About 1 month ago, I started acupuncture treatments – something I’ve wanted to try well before moving to China. I was both excited and nervous. Top priority was to find somewhere clean & an English-speaking doctor to minimize any confusion over what was going to happen. I chickened out and made an appointment at the health clinic that caters to foreigners. I knew it would be more expensive, but thought it was safer for me to understand what the process is all about.
Session#1: What did I get myself into?! The first session was interesting. She felt my pulse in 3 areas on my wrist, checked out my tongue, and asked me a lot of question. The doctor said first she would “reset” me, and then we’d work on my problem areas. I was told to lie on my stomach while she lit this torch and held a glass cup. It was a bit intimidating and I wondered what was going on!? Before I knew it she had put the torch in the glass to burn off air, and then quickly suctioned the glass on my back. It felt like a tight suction for the 5 minutes they were attached – nothing painful but definitely an odd feeling. This is called “cupping.”
Next up: the acupuncture pins. I don’t remember how many went in, but they didn’t hurt – except for one on my foot. I had to lay there for 30 minutes which seemed to be tolerable until she pulled out this little machine with wires. I never realized they put some type of electrical current through your body during this process?! It was hooked up to my stomach & right above my knees. It felt like I could feel my heart beat in those areas. Again no pain, though it felt awkward until my muscles relaxed. Apparently some very tiny current is the modern equivalent of a doctor massaging various points to stimulate specific points. The final step was applying 8 small acupressure magnets (covered in skin-colored adhesives) to my ear. She told me to keep them on until the next appointment and press regularly on them.
For the next few days, I had purple circles on my back – none of which hurt. I applied pressure on my ear magnets which actually seemed to help. I did wear my hair down as many days as possible to hide the magnets. You actually see people with these magnets on their ears a lot. We just never knew what it was all about. Overall, I felt more sluggish than usual. Was it the stress at work? The rain? My body’s energy being used to heal/reset? Not sure but I wasn’t ready to give up.
Session#2: Continuing to reset with the addition of fire
Again, out came the cups – this time 10! They were in different areas than before, making my back look polka dottish now. In the summer, you often see people with circles on their back – I guess we know why now. It’s interesting that each one is a different color with only 1 really purple (most toxins being released in that area). Next up: the pins. This time 17, 4 connected to the pulsating machine. Again, my foot and this time the area above my knees pinched a bit with the pins going in. Not sure what that means. The real surprise was the addition to a pin on each arm to help with my super cold finger tips. On top of the pin, she put something that looks and burns like an incense cone. We closed the 1 hour session with magnets added to my left ear. After dinner I was allowed to remove the ones on the right. I notice the left ear hurts less and the day after I felt my insides a bit more (perhaps just aware after the pulsing).
One Month Later...
After 2x/week for the past month, the doctor has started adding in a needle to the top of my head and removed the ear magnets. I’ve noticed I sleep much better since. The cupping is going well, and is my favorite part of the treatment. Although the back tissue drawn into the jar appears to bruise the skin –it doesn’t hurt. The amount of dark red or even purple blood drawn to the surface indicates the degree of stagnation (darker = more toxins in blood). I have gotten to the point where I only have light purple on 2 cup areas, and the remaining 6 leave little to no mark. Progress! Aside from that, I’ve noticed some changes but it’s hard for me to assess how much is related to the acupuncture. I do feel more aware of my body, and look forward to the 2 hours each week laying there doing nothing. I also really like the doctor a lot. She’s my age, and told me how she entered University in the late 80s as China was opening up. Less than 10 years ago, she did a 2 year rotation in Morocco as part of bilateral agreement the 2 countries have. Let's see how I feel a month from now.... !
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