Acupuncture: Classic or deflating

My father and sister both absolutely swear by reflexology to help alleviate their migraines. Apparently it takes a couple of sessions to work, but it leaves them feeling relaxed and invigorated.

Is it normal to have bruises from this? I have a round bruise the size of a dime on my stomach from one where one of the needles went in

I am having budget acupuncture done by interns so this is why I ask.

I've never had any bruising, but I don't think its a huge issue if it's just a small one. I think a dime's pretty small? just mention it to your acupuncturist next time.

if its a bit bigger or doesn't fade in a few days maybe consider seeing someone else. you should definitely be able to trust the person sticking pins into you.

I had acupuncture done and thought it was pretty good. It didn't cure the illness I went there with but it was v relaxing. It's hard to tell if it was a placebo or not but I think I felt quite good mentally while I was getting it done too, after a few months of feeling crap.

I didn't get any bruising really, some burns occasionally as the type I got they burn herbs on you before putting the needle in.

Is it normal to have bruises from this? I have a round bruise the size of a dime on my stomach from one where one of the needles went in

yeah, it happens sometimes

Acupuncture is a theatrical placebo: the end of a myth

Anesthesia & Analgesia is the official journal of the International Anesthesia Research Society. In 2012 its editor, Steven Shafer, proposed a head-to-head contest between those who believe that acupuncture works and those who don’t. I was asked to write the latter. It has now appeared in June 2013 edition of the journal [download pdf]. The pro-acupuncture article written by Wang, Harris, Lin and Gan appeared in the same issue [download pdf].

Acupuncture is an interesting case, because it seems to have achieved greater credibility than other forms of alternative medicine, despite its basis being just as bizarre as all the others. As a consequence, a lot more research has been done on acupuncture than on any other form of alternative medicine, and some of it has been of quite high quality. The outcome of all this research is that acupuncture has no effects that are big enough to be of noticeable benefit to patients, and it is, in all probablity, just a theatrical placebo.

After more than 3000 trials, there is no need for yet more. Acupuncture is dead.

Long live acupuncture.

It's a pretty safe bet that the traditional explanation for how acupuncture works is a fanciful myth. But a really effective placebo is nothing to sneeze at.