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Numbness throughout entire body

By Archived User | Updated: Dec 31, 2021 | Published: Dec 31, 2021

I began experiencing nausea and pain behind the eyes back in December, 2018 (2 months postpartum). The nausea lasted for 2.5 months every day. Some days were u bearable and others I seemed to manage. I vomited one time.
After the nausea faded away, I began experiencing an even scarier symptoms is numbness. It began with my left arm and leg and quickly spread throughout my entire body. I have a loss of sensation to touch throughout. I’ve had MRIs of both my brain and cervical spine and thank goodness it came back normal, which a couple discs out of alignment (nothing too severe). I’ve been seeing a acupuncturist who practices TCM and she says something in my blood doesn’t flow properly. Can you tell me your thoughts on what may be going on? I’ve seen tons of doctors and no one can help.

Archived Comments

Comment by Chad J. Dupuis, L.Ac.

Have you had bloodwork? What did that show?

Comment by Archived User

Yes I got blood done multiple times throughout this experience and everything comes back normal. An MS specialist ruled out MS. A rheumatologist ruled out Lupus. I just don’t know what else to check…

Comment by Chad J. Dupuis, L.Ac.

How many acupuncture treatments have you had over what duration and with what effect? Any Chinese herbal medicine?

Is the numbness constant and always in the same areas, constant and moves around, variable?

Comment by Archived User

I’ve had 2 during the nausea symptoms and 2 more the past 2 weeks with a lady who practices Chinese medicine. The numbness has been consistent for almost 2 months now. Sometimes it comes and goes in the tongue but it is throughout my entire body. I also have been seeing floaters in my eyes. Do you think it may be blood clots? I’m very weak in my wrists and left leg. It’s super scary.

No Chinese herbal medicine. She put me on Floravital which is an iron and herb supplement but if there is anything you recommend please share!

Comment by Chad J. Dupuis, L.Ac.

I can’t recommend anything specifically online, it’s simply inappropriate. But I will offer some ideas. There are technically only a few ways to feel like you are feeling and anemia would be the most likely considering everything started postpartum and following a long period of nausea (which would likely mean you were not eating/assimilating well during that time as well). You can technically have “normal” blood levels and still have many of the symptoms and then there are things like “anemia of inflammation”, for example, which have different presentations (but generally the same symptoms).

How this happened, who knows. You could have got an infection postpartum, particularly a stranger internal bacterial infection for example, you could have been challenged by the birthing process and blood loss, lack of sleep, etc. In some ways at this point it doesn’t matter.

For treatment, I would strongly suggest you consult with an acupuncturist, if possible, that also practices Chinese herbal medicine. The liquid iron that your practitioner is giving you may not only not be appropriate there are far more effective ways to more broadly and more systemically deal with these issues within proper Chinese herbalism in my opinion. The base approach would like entail something along the lines of si wu tang, ba zhen wan, and/or bu zhong yi qi wan. Possibly starting with a round of xiao chai hu tang, for example, if the practitioner suspected infection was the original contributing factor. But much of this would be heavily tailored to you by a practitioner based on your tongue, pulse and other medical history findings.

All that said, a couple treatments will not be enough to judge - so your current practitioner may well be on track with things. For the most part I would think you would start improving (with proper treatment of course) within 7-12 treatments.

Comment by Archived User

Thank you very much for the thorough response. I will speak to my practitioner and have just placed orders for those herbal supplements you recommended. I wish you were in Los Angeles so I can come to your clinic

I will let you know how things are going… thanks again!

Comment by Archived User

I’m not sure if I mentioned that I am breast feeding. My doctor wanted me to ask if these herbal medicines are all safe for nursing?

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