Achilles pain - acupuncture?

karensoxfan

Hi, I don't post much on the boards, but I would like to hear about anyone's experiences with acupuncture for achilles pain?

I am not a big fan of exercise, but earlier this year, I tried running, and LOVED it. Until my right achilles started hurting EVERY morning, and sometimes during the day. After weeks of resting it, waiting patiently for it to feel better, I finally saw a nurse practitioner who diagnosed it as achilles tendinitis. She advised me to take Rx Advil for a week, wear arch supports in my sneakers & flat shoes, and if it still hurt after a week, she said I should see a physical therapist.

That was 2 months ago. It still hurts most mornings, but my life is so busy, it's VERY hard for me to find time to see a physical therapist. I work FT an hour from home, and have 2 kids, a husband, and a dog to take care of. I'm also burning through my vacation time like nobody's business helping take care of my elderly father who has lung cancer. My mom still works, and doesn't have as much vacation time as I do, so I've been taking Wednesdays off to commute to my parents' house to bring my dad to his Dr. appts. I've been reluctant to even take long walks (to ease back into running) until the pain is gone, for fear of making it worse. It's also VERY hard for me to get motivated and wake up early enough for walks long enough to burn the calories I was burning running.

Back to my achilles though, a friend-of-a-friend recently suggested that I should consider acupuncture for the achilles pain, so that I can get back to running. She knew someone it had been great for, but I'm interested to hear more about it from anyone who's had acupuncture, especially for an achilles injury.

I feel like it might be easier to find time for acupuncture than for PT, but I'm reluctant about it, because I know NOTHING about it, and don't understand how it works. At. All. I tend to overanalyze and try to understand thngs before I do them, so my gut tells me to try it, but my head is holding me back.

Thanks in advance for ANY advice. I'm desperate to get back to running because it was the only exercise I've found that actually delivered the much-hyped results of stress relief, appetite-suppression, and energy-boost, in addition to weight loss. I even found myself craving healthier foods when I was running, and I miss it terribly, even though I only ran 2-3x/week for a few months.

OSUalum

Short answer...Acupuncture can do wonders for Achillies pain.
Make sure you find a reputable, board certified one.
AcuFinder.com is one resource.

Good luck!

dittiepe

Acupuncture is a great (former) homeopathic remedy. It's becoming more and more main-stream medical every year. I highly recommend it as well. After all, it's been used for thousands of years with great success

hiddensecant

Have you tried compression stockings?

Another thing you want to look into in regards to running is a book and/or video called Chi Running. I just started and it's made a world of difference in terms of aches and pains.

Ladymomo9

Deep breaths!! You overwhelmed me with what you wrote, whew!! I'm not sure what Achilles is? Is that on your foot or your calf? I had Plantar Fascitis on my right foot in 2009 and it lasted for almost a year. There wasn't much I could do other than wear a splint when I slept and it was a long time. I'd try the acupunture just to say you tried and if it works then, right on!

peteb79

I get Achilles Tendonitis like once a year. Usually it lasts a week and I can barely walk the pain is so bad. The only thing that helps me is Ibuprofen followed by Tylenol a few hours later. Also, I am sure it must be a coincidence, but I find that it flares up if have too much Mt Dew. Good luck!

karensoxfan

Thanks. I think I'll ask my friend for the acupuncturist her friend recommends, and find out about insurance & cost too, before I decide for sure.