Hello. I have been diagnosed with lumbar spinal stenosis. Recently. Symptoms have been painful right hip discomfort. Can no longer walk fast nor long.
Can anyone give me some positive help through herbs, chi Gong, Chinese herb formulas. I get weekly massages. Accupuncture has not helped. Thx Ken
Comment by Chad J. Dupuis, L.Ac.
Compared with simple disc herniation, muscle inconsistencies and the many other issues that can contribute to back pain, stenosis is an entirely different thing and generally more difficult to treat.
One aspect of the treatment is to work more broadly and to slow/stop the progress of the condition overall, the other is to deal with the resulting pressure on the nerves and related pain.
Generally speaking, acupuncture is quite helpful in my experience but this is one of those conditions that, again, is not easy to treat. This means that your experience will vary from practitioner to practitioner more so than other more basic conditions.
I would suggest you try another practitioner in your area, ideally one who also practices tuina (Chinese medical massage) and cupping. But to answer more precisely when you say acupuncture didn’t help - you’d have to clarify what you mean. How many times did you go and with what frequency? What points were use? What other techniques were used? and by “has not helped” do you mean there was no response at all, no lasting response, or moderate changes that then came back - or any other possible variant of what “has not helped” could mean…
As far as herbs, in my clinical opinion, compared with acupuncture particularly, they are not useful for stenosis in the vast majority of cases - the exceptions being people with other issues with systemic arthritis as an example.
Comment by Archived User
I always place my patients on D3 - K2 because it helps resolve build up of Calcium. I didn’t understand why until someone wrote the Calcium Conundrum book. Now many practitioners start there. One patient in 2-4 months of 5,000 units D3 / 500 mcg K2 went from a glob of calcium in the shoulder to a normal X-ray. It still took quite a bit of acupuncture / tui na to clear the shoulder – about 6 months to full recovery. I do recommend something to warm up the joints daily and flush the lymph daily. Tai Chi does both fairly well and it is slow and gentle … at least ten minutes daily. Is this a radiating pain from the hip? Or is it the problem in the hip? I think you need to talk to a practitioner who knows herbs to get an assessment. If massage helps, then try to find an acupuncturist who combines acupuncture with tui na.
Comment by Archived User
Thanks! I appreciate your thinking of me!! Ken. Getting accupuncture, deep tissue massage and daily doing QiGong. I’m seeing improvements!