Can acupuncture work to relieve pain from bulging disk?

Pain: Acupuncture will not correct a bulging, herniated or extruded disc. However, it can help both pain and range of motion by removing obstructions of blood circulation, lymphatic drainage, nerve conduction & qi. Discuss this option with your physician, orthopedic surgeon or neurosurgeon. Take care.

Proven vs unproven: By definition, "alternative" is different than modern western medicine. Generally any drug, herb, treatment, or procedure that stands up to rigorous scientific scrutiny is included in modern medicine. The problem is that many alternative practices, herbs etc do not stand up to scientific scrutiny and cannot be shown to work. Still, pain is different. Perception. it may work - mind over matter.

Yes: Acupuncture is a great HEALING tool. What I mean is: It opens up the energy channels, the blockages to healing. In this way it allows the innate healing powers of the body to cick in. And yes they are tremendous. They can do changes on all levels - biochemical, physiological, anatomical, symptomatic ( pain relief ) , psychological ( pain and physicsl suffering leads to depression,..), spiritual.

Yes: Numerous well-conducted studies in the peer-reviewed literature confirm the effectiveness of acupuncture for many conditions including back pain. See http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/acm.1996.2.53?journalCode=acm and http://tinyurl.com/y8vxwzqc and http://tinyurl.com/y86oms25 Also consider prolozone: http://www.faim.org/prolozone-for-pain-relief