Tennis elbow pain often starts out as a minor discomfort that progressively worsens until it is extremely difficult to ignore the pain. One may experience a sharp jab when playing tennis or golf or even when shaking hands. This condition can affect not only tennis players but also all types of athletes. Tennis elbow often feels like a tender or a dull ache on the outer part of the elbow initially. The sensation comes up intermittently usually subsiding a day or so after the pain started. Then after a while, the sensation starts to become a constant nagging ache in the elbow, with occasional jolts of pain if you move your affected shoulder the wrong way.
Tendinitis is an equally common term for tennis elbow. This term implies that the elbow tendons are inflamed. Your tendons are the parts of your body that connect the muscle to the bone. In tennis elbow, the muscles affected are located on the top of your forearm. This type of pain is often brought about by the repetitive movements or the overuse of the muscles that burden and exert more pressure on the tendon. The unrelenting pressure on the tendon causes small tears that the body constantly repairs. However, the continued activity stops or hinders the healing process and results in more tears.
Tennis elbow pain is felt outside of the elbow. It becomes severe when one is twisting or grasping objects (opening jars, picking up a hammer or Tennis racquet, etc.). Sleep can be difficult for the sufferer because the pain usually intensifies at night. Eventually with time, the pain can travel to other parts of your arm, more so if you are attempting to avoid the pain by utilizing other parts of your body. Unlike most forms of inflammation, tennis elbow pain does not involve any swelling in the body.
Golfers suffering from tennis elbow may present symptoms in a different manner. Tennis players with tennis elbow tend to suffer from pain outside of their elbow with the pain traveling down into the wrist and the outside of the forearm while golfers suffering from this condition often feel pain inside of the elbow (the part of your elbow nearer your body). The pain radiates down into the wrist and the underside of the forearm.
Tendinitis (golf or tennis tendinitis, apparently are commonly occurring conditions. Its probability of occurring rise with age since the tendons becomes less pliable with age. Athletes are also a high risk group with golf tendinitis more commonly occurring in male athletes.
If you want a truly effective natural and safe treatment for your tennis elbow, acupuncture can be a very good option for you. It can be used as a standalone therapy or as an adjunct therapy to standard Western treatments. Acupuncturists and traditional Chinese medicine practitioners believe that acupuncture works because it helps bring back balance in the body enabling the body to heal itself of potentially any condition. The human body actually possesses cells that store vital energy known as qi. The Chinese theorize that qi travels via energy pathways known as meridians. When some of the meridians develop blockages, qi slows down and stagnates, causing blood and energy imbalance in the affected parts of the body. The blockage gives rise to a number of symptoms; one of which is commonly body pain.
To treat a condition, acupuncturists utilize reed-thin and sterile acupuncture needles inserted into certain points in the body where the affected meridians run just below the surface of the skin. These needles destroy the blockages in the meridians enabling qi to flow freely once more removing the pain and treating the conditions resulting from the blockage.
Besides acupuncture, the acupuncturist can also combine it with other traditional Chinese modalities such as Chinese massage (Tui Na), Chinese herbal formulas, and heat therapy to treat Tennis Elbow. Conventional western treatments for tennis elbow include rest, stretching, physical therapy and over-the-counter NSAIDs such as Alleve, Advil and Naprosen Ibuprofen.
Rest is the most effective first line of treatment for tennis elbow. The prevention of the affected joint enables it to heal properly. But if you need to play golf or tennis, it can help to first warm your elbow. You can do this by applying a rice bag or a heating pad on it. After playing, make sure you ice your affected elbow to minimize the inflammation.
Rest combined with acupuncture and common sense should bring you back to a pain-free condition in no time at all.
Bhakti Acupuncture
7550 France Ave S #220
Edina, MN 55435
Phone: (952) 230-0091
bhaktiacupuncture.com
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