2nd Treatment

I went to my second appointment today. From my last appointment I did have some relief from the pain in my fingers and thumb on a near daily basis and had no lower back pain at all, despite working outside quite a bit over the weekend.

Other than what Paula had told me from the last appointment, I still didn’t know much about acupuncture. I’ve purposely avoided seeking out too much information so I can have a better subjective experience during my first few appointments. However, I wanted to know a little more of what was going on, so I asked Paula for a slightly deeper explanation of the theory behind acupuncture. Paula says that energy (called Qi) follows through conduits (meridians) throughout the body. There are 12 standard meridians, each one flows through one of the 12 zang-fu organs. The zang organs (associated with yin) are considered to be “solid” organs that produce various substances for the body. The fu organs (yang) are hollow and responsible for consuming, metabolism, and elimination. Each zang organ is paired with a fu organ, so the flow of energy goes up for the yin meridians and then back down through the yang meridians. As long as the pressure remains balanced between the two pairs, everything is fine and the body is healthy. However, when the flow gets disrupted or blocked, symptoms began to manifest. Deficiencies can cause issues as well as excesses.

The needles used in acupuncture are applied to specific points along each meridian and each needle helps unclog and increase the flow of energy. The treatment helps balance the flow and eliminate various issues. The actual practice is far more complicated than just sticking needles in points, so this is a very simplified explanation, but it’s the best one I can come up with from my limited experience and knowledge so far.

In order to better show me what she was explaining earlier, Paula used a quite a few “optional” points so I can get the full experience. By the end of the session I was feeling like I might appear as a porcupine and this time the treatment wasn't quite as pain free as the first. There were needles placed in a few areas with high amounts of sensory nerves and despite the thinness of the needle, I felt them.

The sensation of the needles is odd however; once she was finished inserting them all, any discomfort started to fade and as I sat waiting (part of any sessions is a 10-15 minute quiet time in which the needles stay in and you are supposed to relax) I could almost drift off to sleep.  Other than feeling relaxed, I tried to detect some other sensations, but I didn't really notice anything else in particular that I could identify.

Four hours later, I feel much the way that I did after the first session. I am relaxed and feel less pain than I normally do in my hands, but I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to feel. I can say for certain that it’s doing something for pain, but past that I'm not sure.

1st Treatment

I just got back from my first acupuncture treatment. Paula has me loaded down with notes, pamphlets, and diagrams but I think it'll take me a bit of time to digest it all so I'm just going to focus on the treatment for now.

I have had chronic lower back pain with sciatica and peripheral neuropathy for some time, so I thought they would be a good thing to experiment with for my first acupuncture experience. Paula explained that these issues were caused by problems along the kidney and bladder meridian (meridians are always paired) and so she used a treatment that used acupressure points along those lines.

I am not sure what I was expecting as a result of the treatment, but the effect was not immediately apparent. The treatment itself was surprisingly relaxing (for something that requires needles to be stuck into your body) and caused very little pain. During the treatment I became acutely aware of my body -- my breathing, heartbeat, and blood flow seemed more apparent than normal. After the acupuncture, she also did some cupping therapy, moving the cups around to create a massage-like effect. It felt great, like a massage that got directly into the muscles underneath my skin (which sounds really creepy now that I write it, but the feeling was wonderful).

The most pronounced effect was a relaxed calm that I experienced immediately after (and which I still have an hour and a half later as I write this). My fingers and hands also feel less pain than normal and my back feels great (though a good massage will do that too). Of course, this may just be in my head, but I am realizing the physical manifestation of what I expected to happen may be part of the point of the mind/body experience too. Paula says the full effect may not be apparent immediately, so I hope to have more to report on the actual feelings a bit later.

The plan is to go through three treatments. Paula says three treatments should be enough to get the full experience and afterwards I'll be able to make a judgement on what acupuncture can do.

I Found Someone to Stick Me with Needles

I expected that acupuncture would be an easier practice to involve myself in because I knew of local practitioners in Auburn and Columbus (the two cities where I spend the most time).  After researching and calling around, I finally decided I would start with PaulaLord, L. Ac. (www.acupunctureforsouthernliving.com) who was licensed and had an office in Auburn.

We have only spoken over the phone, but I explained to Paula that the acupuncture was for a class and the treatments would help me explore the mind/body aspects of the practice. She's eager to help me, letting me know that she had extensive training and education and would have no issues explaining how and why acupuncture worked (details that she was excited to share since most clients are not interested). I'll meet her to discuss more in person later.

I also made the promise to myself that I would take a holistic approach to the experience, as most practitioners I spoke with or researched suggested that the acupuncture itself was only part of the experience and was commonly combined with elements of meditation, herbal medicine, and other practices. I also thought that combining elements of other practices into the experience may enhance the overall effect.

Decisions, Decisions...

After much internal debate, I've finally decided what I wanted to explore as part of my mind/body practice. But before I reveal it, I wanted to look at what I didn't choose -- and why.

I have a full time job, am taking a full time doctoral class load, have three kids, and commute an average of three hours a day to work and school. I was afraid that a few of the practices would not fit into my schedule, and after looking into class times at local spots for yoga and tai chi, my fears were confirmed. Though I could attempt a study through DVD's or streaming video, I really wanted to be led by an experienced guide; but nothing structured like a class was going to possibly fit into my life.

A few of these practices I considered to be really out there, and I was afraid the amount of skeptic baggage I would approach the practice with might dampen the experience. This included suggested practices for the assignment like reiki, johrei, and tapping. I have a lot of doubts about the effectiveness of these practices and wanted to try something more familiar (yet something I've never actually done). I was also a bit worried because I thought it might be more difficult to find practitioners to help me explore these practices. I had not seen any advertisements or offices for either of these, so I wasn't sure if they would even be accessible to me.

I also excluded hypnosis and belly dancing for a combination of reasons. I'm not comfortable with either practice (I don't like to feel out of control, as I fear I would with hypnosis and I'm not in the physical shape for any sort of dancing) and I also saw a combination of a few earlier mentioned factors as well.

I finally settled on acupuncture. Acupuncture is something that has fascinated me for a while, and though I've never tried it before, it’s a treatment that has been suggested to me by my doctor to treat neuropathy and back pain. The fact that it's been recommended by a Western doctor gives it some credibility to me and I assumed I would be able to make appointments that would work around my many other obligations. I had seen several businesses that advertised as acupuncturists around Auburn (where I live) and Columbus (where I work), so I did not think finding a practitioner would be an issue.