Acupuncture & The Opioid Crisis 

 July 24, 2018

By  Steve Hoffman

The Problem:

Most are aware of the opioid crisis at this point. It is all over the news and social media. I recently had a patient who was awaiting hip replacement surgery. This patient could not go shopping, could barely get through work and when they went home, simply went to bed because the pain was so great. This was a patient who was three weeks away from the surgery and their doctors would not prescribe pain relievers. THIS is the patient that pain relievers were made for. Help them get to and through the surgery and then wean off the medication. But the doctors were either unwilling or unable to prescribe the medication. This is where the opioid crisis has left us.

Acupuncture as the Solution:

Fortunately, this patient sought out acupuncture and was able to gain some level of relief. At the point this patient was at, acupuncture was not going to heal the hip, surgery was necessary. But there was no need to suffer and become home bound when there was relief available. The medical community is becoming more and more aware of the benefits of acupuncture for pain relief. It is just sad that so many have suffered addiction and even overdoses because of the overuse of opioids. This is an interesting article written by a formerly skeptical medical doctor who finally went and experienced acupuncture for himself.

How Can Acupuncture Help You:

This really depends on the problem. The patient outlined above needed surgery but acupuncture was able to give them enough relief to get through daily activities until surgery. It is possible that if I saw this patient 10 years ago, we may have been able to develop a program to prevent the surgery. This would typically involve acupuncture, Chinese herbal therapy, diet and exercise modifications. All of this would be aimed at nourishing and strengthening the surrounding muscles and tissues, increasing circulation and preventing degradation. If treated early enough, many pain conditions can be eliminated entirely.

Call today for an in person or telephone consultation. If you have been given no alternatives by your medical doctor, just reference the article above to see how one doctor, to his surprise, found out that there was an alternative all along.


Princeton Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine

Our patients know just how effective treatments are for these and a host of other problems. Steven Hoffman, a New Jersey Licensed Acupuncturist and Diplomate in Oriental Medicine, will provide you with a thorough intake and evaluation and a clear, comprehensive diagnosis and treatment plan that will insure that your goals are met or exceeded. Do you want to move past these or other problems? We will help you thrive not just survive!

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