Fwd: [discusschineseherbs] question about acupuncture

[Guest guest]

My thanks to Colleen DeLaney for permission to forward this over. There's a

lot of good info in it.

 

Victoria

 

>Colleen DeLaney <herbdocs

>discusschineseherbs

>discusschineseherbs

>Re: [discusschineseherbs] Re: question about acupuncture

>Sat, 19 Aug 2000 13:56:21 -0700

>

>xxxx xxxxxx wrote:

>

> > 1. What is the proceed one would experience with acupuncture? (be as

> > detailed as you like)

>

>xxxx-- there are many styles of acupuncture. Even people trained in the

>same style in

>the same school will have different procedures and approaches. But, in

>general, what you

>can expect is:

>

>* An intial history form to fill out

>

>* An intital interview which may vary from very brief to very detailed

>

>* Some form of physical examination, which may or may not include tongue

>and pulse

>examination, palapation of points or abdomen (hara), or even muscle

>testing

>(kinesiology).

>

>* Insertion of needles, which should be sterile and disposable, and which

>is usually

>done with the patient lying down comfortably, perhaps with a heat lamp on

>their feet if

>they're feeling chilled. Some acupuncturists use guide tubes, where each

>individual

>needle is kept sterile within its own plastic tube. The tube is placed

>against the

>skin and the needle tapped down through it. Others use good old-fashioned

>manual

>insertion. In either case, this is rarely painful. Often you don't feel

>it at all; on

>some sensitive points you might feel a light sting.

>

>* Obtaining the Qi: This is the most fascinating part of the treatment.

>The needle is

>then manipulated until a sensation of Qi is felt, either by the

>practitioner or the

>patient. There is no treatment until the Qi is obtained on the point! The

>sensation

>varies from person to person and can be quite hard to describe. It may

>feel like

>tingling, electricity, warmth, fullness, distention, or a mild ache. It's

>ok to tell the

>practitioner when you feel it; if they're very experienced they'll often

>feel it before

>you do, and you may feel very little. On some treatments its important to

>get a strong

>Qi sensation. This part can vary greatly from one acupuncturist to

>another.

>

>* Retention of needles: Some styles of acupuncture only obtain the Qi then

>remove the

>needle; others retain the needles anywhere from 20-45 minutes.

>

>* Stimulation of needles: Sometimes the needles are left quietly when you

>listen to

>music or doze. Sometimes strong stimulation is called for, and the needles

>are either

>periodiocally stimulated by hand or an electroacupuncture machine is hooked

>up the the

>key points and turned on. This doesn't hurt-- it's a sensation of tapping

>or pulsing on

>the point and feels massage-like.

>

>* Moxibustion: Some practitioners will burn moxa on the end of the needles

>or over

>certain points. This too varies widely.

>

>* Removal of needles: This part you usually don't feel. It is sometimes

>followed up

>with massage with some lovely smelling Chinese Ben Gay type of liniment.

>

>* After your treatment: We recommend that people take it kind of easy for a

>couple

>hours: No strenuous exercise, hot tubs, etc. The reason for this is that

>the effects of

>the treatment may tend to continue for a couple of hours and you want to

>retain as much

>of your Qi as possible.

>

>I'd be interested in hearing about other people's experiences with

>acupuncture. I know

>this is a Chinese herbs list, but what the heck, there seems to be interest

>in other

>aspects of Chinese medicine, so why not?

>

> > 2. What in the world is cupping?

>

>I once treated a ninety year old man whose eyes lit up when he saw the cups

>on the

>shelf-- he was surprised I knew about cupping. Turns oiut when he was a

>little kid and

>got asthma his grandmother would take him to the barber's and get cupping

>done on his

>upper back and upper chest to help his breathing. Worked great, too.

>

>I once had a friend with asthma come into the office in the midst of a very

>serious,

>life-threatening asthma attack. I cupped her back and chest while I called

>another

>friend to take her to the emergency room, where she belonged. The cupping

>immediately

>and noticeably calmed down the asthma enough that she could get emergency

>care. It was

>pretty impressive but I hope I never have to do THAT again. (For those of

>you who don't

>know, I have a background as an X-ray tech in emergency medicine and I am

>very clear

>about what is over my head and belongs in an E.R.!)

>

>Cupping is like a massage in reverse. A glass or bamboo cup is used. You

>create a

>vacuum in the cup by passing a flaming cottom ball over the opening-- the

>oxygen in the

>cup is burned off and a vacuum ensues. The cup is then quickly placed,

>sometimes over

>liniment or over a needle. Feels very nice on sore muscles. Sometimes you

>get a big

>red or dark purple suction mark when the cup is removed, making you look

>like the victim

>of an octopus attack. This indicates stagnation of blood which is being

>brought to the

>surface and dispersed.

>

>We have a large Hmong community here, and social workers and CPS have been

>trained to

>recognize what cupping marks and Gua Sha marks (made by scraping with a

>spoon or large

>coin) look like, so there's no suspicion of child abuse!

>

>3. The tumor on my eye is benign, so can acupuncture clear that up?

>

>Not enough information. Ask your acupuncturist-- I suspect it's worth a

>try. I've had

>success with treating pterygium (a fatty tissue growth on the surface of

>the eyeball).

>

> > I was also thinking of cluster dissolving, and was wondering if the

> > liquid (after the alcohol was evaporated could be put directly on the

> > eye)?

>

>I wouldn't recommend it.

>

>---->Colleen

>--|e>-

>

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