How Long Will This Take?
So I made the choice to try Acupuncture. . .
How long will it take? Or How many visits will I need? Can you fix me?
Dr Stephanie H. Lipnicki, DACM, LAc
One of the most frequently asked questions we get as practitioners regarding care are - how long will it take to resolve X condition or how many visits will I need?[ FYI - this question is probably second to the question - what does Acupuncture treat?] That’s a whole other topic I promise to share about later. The answer to today’s question - that no one wants to hear is - I don’t know. Wait don’t run away!
Okay, the answer isn’t really, I don’t know. When chatting on the phone with potential patients, practitioners can usually get a general idea based on what is going on of what it will take to get a patient back on track.
A general rule of thumb with pain, and I have used this equation since I started out 29 years ago as a massage therapist, is: for every year you have battled your pain, consider it could take one month of treatment for each of those years. For example - if you call me and you have been experiencing pain for 10 years, and your pain is a 10 out of 10 on the pain scale, and you’ve been using NSAIDs, prescription pain meds, haven’t been able to exercise, and haven’t done anything other than meds to manage - you are looking at 10 months of treatment before you transition to a maintenance plan.
This does not mean you are in my office every day for 10 months. A treatment plan might* look something like this:
Month one of treatment - patient gets treated 3x a week for 4 weeks and then we reassess at 4 weeks; patient pain level goes from a 10 to an 8, patient is still taking the same amount of pain medication but notices that are not in as much pain.
Month 2 of treatment - pain has gone from a 10 to an 8, and patient no longer takes the same amount of pain medications; treatment is now 2x a week for 4 weeks, reassessed at the end of 4 weeks.
Month 3 of treatment - pain is between 6 and 8 depending on the activity, amount of pain medication is less than the onset of treatment, but has not dropped in the last 4 weeks, reassess
So we keep tapering off treatment until a patient says they’re running marathons - just kidding - unless running a marathon is the goal.
It might take less than 10 months - ok it usually doesn’t take that long to get pain under control even when it is a 10 out of 10 when I start with a patient. It’s more likely that in 3-6 months there is drastic improvement and most patients are on maintenance by the end of the course of treatment.
Generally when it comes to gynecological conditions, it usually takes 3 months to regulate and make changes to a menstrual cycle. If there is an absence of menstruation where there shouldn’t be, depending on the reason, it could take 3-6 months.
Fertility cases, so many things come into play, age, menstrual history, what the causes of fertility issues are, etc. I prefer to see patients for 3-6 months prior to trying to conceive (TTC). Most often, however, patients have been TTC through a fertility center and have heard that Acupuncture can enhance the outcomes of IVF cycles. Yes, this can be true, but regulating the cycle and getting the body into optimal health prior to trying to conceive is the ideal.
I hope this clarifies a little regarding how long it takes and what to expect when you're Acupuncturing. The hard and fast rule at Natural Alternatives Center for Wellness is that if I (Dr Stephanie) could make patients better in one visit, I would charge $2000 a visit and I would work one day a week and vacation the rest of the week.
In terms of can you fix me? I like to think of my work as facilitating a healing event. I don’t think in terms of fixing, I think I am nudging the body and mind along in the direction of health and wellness vs pain and dis-ease. Sort of like kicking whatever is not in balance in the buttocks and saying you are not on the correct path. I like to think of myself as the guide on the path to wellness. I do not see myself as fixing or curing - that involves too much ego.
Until my next words of wisdom, stay well, see you on the treatment table!
~Dr Stephanie
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*NOTE: This example is for argument purposes, individual results vary from case to case, this is a theoretical scenario and no patient treatment plan is written in stone prior to an assessment of the patient.