Acupuncture - has anyone gone to interns?

mrsin2006

In order to keeep the cost down on acupuncture, my acupuncturist had suggested going to an acupuncture school and having an intern do it... is it okay or is it less effective.

can acupuncture ever be bad for you or give you the wrong effects and hurt the IVF process?

 

what is your experience?

Edwina.McDunnough

I go to an IF specialist. Her approach is much more than the needles, and we've discussed going to a more affordable acu for the needle part, but keeping her as the main point person.

njohnson1972

My acupuncturist also specializes in IF.  He does have an intern in the office and they have taken out my needles.

You can use HSA and FSA dollars for acupuncture.  And if you are able to deduct medical expenses (above 7.5% of your AGI), acupuncture is considered a deductible expense.

Yellow_Daisy

I go to an acupuncturist who has an intern.  The intern does insert some of my needles under his supervision.  What I have noticed is she is not as skilled at putting in the needles as he is and hers tend to hurt more in sensitive places than his.  She is slower at putting the needles in, which I attribute to her being unsure, so I think this also adds to the added pain when she inserts them.  She hesitates where he never does.  I figure that while she isn't as good as my acupuncturist at putting the needles in that everyone has to learn at some point.  If she is really struggling my acupuncturist will take over and he always does my IF related points himself.

c0debabe

When I started acupuncture, I went to an intern to keep the cost down.  It was okay, but this was not the best idea for 2 reasons:

1. Like Yellow_Daisy, my intern was not as skilled with the needle insertion, and some of them hurt, whereas the supervising acupuncturist never hurt me with a needle.

2. The place I was going was a school for acupuncturist's clinic--not a practice specializing in gynecology/infertility.  I go to a practitioner who specializes in women's health now, and it is 10x better.