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[RedKing]

I've heard many an acupuncturist or TCM doctor say that Western medicine is much better for acute and/or critical problems.

You got malaria? Western medicine will give you anti-malarial drugs which work awesome (although they can make you hallucinate like a motherfucker).
You got a leaky heart valve? Western medicine has developed surgeries that are amazing.
Missing a leg? Prosthetics.

However for chronic ailments, particularly those which are immunopathic, Western medicine often struggles. For things like allergies, mild depression, digestive ailments, chronic pain, etc. you often wind up trying a variety of different drugs at different dosages, and what works for a while may not keep working. This is where acupuncture and TCM do a surprisingly good job, presumably because the focus is on restoring normality to the body, rather than strongly counteracting a specific symptom. A lot of the complications with Western medicine come from the fact that treatments tend to either overcorrect the initial problem or create secondary side-effects which have to then be treated with another medicine.

[quinnr]

Today was absolutely miserable, and tomorrow shall likely suck as well. To start, I had a splitting headache all day, followed by an orthodontist appointment after school. The orthodontist decided I needed to wear TWO rubber bands on each side of my mouth, which is definitely not going to help with my headache at all. Then my blinds fell on my head. I also have a bunch of homework tonight..

And tomorrow morning I have to go to a spine orthopedics person who will decide what to do about my newly found scoliosis. Bleeeh.
------------------------------
Also, someone asked me out to homecoming without me knowing (I don't really like this person, last year they sort of followed me around everywhere, such as joining anime club without knowing what it was, and preceded to sit in the same desk. After I'd been in that school for less than a month.) They asked if I was going to homecoming, and after I told them (truthfully) that I don't really go to dances, they said that I was the second person they asked to go who said no.

Another person is angry at me for not going on some 'Walk for Wishes' thing and is trying quite hard to guilt me into going next year. I don't know why, but I get the weirdest people who follow me around. I think it's because I try to have common courtesy and politeness towards everyone.

This week is just all around sucky.

[Vector]

I've been working for 10 hours now.  Huzzah.  10 more to go.

Oh god =/


EDIT: In other news, my meeting with administration is tomorrow.  I cannot tell you how much I don't want to go.

[Lectorog]

I did a lab report on the wrong lab. Time to do an entire new one.

I've also been contemplating how I've never been anywhere I belong. This makes me very sad.

[Bauglir]

I've been working for 10 hours now.  Huzzah.  10 more to go.

Oh god =/


EDIT: In other news, my meeting with administration is tomorrow.  I cannot tell you how much I don't want to go.

*Internet Support Hug* This is why we, as a society, need androids that can be programmed to do these things for us.

[scriver]

Considering we can't yet cure most forms of cancer, I'd be okay with any wild claims they make.

While it's not a cure, per se, it's been shown that getting rid of all carbohydrates in the diet seems to starve most forms of cancer cells. The main problem is that carbohydrates tend to make up most of peoples' diets.

Since people were talking about cancer and treatments, I thought I'd share this (article's in Swedish, unfortunately) with you - the Carolean Institute has just released a study showing simple anti-virus and anti-inflammatory medicine stops/inhibits (not sure what word to use) the growth of cancer tumours in 74% of the mice it was tested on. A study on humans with aggressive brain tumours has been begun, but not yet finished.

It does not make me sad.

[Vector]

Yeah.

*hug*

I need a progressivism-android.  I actually wrote a script a few years ago to spit out comforting platitudes when I typed complaining things into the little input box, but that stopped being novel pretty darned quickly >_>  The new android will say things like "People are people too!" and stuff.  It will also have highly limited arson capabilities, i.e. it will occasionally light its head on fire for the space of a few milliseconds.

[Bauglir]

@scriver
Man I hope that works as well as in mice.

@Vector
The major downside would be the opposing Randroids that would inevitably be built, but I think that's an acceptable price to pay for progressivism-bots that sometimes have fire for hair.

[Bohandas]

Acupuncture and TCM did wonders for my wife's allergies. Yeah, don't ask me how getting jabbed in the elbow makes you stop sneezing around cats for a while. I mean, I understand it -- I'm just not very good at explaining it in a way that doesn't start invoking mysticism.

That is strange. I know that accupuncture remedies for pain have been theorized to put minor pressure on nerves (due to displacement of tissue by the needles) and as a result slow and lessen pain signals, but I have no idea how it would help with allergies...

[DeKaFu]

Acupuncture and TCM did wonders for my wife's allergies. Yeah, don't ask me how getting jabbed in the elbow makes you stop sneezing around cats for a while. I mean, I understand it -- I'm just not very good at explaining it in a way that doesn't start invoking mysticism.

That is strange. I know that accupuncture remedies for pain have been theorized to put minor pressure on nerves (due to displacement of tissue by the needles) and as a result slow and lessen pain signals, but I have no idea how it would help with allergies...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect

[scriver]

I don't know what to do to make my life better. I'm too tired to try any more.

[alway]

Acupuncture and TCM did wonders for my wife's allergies. Yeah, don't ask me how getting jabbed in the elbow makes you stop sneezing around cats for a while. I mean, I understand it -- I'm just not very good at explaining it in a way that doesn't start invoking mysticism.

That is strange. I know that accupuncture remedies for pain have been theorized to put minor pressure on nerves (due to displacement of tissue by the needles) and as a result slow and lessen pain signals, but I have no idea how it would help with allergies...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect

Yeah, it turns out acupuncture actually doesn't work at all. Poking anyone with needles and telling them it's acupuncture actually has the same effect, no matter how it is applied. It doesn't even need to be needles; merely pressing toothpicks against the skin with the person thinking they are needles being used to give them acupuncture has the same effect as puncturing the skin with needles.

[ChairmanPoo]

I've learned not to argue too vehemently about these subjects (or other, worse ones) with believers in these things, who often see the argument as a personal attack. I consider it a success if at the very least they get proper medical attention for any remotedly serious problem.

[TheBronzePickle]

Why are the people who are "open-minded" enough to believe this kind of stuff so closed-minded to take anything disagreeing with what they believe as a personal attack? Seriously, every person I've met that believes this stuff is like this.

[DeKaFu]

Yeah, it turns out acupuncture actually doesn't work at all. Poking anyone with needles and telling them it's acupuncture actually has the same effect, no matter how it is applied. It doesn't even need to be needles; merely pressing toothpicks against the skin with the person thinking they are needles being used to give them acupuncture has the same effect as puncturing the skin with needles.

Which isn't to say it doesn't produce results. It actually does for some people, but it's due to their own body's physical response to their expectations of its success rather than anything about the actual process. It's actually pretty interesting.

Given the option I'd go for the toothpicks though, thanks.