give me a much better idea of how long it will take for you to feel better. I will always do my best and I will always make my honest best recommendation. Thanks for reading!