Carlos was trying to unload a bread delivery behind his deli counter in NYC when I walked in early one morning. Back pain had him in tears.
"Step around the counter, Carlos," I said, reaching for empty boxes to break open and spread on the floor for him to lie on. No, he hadn't lifted any heavy loads recently or made any silly twists.
I checked his feet initially to detect any relevant meridian problem or acupoint sensitivity. Sp 3 held me. Liv 2 and 3 could hardly be touched. I added a favorite reflexology technique by thumbing down his instep to detect other spinal vulnerabilities before performing gentle vertical and diagonal stretches on his back.
Argentinian-born Carlos was generally athletic and in good shape, but admitted he was overworked, lacked staff and slept poorly because of anxiety. After a few moments of palming down the UB meridian on his back, pausing to ease stagnant qi in pericardium, liver, GB and spleen back shu points, I felt him relax.
"Move about a little, Carlos," I suggested, as it was important to see which movements lifted or worsened his discomfort. He stretched his arms above his head, rolled on his side, got to his knees, arched his back and rose. "You unlocked me," he said, smiling as his first customers walked in.
Quick Fixes: A Learning Tool?
As bodyworkers, we often find ourselves in such "quick fix" dynamics in public.1 Bobby, one of my neighbors, complained about shoulder and neck pain as we set up our voter registration table at a recent event. I offered some chair work.
After asking him general questions, I squeezed down the back of his neck and along his shoulders before using a gentle lifting technique while thumbing UB 10 / GB 20. I then sank my elbows slowly into GB 21 bilaterally.
After a few moments, I cupped one hand around his shoulder joint and did pressure-counterpressure while using the side of my other hand to work around Bobby's scapula; first one side, then the other. I often use this combo to ease computer-related neck and head tension or the first glimmer of a headache.
There was only one problem: Folks were lining up behind us, thinking I was volunteering chairwork. "Sorry guys," I said, laughing. "We're only here to register you to vote!"
If A Client Arrives In Pain...
Brief techniques, usually acquired in "quick fix" spontaneous situations like those I just described, offer unusual insights that can be applied in more formal clinical situations. If a client arrives in pain, I always spend the first five or 10 minutes with a combo of points to ease the pain before I do a formal session.
Nothing is more counterproductive than working on a client who squirms around. I always ask clients to arrange themselves in a position that is most comfy for them, and organize supportive cushions where necessary.
Be prepared if clients reject a chair, table or futon! One of my clients in Berlin, Angelika L., said it eased her lower back pain when she stood up, reached up and pressed her hands against the wall. "As though I'm being frisked!" she said, smiling. This gave her a supported stretch.
I adapted, with a quick focus on kidney back shu (UB 23), sacral points, and bilateral UB 36 with a lifting motion. I then crouched down to pinch and release UB 60 and K 3 together. A great combo of points for lower back pain.
Marcus J.: An Unusual Case Study
Sometimes, as in the case of Marcus J. in Basel, I adapt midway during a session, should the situation require a quick change of pace.
Marcus booked weekly appointments with me during a complex divorce situation. He had been married to his second wife, Mavis, for some years until he "could no longer stand her verbal abuse and constant put-downs." His unresolved anger prompted huge blocks in his GB meridian.
While it was useful to work his entire UB meridian in the five-element "parent-child" dynamic to soften GB before working that meridian, we pinpointed a collective block in his GB back shu (UB 19). The area was so blocked it hampered his breathing.
I worked on Marcus on a futon on the floor, stood over him, crossed my arms, reached for his hands and did alternate stretching slowly and gently, raising him just an inch off the futon while focusing mentally on UB 19. Then, while stretching his right arm with my right hand, I reached under Marcus to hold UB 19 with my left hand and vice versa.
The stretch, combined with his body weight in a gentle "to-and-fro" movement, helped move qi in UB 19 and release pain along with deep breaths. It was a combo technique we repeated each time within a session. It not only helped with the physical discomfort, but also enabled Marcus to unleash verbally in a totally new way. Just a simple form of corrective exercise focusing on a single point with movement.
Menstrual Cramps? Try This Combo!
When I teach this technique, I call it the "911" way of easing menstrual cramps. I discovered its effectiveness when a friend, Juanita M., and I were leaving to attend the opera one night when she suddenly doubled over with cramps and thought she might not be able to go.
"And miss 'The Magic Flute?'" I said. "I don't think so." I encouraged Juanita to lie flat on her soft carpet, knees raised. I rotated her legs in both directions, then rotated one leg at a time while holding ST 36 and SP 6 to activate both those points in motion. We all know how effective those points are for menstrual cramps, but treating them without motion can be painful.
Our combo technique worked like a charm. Off we went to "The Magic Flute." Juanita was pain free throughout!
Editor's Note: Client names and locations used in this article have been changed from their originals to protect privacy.
Reference
Chronic pain afflicts over 20% of the adult population. Sadly, most MDs have essentially no education in treating pain, beyond offering a few toxic medications. Then they tend to steer people with pain away from those health practitioners who are trained. This puts the acupuncture community on the front lines for addressing this epidemic.
When the body is going through a stressful event, the sympathetic system is activated. This activation will help the body with a life-threatening situation. If this state is activated for prolonged periods of time, it starts to consume energy. These traumatic events that generate stressors in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) will eventually become internalized.
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One of the things that makes acupuncture so difficult to measure is that the medicine actually does contain some esoteric aspects. There have been numerous studies that demonstrate the neurochemical reasoning behind why acupuncture points stimulate the autonomic nervous system to enact change However, not all the benefits of TCM can easily be measured by randomized, controlled trials. But does that make them fundamentally and definitively untrue?
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