Drug & supplement interaction

Healing Touch + Diclofenac Sodium

Diclofenac Sodium brand names: Voltaren XR, Voltaren, Voltaren SR, Diclo, Difenac, and others.

No Known Interaction
Medically reviewed by · Updated June 2026 · Pair last verified Sep 20, 2026
The bottom line No known interaction

We found no known interaction between Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium in our sources. Absence of a documented interaction is not the same as proven safety, and does not guarantee one does not exist. Do not start, stop, or change a medication or supplement based on this page; confirm with your pharmacist or doctor first.

Know someone interested in this? Share
Facebook Post Reddit Email
On this page
Interaction report

Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium

We checked these two against our interaction database. Here is what we found.

No Known Interaction Found

We did not find a documented interaction between Diclofenac Sodium and Healing Touch in our sources. This does not guarantee that the combination is completely free of risk — research on Healing Touch alongside specific medications may be limited.

Worth understanding: our licensed dataset holds no drug-interaction record for Healing Touch at all — not against Diclofenac Sodium, and not against any other medication we track. This verdict therefore rests on the absence of any recorded data, not on research that looked at this combination and found nothing. We cannot rule an interaction out.

Healing Touch is a treatment rather than something you take. Tell whoever provides it which medicines you use, and ask your prescriber whether it is appropriate for your health and treatment. Do not stop a prescribed medicine on your own.

Always talk with your pharmacist or doctor before making changes to your medications or supplements, particularly if you take several medications or have an ongoing health condition.

Healing Touch safety at a glance

Healing Touch overall Use caution Generally low-risk as a complementary practice, but it should never replace proven medical treatment.
Pregnancy Use caution No oral product is involved, but discuss any complementary therapy with your prenatal provider first.
Breastfeeding Use caution There is no ingredient to pass into milk, but check with your doctor before relying on it for any health concern.

Safety guidance is general; always confirm with your pharmacist or doctor for your situation.

Still wondering about combining Diclofenac Sodium and Healing Touch? Ask Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS directly ›
What to actually watch for

What Diclofenac Sodium’s Own FDA Label Lists

This is not an interaction — none of it involves Healing Touch. These are the most notable effects listed in the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of Diclofenac Sodium’s own FDA label, for the medication by itself. Knowing the drug’s own list makes it easier to work out the likely cause if something new turns up while you have Healing Touch and take the medicine. 10 of them are worth acting on rather than waiting out — marked below.

  • Loss of vision Worth acting on
  • Hearing loss Worth acting on
  • Bleeding in the gut Worth acting on
  • High potassium Worth acting on
  • Unsteadiness Worth acting on
  • Low blood sugar Worth acting on
  • A heart attack Worth acting on
  • Pancreatitis Worth acting on
  • Yellowing of the skin or eyes Worth acting on
  • Heart failure Worth acting on

Showing the 10 most notable of 73 label-listed effects — ranked by how unusual each one is across medicines generally, with serious effects weighted up.

From the ADVERSE REACTIONS section of the FDA label for Diclofenac Sodium. Read the label on DailyMed › Where a percentage is shown, it is the share of 155,962 voluntary FDA FAERS reports for Diclofenac Sodium that mention that effect — a reporting proportion, not an incidence rate and not evidence the drug caused it. Healing Touch’s licensed record lists no adverse effects our clinical vocabulary could match, so there is no Healing Touch side to compare — that is a limit of the record, not a statement that Healing Touch has no side effects.

Overlapping uses

What Diclofenac Sodium Is Prescribed For, and What Healing Touch Has Been Studied For

These two come up together because they touch the same health topic — not because they do the same job. Diclofenac Sodium is a prescription medicine with approved uses on its FDA label. Healing Touch is a treatment: what follows is what researchers have looked at it for, and how strong that evidence is.

Diclofenac Sodium is prescribed for: Diclofenac sodium topical gel is used to treat actinic keratoses (AK) — rough, scaly skin patches that form after years of sun exposure. These patches are considered precancerous, meaning they can develop into skin cancer if left untreated. This is a topical gel, meaning it is applied directly to the skin over the affected area rather than taken by mouth. It belongs to the NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) family.

Healing Touch has been studied for:

  • Osteoarthritis studied, not established Healing Touch has been studied for this. Natural Medicines rates the evidence: Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate Read what the research shows

    Healing Touch for osteoarthritis

    A small clinical study in patients with knee osteoarthritis shows that receiving 20 minutes of healing touch three times weekly for 6 weeks reduces pain and improves function compared to receiving a weekly friendly conversation visit. It is unclear how healing touch compares to conventional treatments for osteoarthritis such as analgesics or exercise.

    1 source cited
    1. 98746. Lu DF, Hart LK, Lutgendorf SK, Perkhounkova Y. The effect of healing touch on the pain and mobility of persons with osteoarthritis: a feasibility study. Geriatr Nurs. 2013;34(4):314-22. PubMed

Effectiveness ratings and the research summaries above are the verbatim record from the Natural Medicines database, which grades evidence from “Effective” down to “Insufficient Reliable Evidence To Rate”. A rating below the top of that scale means researchers have looked at it — not that it works, and never that it can stand in for a prescribed medicine. Do not stop or replace Diclofenac Sodium on your own; if you are taking Healing Touch for the same health topic, tell your prescriber, especially if the medicine is being adjusted to a target.

From our Q&A

Questions About Healing Touch or Diclofenac Sodium

These are real questions from readers, answered by the pharmacists at HelloPharmacist — written by a person, not generated from a database. Each one covers Healing Touch or Diclofenac Sodium, not necessarily both, but if one is close to what you were about to ask it will usually go further than a database entry can:

Not quite your question? Ask our pharmacists directly — it is free, there is no account required, and answers usually come back within 24 hours.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Diclofenac Sodium

This page covers Healing Touch only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Diclofenac Sodium page lists 308 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Asarabacca (major), Beer (major), Danshen (major) and Piracetam (major).

By severity: 7 major · 266 moderate · 35 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Diclofenac Sodium page

“Diclofenac (Voltaren), a daily mainstay for arthritis and joint pain, comes with a supplement list that calls for real vigilance. Of the 308 ingredients on file, 7 rate major, and roughly two hundred entries share a single theme: anything with blood-thinning activity adds to diclofenac's own bleeding risk, especially in the stomach.”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Diclofenac Sodium interaction page

How much people look this up

Where Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Healing Touch
Steady interest

#989 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Diclofenac Sodium
Top 10%

#230 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Where does our data come from?
  • Source: the Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) clinical database — the evidence-graded professional reference for herb & supplement interactions.
  • Citation library: 103,510 references behind our interaction content, 65,311 of them resolved to verified PubMed/DOI sources. See every Healing Touch reference on this page ↓
  • Freshness: we automatically re-check this combination every week — this pair was last verified September 20, 2026. The Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium records this page draws on were last updated June 22, 2026.
  • What “no known interaction” means: no documented interaction in the sources above — not a guarantee of safety. Supplements are studied far less than prescription drugs, so we say exactly what the evidence supports, and nothing more.
Data structure & sourcing designed and verified by .
Treatment approach

About Healing Touch

What is Healing Touch?

  • Stress and relaxation
  • Pain management
  • Anxiety
  • Comfort during illness or cancer care
  • General sense of well-being

Healing Touch is an energy-based therapy in which a trained practitioner uses gentle or near-body hand movements to promote relaxation and well-being—it is not an herb, pill, or supplement. Some people report feeling calmer and less stressed after sessions, but high-quality scientific evidence that it treats any specific medical condition is limited. It is generally considered low-risk when used alongside (not instead of) standard medical care.

Not applicable (an energy-based therapy, not a plant or supplement) · Hands-on or hands-near-body sessions provided by a trained practitioner

An interaction check asks whether these two react with each other — it does not ask whether Healing Touch is a good idea for someone in your situation. Here is what our Healing Touch record says about it on its own.

Healing Touch: dosing

There is no standardized "dose" for Healing Touch because it is a hands-on practice, not a product you take. Session length and frequency vary by practitioner and are often around a half hour to an hour.If you are interested, look for a certified or experienced practitioner, and let your doctor or pharmacist know you are using it so it can be coordinated with your regular care.

From our Healing Touch monograph — the full record covers uses, side effects and every documented interaction.

Read the full Healing Touch monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Diclofenac

What Is Diclofenac Used For?

Brand names: Voltaren XR, Voltaren, Voltaren SR, Diclo, Difenac, Diclo SR, Voltarol, Acoflam, Defenac, Dicloflex, Diclovol, Diclozip, Fenactol, Flamrase, Volraman, Diclomax SR, Diclomax Retard, Motifene 75 mg, Voltarol 75 mg SR, Acoflam 75 SR, Defenac SR, Dexomon 75 SR, Dicloflex 75 SR, Diclovol SR, Fenactol 75 mg SR, Flamatak 75 MR, Flamrase SR, Flexotard MR 75, Rheumatac Retard 75, Rhumalgan CR, Slofenac SR, Volsaid Retard 75, Voltarol Retard, Acoflam Retard, Defenac Retard, Dexomon Retard 100, Dicloflex Retard, Diclovol Retard, Fenactol Retard 100 mg, Flamatak 100 MR, Volsaid Retard 100, Voltarol Ophtha Multidose, Voltarol Ophtha, Pennsaid, Voltaren Emulgel, Dyloject

Diclofenac sodium topical gel is used to treat actinic keratoses (AK) — rough, scaly skin patches that form after years of sun exposure. These patches are considered precancerous, meaning they can develop into skin cancer if left untreated.

This is a topical gel, meaning it is applied directly to the skin over the affected area rather than taken by mouth. It belongs to the NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) family.

Most-Reported Side Effects for Diclofenac Sodium

From FAERS, the FDA’s public side-effect reporting system (155,962 reports, all brands). Reports are voluntary and are not proof the drug caused the effect.

Fatigue 13,844 reports
Arthralgia 11,333 reports
Rash 10,855 reports
Rheumatoid arthritis 10,744 reports
Abdominal discomfort 9,636 reports
See full Diclofenac drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Healing Touch

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Healing Touch — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

0Major
0Moderate
0Minor
2,829No known interaction
2,829 No interaction
No interaction 2,829 drugs checked — show the list

We also checked Healing Touch against these medications and found no known interaction in our sources. Open any page to confirm.

Showing the 60 most looked-up of 2,829 medications checked with no known interaction — see the full Healing Touch list.

See the full Healing Touch interactions page
See every supplement checked against Diclofenac Sodium, ranked by severity
Evidence & sources

Healing Touch References

The 17 references that drive our Healing Touch monograph and interaction data, from the evidence-graded Natural Medicines (TRC Healthcare) database. Citations with a link open the study on PubMed or the publisher’s site.

  1. Ostuni, E. and Pietro, M. J. Effects of healing touch on nursing home residents in later stages of Alzheimer disease. Healing Touch International, 5th Annual Conference, Denver, CO 2001.
  2. Wang, K. and Hermann, C. Healing touch on agitation levels in dementia. Healing Touch Newsletter 1999;9(3):3.
  3. Weymouth, K. and Sandberg-Lewis, S. Comparing the efficacy of healing touch and chiropractic adjustment in treating chronic low back pain: A pilot study. Healing Touch Newsletter 2000;00(3):7-8.
  4. Guerrerio, J., Slater, V., and Cook, C. The effect of healing touch on radiation-induced fatigue in women receiving radiation therapy in women with gynecological or breast cancer. Healing Touch Newsletter 2001;01(3):5.
  5. Silva MA. The effects of relaxation touch on the recovery level of postanesthesia abdominal hysterectomy patients. Alternative Therapies Health Med 1996;2(4):94.
  6. Post-White J, Kinney ME, Savik K, et al. Therapeutic massage and healing touch improve symptoms in cancer. Integr Cancer Ther 2003;2(4):332-44. PubMed
  7. FitzHenry F, Wells N, Slater V, Dietrich MS, Wisawatapnimit P, Chakravarthy AB. A randomized placebo-controlled pilot study of the impact of healing touch on fatigue in breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy. Integr Cancer Ther. 2014;13(2):10 PubMed
  8. Gentile D, Boselli D, O'Neill G, Yaguda S, Bailey-Dorton C, Eaton TA. Cancer Pain Relief After Healing Touch and Massage. J Altern Complement Med. 2018;24(9-10):968-973. PubMed
  9. Hardwick ME, Pulido PA, Adelson WS. Nursing intervention using healing touch in bilateral total knee arthroplasty. Orthop Nurs. 2012;31(1):5-11. PubMed
  10. Lu DF, Hart LK, Lutgendorf SK, Oh H, Silverman M. Effects of Healing Touch and Relaxation Therapy on Adult Patients Undergoing Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant: A Feasibility Pilot Study. Cancer Nurs. 2016;39(3):E1-E11. PubMed
  11. Lu DF, Hart LK, Lutgendorf SK, Perkhounkova Y. The effect of healing touch on the pain and mobility of persons with osteoarthritis: a feasibility study. Geriatr Nurs. 2013;34(4):314-22. PubMed
  12. Lutgendorf SK, Mullen-Houser E, Russell D, et al. Preservation of immune function in cervical cancer patients during chemoradiation using a novel integrative approach. Brain Behav Immun. 2010;24(8):1231-40. PubMed
  13. MacIntyre B, Hamilton J, Fricke T, Ma W, Mehle S, Michel M. The efficacy of healing touch in coronary artery bypass surgery recovery: a randomized clinical trial. Altern Ther Health Med. 2008;14(4):24-32.
  14. Pedersen CG, Johannessen H, Hjelmborg JV, Zachariae R. Effectiveness of energy healing on Quality of Life: a pragmatic intervention trial in colorectal cancer patients. Complement Ther Med. 2014;22(3):463-72. PubMed
  15. Gentile D, Boselli D, Yaguda S, Greiner R, Bailey-Dorton C. Pain Improvement After Healing Touch and Massage in Breast Cancer: an Observational Retrospective Study. Int J Ther Massage Bodywork 2021;14(1):12-20.

Medication overviews come from MedlinePlus (NIH); supplement label data from the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database. Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists — see our data sources and editorial standards.

Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Having Healing Touch While Taking Diclofenac Sodium: Common Questions

Is it safe to have Healing Touch while taking Diclofenac Sodium?
We do not list a known interaction between Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium. That does not guarantee the combination is risk-free, so confirm with your pharmacist or doctor — especially if you take other medications or have a health condition.
Are Healing Touch and Diclofenac Sodium used for the same thing?
They overlap in purpose, which usually means the real question is whether you need both rather than whether they are safe together. This page lists the shared uses and how strong the evidence is for Healing Touch in each. That is a conversation for your prescriber, especially if Diclofenac Sodium is being adjusted to a target.
Does Diclofenac Sodium interact with any supplements?
Yes. Diclofenac Sodium has documented interactions with 308 supplements in our database — Healing Touch is not one of them. The Diclofenac Sodium interaction page linked on this page lists every one, ranked by severity.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

Where next

Keep Exploring

Healing Touch monograph Uses, safety profile, and every drug interaction in one place Diclofenac drug information The full plain-English guide to this medication Diclofenac Sodium supplement interactions Every supplement checked against Diclofenac Sodium, ranked by severity Supplement interaction checker Check any supplement or product against your medications Browse medications A–Z Every drug we’ve checked against herbs & supplements References The 17 citations behind this page Ask a pharmacist Free, personal answer from our licensed team

Still Have a Question About Diclofenac Sodium and Healing Touch?

Our pharmacists answer your medication & supplement questions — free.

Ask a pharmacist

This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.