Craig Amrine, L.Ac. is a licensed acupuncturist and can be reached through his website at www.hiddenrhythmacupuncture.com

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Last month I was invited to give a talk on Using Acupuncture in the Treatment of PTSD at a NOVA conference (Nurses Organization of Veterans Affairs). I talked for an hour in front of about 90 nurses and had some wonderful feedback.  They were a great audience and seemed very interested in my presentation.  The following two pages are taken from the presentation.  The first page is taken from the book, Pure Drivel written by the comedian Steve Martin.

"Side-effects:

Take two tablets everyday for joint pain

......This drug may cause joint pain, nausea, headaches, shortness of

breath.  You may also experience muscle aches, rapid heartbeat, or

ringing in the ears.  If you feel faint, call your doctor.  Do not consume

alcohol while taking this pill; likewise, avoid red meat, shell?sh, and

vegetables.  Okay foods: ?ounder.  Under no circumstance eat

yak.....Projectile vomiting is common in 30 percent of users-sorry: 50

percent.  If you undergo disorienting nausea accompanied by migraine

with audible raspy breathing, double the dosage.  Leg cramps are to be

expected; up to to one knee buckler per day is allowable.  Bowel

movements may become frequent up to every ten minutes.  If bowel

movements become greater than twelve per hour, consult your

doctor, or in fact any doctor, or anyone who will speak to you.  You

many ?nd yourself becoming lost or vague; this would be a good time

to write a screenplay......."

-Quote from the book, Pure Drivel by Steve Martin

The next page of my presentation is simply a list of side-effects of the common anti-depressant ZOLOFT.  The side-effects list was taken out of the Nursing Drug Handbook by Saunders.  Is it just me, or is this just as silly as the text written by Steve Martin?

Side Effects for Setraline hydrochloride (Zoloft)

Take for depression, OCD, PTSD, social anxiety

Frequent side-effects (26%-12%): Headache, nausea, diarrhea, insomnia, somnolence, dizziness, fatigue, rash, dry mouth

Occasional side-effects (6%-4%):  Anxiety, nervousness, agitation, tremor, dyspepsia, diaphoresis, vomiting, constipation, abnormal ejaculation, visual disturbances, altered taste

Rare side-effects (less than 3%):  Flatulence, urinary frequency, parasthesia, hot ?ashes, chills

-Taken from the Nursing Drug Handbook-2007 by Saunders

BLACK BOX WARNING:  Antidepressants increased the risk compared to placebo of suicidal thinking and behavior (suicidality) in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric disorders. - Taken from www.rxlist.com

With clinical studies PROVING that acupuncture can be at least as effective as these types of drugs for depression, anxiety, and PTSD, it's not a question if doctors should use acupuncturists to help in treating mental disorders, it's more a question of how can they NOT ?