Jeff Rippey

If you have an active infection, your best bet is a course of antibiotics.

If we're talking about a herniated disk, there are a few things that might help:

1. staying active/time. A lot of times a herniated disk will improve somewhat on its own. Stay active, use heat on the area (NO ICE), and eventually the pain may subside.

2. Acupuncture/PT/Chiropractic. Any of these could potentially help reduce the pain. Acupuncture in particular will also address some of the inflammation which will contribute to pain reduction.

3. Medication. This is nerve pain - a portion of the disk is pressing on one or more spinal nerve roots as they exit between the vertebrae. There's not a lot of meds in the prescription arsenal that will work for this, but there are a few.

4. Surgery. You can have a neurosurgeon go in and clean up the herniated disk.

Most providers are going to hold on surgery until they see that nothing else is working. If you choose to try acupuncture, you're going to get your best results from someone who is actually board certified and licensed as a practitioner of Chinese medicine - there are a lot of providers currently offering "acupuncture like" services, not all of them actually went to school for acupuncture. There IS a difference; if you wouldn't go to a podiatrist for brain surgery, don't go to anyone other than a licensed acupuncturist for acupuncture.

Otherwise, the treatment choice is up to you and what happens to be available in your area.

Sometimes, yes. None of the methods for handling seasonal allergy are going to be instant; they all take time to work.

A wide variety of things can cause insomnia - probably too many to list here.

For most people the root of the issue is probably going to boil down to some combination of caffeine, stress, lifestyle, and sleep hygiene (consistent bed/wake times, no TV/computer/tablet/phone prior to bed, no food prior to bed, etc.)

A lot is going to depend on why the ankle is swollen. If this is something like an acute injury (ankle rolled while hiking, etc.) then acupuncture, physical therapy, heat, and time will help.

If the ankles are swelling due to an undiagnosed heart condition, then we're in different territory all together.

If you haven't already done so, start with your primary care provider.

There are multiple different kinds of anemia. Some of these types can be resolved and some require management. Your question gives no indication what type of anemia this is, so I can't provide any further guidance.

There are potentially several treatments that can offer help with insomnia.

Reducing caffeine intake, especially late in the day and minimizing night-time screen use - especially just prior to bedtime can make a big difference. Trying to keep a consistent bedtime can also help.

Melatonin or other over-the-counter sleep aids can sometimes help people get to sleep.

Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine have an excellent track record for treating insomnia. I work quite a bit with sleep issues and can usually help folks sleep better.

Prescription meds can often help.

Yes, there are a few options in terms of natural treatment for seasonal allergy.

Western herbalism offers treatment for allergy. Some homeopathic remedies can help.

Chinese medicine and acupuncture can be very effective at both managing short term symptoms and helping reduce or eliminate allergy altogether over the long term.

Nutrition can sometimes play a role.

A lot is going to depend on what kind of breathing problems you're experiencing.

You could be looking at inhalers or other prescription meds to help manage your airways.

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine can often improve breathing issues. I treat a lot of allergy/asthma/COPD and I've worked quite a bit with folks who have continuing symptoms after an illness like pneumonia, bronchitis, or COVID. Usually I'm able to get them in a better place.

Sometimes it takes a little time to recover fully. This can be especially true if the pneumonia was severe or required hospitalization.

Sometimes, yes, seasonal allergies can be improved or resolved with acupuncture and/or herbal medicine. Natural treatments do not work quickly, though. It took me about 2 years to get rid of my fall allergies.

I get this question a lot, both in person and on sites like this. The unfortunate answer is: in my experience, rarely.

Tinnitus is extremely difficult to treat by almost any means. This is especially true if the tinnitus is the result of cumulative damage due to repeated exposure to loud sounds (like concerts, loud car stereos, loud ear buds/ear phones, gunfire, airplanes, etc.) This damage is irreversible and, at least in my experience, almost never responds to treatment.

Understanding why you're experiencing tinnitus can go a long way towards finding something that might at least make it a little bit better. I've seen hearing aids improve tinnitus. I've used acupuncture to improve tinnitus in cases where the cause was muscle tension in the neck and jaw. I've also used acupuncture to improve tinnitus in cases where the cause was neurological. I've seen neurological based tinnitus respond to biofeedback.

What I've never seen work are supplements (vitamins, minerals, herbs) aimed at improving hearing.

Acupuncture can be a good treatment for nerve damage. I've had pretty good success with issues ranging from neuropathy to nerve damage as a result of surgery.

Yes, acupuncture can help relieve muscle knots.

I'm not aware of any restrictions regarding air travel after receiving acupuncture.

Ringing in the ears (tinnitus) is extremely difficult to treat. I rarely have success reducing or eliminating tinnitus and most of the providers I know - both conventional and unconventional - rarely have success treating tinnitus.

I don't like to dissuade people from trying treatment options - so long as the treatment is safe and the treatment provider is well trained, but tinnitus is one of those conditions that doesn't respond well.

Yes, acupuncture can often relieve or eliminate muscle knots.

Fix a herniated disk? Probably Not.

Relieve the pain and inflammation associated with the herniated disk? Yes.

The answer to your question is: it depends. The severity of your asthma and the length of time asthma has been an issue often play a role in how much improvement can be made.

If this is mild to moderate asthma that hasn't been an issue for too long then acupuncture or acupuncture plus herbs/supplements can often bring patients to a more normalized place. I've had some mild cases where the patient was able to cease prescription medication completely.

If the asthma is more severe and/or has been an issue for most of the patient's life (i.e. decades or multiple decades) then acupuncture or acupuncture plus herbs/supplements can often reduce the amount of prescription med required, but some level of management is probably always going to be necessary.

If you choose to pursue Chinese medicine to address this issue, please make sure you're seeing a provider who is fully trained, board certified, and state licensed in Chinese medicine.

Yes, acupuncture can usually improve or resolve muscle spasm.

I've been studying and practicing Chinese medicine for 21 years. It's a rare case of tinnitus that responds to treatment, and even then I've only ever improved things a bit; I've never gotten tinnitus to go away completely.

Based on my interaction with other providers, both conventional and alternative, this is not unusual. Tinnitus is extremely difficult to treat by almost any means.

I don't like to dissuade patients from trying various treatments because you never know what's going to work for any given individual. Please make sure whatever treatment you try is safe, and make sure the person providing that treatment is specifically trained, certified, and licensed in that treatment modality.