Alternative Therapies for Psoriatic Arthritis: An Update on My Journey

If you remember from my last post on alternative therapies I have tried physical therapy, massage therapy, chiropractic care, acupuncture, functional medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, vitamins, supplements, the autoimmune protocol and food sensitivity testing. Did any of it work? Yes and No. Let's dive in.

Chiropractic care is something that I avoided for most of my life do to the stereotypes against it, but my Rheumatologist recommended I try it after frequent complaints of back and neck pain. Luckily I had a coworker that was a part owner of a local chiropractic practice giving me a place I felt safe to try it. It started really well, I went a few times a week then one a week then every couple of weeks then once a month or as needed. I was able to improve neck, back, shoulder and even ankle pain with these visits and enable more movement in my joints. Going to these visits also got me into a routine of more frequent selfcare. Unfortunately if you remember I was getting migraines within minutes of leaving the chiropractor and I had to stop going. Fast forwarded to February 2025 and I am back at the chiropractor. More on that in a moment.

In January of 2024 I started going to a doctor that practices Traditional Chinese Medicine. These visits included a Traditional Chinese Medicine exam, checking the color of your tongue and determining your flow of Qi as well as acupuncture and cupping. Each visit was 1 to 2 hours long. It was a huge time investment but I felt so relaxed after each visit and I had very little tension in my back and neck, it was amazing! Over time it became harder and harder to fit those 2 hour visits into my weeks as well as afford the treatments and an asthma flare broke the habit. By the summer I had stopped going. Last month after feeling more pain and tension again, I found a new chiropractor that is right outside my neighborhood that does traction, acupuncture and chiropractic adjustments all in one 30 minute visit. After a few sessions, I am able to go one to three times a week and get all of those services over lunch or after work and NOT have a migraine! My shoulders feel great.

In early 2024, I also started going to physical therapy a few times a week. At 8am in the morning I would start my day at the physical therapist getting a 10 minute elliptical workout in, exercises to help my back, neck, shoulders, wrists and more followed by a pressure point massage and 10 minutes on the traction table. Almost immediately I started seeing improvement in my ability to exercise and confidence that I could find ways to relieve pain and build up strength. Unfortunately, during that same asthma flare that took me away from acupuncture happened and I could not do physical therapy either, once my lungs recovered I had trouble getting back into my physical therapist. THANKFULLY my best friend is a physical therapist and has graciously helped me learn where and how I can improve how my body functions, reliving pain one exercise at a time. Most importantly I have someone I trust, who cares about me and my health, who is patient and persistent in helping me adjust my exercises with every arthritis and asthma flare I have. Hands down physical therapy has been the most effective thing I have done for myself. I now exercise for 5 - 20 minutes ALMOST every day which is something I have not done since high school. A recent outcome of physical therapy and improving my pelvic health and breathing is that during the asthma flare I am currently in, I only peed my pants twice compared to the multiple times a day that was happening before when I coughed and had a bad asthma attack.

Ok so we have covered, chiropractic care, acupuncture, and physical therapy. Now lets talk about food sensitivity. Some people find great success in following the Autoimmune Protocol or WHOLE 30 or simply (not really simple) removing dairy and gluten. I have not had that success and every food sensitivity test I did came back with different results. I did notice during the AIP diet that I had less bloating but I didn't notice any improvement with my arthritis so I decided it wasn't worth it long term. But over time I have learned that some foods do cause indigestion, nausea and bloating and that eating those things in moderation can help me feel better overall. So when I can I use freshly grown or organic tomatoes and remove the skin and seeds, this seems to make it so I have no reaction to the tomatoes and as a bonus homemade tomato sauce is AMAZING. I also prioritize gluten free snacks when I can and only eat heavy cream by exception either as whipped cream or a favorite pasta dish knowing I will be nauseous by the end of the meal. As with any food, moderation is key and giving yourself room to eat what makes you you feel good and what tastes good is what makes any diet change work.

After all of that trial and error, here is how I am managing my health:

• I have a team of specialists that I see for traditional western medicine: Rheumatology, Dermatology, Internal Medicine, Pulmonology, Neurology, Allergy & Immunology, Nephrology, and Ophthalmology.

• I do physical therapy, almost daily, some weeks I don't do it, but it always makes it back into my routine.

• I get a monthly massage from the same massage therapist who understands how my body reacts in a flare and how to adjust my sessions accordingly.

• I moderate the intake of foods that cause any sort of inflammation.

• Lastly, I go to the chiropractor for adjustments, traction and acupuncture.

This is A LOT to manage, its costly and everything does not always work but I now have a pretty robust toolbox that I can pull from on a daily basis and a routine that I can manage to some degree even during a flare.