Acupuncture?

The past two weeks we have been helping our 89 YO mom who is very sick with shingles - the rash is on her head in the area in front, behind, above her right ear down to her neck around to the shoulder. She has pain attacks that has her crying, holding her head and crying for prayer to help relieve the pain. These attacks can last for 10 minutes. She is on pain meds but they do not prevent the attacks - might space them, though.

Now my brother is advocating acupuncture to relieve the pain and the shingles itself having talked to two people who had the procedure done. I have been told by Christian physicians and other concerned Believers this is a procedure a Believer does not want to pursue.

Has any one here had it done with no spiritual repercussions?

Sandra

I am curious as to whether our persecuted brethren in China avail themselves of this treatment.

For the life of me, I don't know why acupuncture would be a spiritual problem. I know that the acupuncture hippies in society talk about energies and chis and this and that. But, if sticking a needle in a nerve somehow gives relief then the reason is physiological. It isn't a bow to the occult in any way. If acupuncture works -- and I'm not saying it does or it doesn't because I do not know from personal experience and it seems very subjective -- then it works because of body chemistry and physics just like my allopurinol keeps my uric acid levels in check so little crystals of the stuff doesn't settle in my big toe and create a gout flare-up.

I tend to agree Tim. As long as the dr doesn't start talking about chakras and spirit guides and nirvana I don't see the issue. Not sure I'd want it done, not generally being a fan of getting stuck with needles.

I even think some chiropractors do acupuncture now.

To be safe I would go to a medical doctor that would keep it physiological as you say.

Hi Sandra,

I have heard that this remedy worked very well for someone although I have no first hand knowledge about the remedy. Of course there are variables to consider such as outlined in the link provided below.

Remedy
L-lysine 500mg 4 time each day
Add a vitamin C tablet and a vitamin B complex.
Apparently the symptoms start to decrease in a day or so
Must take the remedy for two full weeks
This individual only had L-lysine at times due to finances, and said it still worked well on its own.

Pray the Lord if you should consult a good naturopath or physician for correct dosage and their recommendations about this remedy or any other treatment including acupuncture. He'll lead you.

http://www.md-health.com/L-Lysine-Benefits.html
"L-lysine is an amino acid (a building block of protein) that is essential for health. However, it cannot be manufactured naturally in the human body like other types of amino acids. Therefore, L-lysine, also called lysine, is considered as one of the eight essential amino acids.”

God bless and may He speed your mother’s healing in Jesus Name”¨

Lesyoung,

Question: Does everything that is 'birthed' in mysticism become altogether to be avoided by Christians? And, are you aware of any actual instance where Christians availing themselves of acupuncture experienced evil caused by the fact that they availed themselves of acupuncture?

If you can give a firm "yes" in full candor to either of those questions (pick one, either one) I'd consider it a favor if you'd share it and explain it. You've called us out on it, and I fully comprehend the opposition in your heart about it. I also don't doubt at all that the Holy Spirit has spoken to your heart in such a way as to say "no" about acupuncture.

Yet, I respectfully ask this: Are there not all sorts of things that were "birthed" in mysticism or even paganism that we never blink at? If so, has the Holy Spirit given you pause about any of those things? If not, why not?

And, in case you may not be able to immediately think of any such things, might I suggest a few things that were "birthed" in mysticism/paganism/occult that we do all the time and never attach any unholy meaning or quality to it? Such as: Christmas; Julian calendars; wedding rings (and most jewelry for that matter); birthday observations.

If not occultic, then certainly of the "spirit of the age" and the order of this world is would be dressing up for church (Wesley condemned it as worldly and that people should be "cheap as well as plain" in their dress for church), the addition of pews and organs and choirs.

My question is --- and by the way, I'm in favor of dispensing with all of the above and have no problem with us all dropping every single one of them to be perfectly honest --- if we are not cognizant of the attachments to the spirit of the world or the spirits of wickedness in high places, are we serving them if we engage in activity that happened to have an origin in unholy roots? How far does our burden go to make sure we're not doing such activity?

And, finally, is acupuncture somehow an exception to any of these questions?

I appreciate the time you take to address my genuine concern.

Sister Sandra,

First off I am very sorry for the pain your mother is experiencing and can only imagine how you all feel witnessing it and not being in a position to give relief to your mom short of the comfort of a loving touch and prayer which both def help:)

I have had acupuncture once and it worked very well and never had to return for additional treatments but mine wasn't a chronic issue as your mom is experiencing... Personally I'd prolly seek the help necessary to help my mom unless the Lord Himself directed otherwise in prayer.

Will def lift your mom up to our Father:)

Thanks! y'all for your input.

It appears I am still at square 1 in knowing what to do. Mom has been afflicted for two weeks...and there were times I was sure she was close to death and so did she...she made apologies, expressed concern for her children, grands, etc....this alone is remarkable considering what a strong-willed person she is.

And we are getting physically exhausted caring for her - there are four of us doing it in rotation. My body is feeling older then it has in a while.

Thanks for the prayers offered on our behalf. We need enabling grace to cope.

Sandra

J, Tae bo????? :)

I think with things like acupuncture it depends on the actual practitioner and their philosophy.

For example, I went to an Osteopath for a back problem. (osteopathic treatment treats the mechanics of the body, by manipulating the bones, joints and muscles, which is good for back and joint pain treatment. However some osteopaths take it further into a mystical treatment for any condition, which makes no scientific rational - I would avoid these types).

During my treatment I was advised by the Osteopath he was going to use some acupuncture to free up some of the muscles that were too tight. I was very reluctant at first, because I had always been told that acupuncture was a bad thing spiritually. However without any prompting from me, he was quick to point out that the way he uses acupuncture was purely 'physiological' and not based on any mumbo jumbo (to use his words) that the Chinese believe. They have discovered that the acupuncture needle when put into the affected area cause an endorphin reaction that relives the tension and pain and allowing them to better manipulate the joints and muscles. It certainly worked for me and I am happy with this type of use.

So I would suggest that if acupuncture is used for the right reasons to do what it actually does, it is a good treatment used along side others. I would avoid if it is used to try and offer a solution to something that has not physical connection to it application.

BTW years of general physiotherapy had no benefit for my back problems, but the treatment I got through the Osteopath relieved the problem in one half hour treatment.

Just an additional thought to my above post. Shingles is a very painful condition that comes out of the body's nervous system (my wife had it recently), so I think that there is a good possibility that acupuncture could give some pain relief as it acts on the nervous system, even if it does not get rid of it. You would need to check out if you were happy with the practitioner and planned treatment. Shingles will eventually go by itself, but it is painful while you have it.

The Nei Jing is the earliest book written on Chinese Medicine. It was compiled around 305-204 B.C. and consists of two parts:

The Su Wen (Plain Questions) and the Ling Shu (Miraculous Pivot or Spiritual Axis).

The Ling Shu’s focus is acupuncture, description of the meridians, functions of the acupuncture points, needling techniques, types of Qi and location of 160 points.