Can Acupuncture Cure Eczema?

After Western medicine failed to provide sufficient relief for endless itching and sleepless nights, I decided to try acupuncture. I did not know anyone in my city that had tried acupuncture before, so I went on Yelp and read reviews. I found an acupuncturist whose patients all said good things about him and who also had an MD, which made me feel more comfortable. I called his office. Before scheduling an appointment, he asked about what was bothering me. I described the itch and the eczema, and he thought he might be able to help. At his suggestion during the first consultation, I started with appointments twice a week for two weeks, then decreased to once a week for a few weeks, and then spaced it out to between 10 days and 2 weeks between appointments. He also gave me Chinese herbs, but they made me nervous and I ultimately did not take them.

First, the experience of acupuncture.
When I was called to a room, I would lie down on my back on a table that was like a massage table. I had to roll up any sleeves and roll up my pants to my knees so he could access certain points for the needles. My acupuncturist would put needles at my ankles, on the side of my shin just below my knees, right above my knees, in the crease between my thumb and second finger, at my wrist, to the side of the bend in my arm at my elbow, and then sometimes on top of my head and/or on my forehead. Inserting the needles never hurt, maybe just an occasional prick. After all the needles were in, however, he would manipulate them slightly. This could cause a range of sensations from tingling to slight pain - mostly at the site of the needles, but occasionally it would induce a shock of sorts up my arm or leg. He would then leave me lying on the table for 20 to 30 minutes. I would try to relax while I stayed very still. The needles could lead to a variety of sensations. Sometimes the site of the needles would tingle, sometimes it would burn, sometimes I would feel a dull ache. Most times I felt calm when the needles were in and tried to meditate or clear my mind. A couple times, the needles made me feel like I had nervous energy and those times I was more than ready when the doctor came back to take out the needles.

Did it help?
While the needles were in and I was lying on the table I experienced no itching (except, every so often, on the side of my nose). This was absolutely astonishing and marvelous. I think it is the only time in my life where I have been perfectly still, focusing on my skin, and actually NOT itched (even when I was on strong oral steroids my dermatologist claimed would get rid of the itch, they did no such thing). I loved going just for these few minutes of relief. After the needles came out, though, the results were more mixed. I think in general it probably did relive my itching somewhat, in the days after the treatment, but it certainly did not eliminate it. After the first two sessions I was still having trouble sleeping because the itch was so bad. I mentioned this to him and he added 3 new points to the treatment, 2 sort-of below and to the side of my ears that he did on both sides and one on my stomach. The first time after this, I was immediately very tired. I was glad it was an end-of-day session! The next few times did not have such a drastic effect, and I started going in the morning, but my sleep did noticeably improve.

The End Result
If acupuncture was free and acupuncturists made house calls, I'd have it done every night before sleep. It relieved the itching during the treatment and then left me relaxed (and actually tired when certain points were used). But, the treatments aren't free and my insurance did not cover them so it was a large out-of-pocket expense every month and when I had them in the morning, the effect was much reduced by the end of the day. So I have stopped going. But I am still very glad I tried it and I know it is there if I ever want to resume. There is also a physiological benefit to knowing that there is something that does relieve itch, even it costs $100 for 30 minutes and requires lying totally still with needles in you!