Getting the Point
November 2003: The Sunday Business Post
by Fiona NessThese days, you’re not anybody unless you’ve had your Qi (chi) rebalanced. Even six-week-old babies are having theirs tampered with, so that their parents can grab a few hours uninterrupted sleep.
So who was I to whimper when it was suggested I try having my qi rebalanced to treat a chronic knee injury, on which conventional medicine had, had no effect?
I had been suffering pain from a floating kneecap for about five years, so more than one acupuncture session would be necessary to heal the condition, according to David Shipsey of Dan-Tien complimentary health studio. Shipsey says abdominal acupuncture will be the fastest method of achieving results.
He says this ancient form of Chinse medicine has been largely forgotten about by practitioners, because body acupuncture was standardised during the cultural revolution in China.
As I am a complete novice on the subject of acupuncture, Shipsey explains to me how the treatment will work.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the body is believed to have 12 meridian lines.
Energy – Qi – circulates along the meridian lines. When these channels become blocked, the energy cannot flow, resulting in low energy and sickness.
Each meridian is connected to a specific organ, and the body has more than 350 acupuncture points.
When treating a condition, the acupuncturist isolates these points and inserts a needle. Each acupoint acts as a gateway to the channels, so when a needle is placed here, the energy is released and the body’s own healing process can continue.
The session began with a detailed consultation, tongue examination and six pulse readings.
Initially reluctant to discuss the intricacies of my digestive process with a total stranger, I was soon rattling off my list of self-diagnosed ailments, from knee pain to insomnia and beyond.
Shipsey says many mental and emotional problems can be treated with acupuncture, including depression and stress.
Shipsey also treats hospital patients with chronic pain as the practice is approved by both VHI and Bupa.
After the consultation, I removed my shoes and socks and lay down on the couch. Shipsey dotted points on my abdomen, but also on my head, hands and feet, where he would place the needles.
I was told to expect a buzzing when the needle was inserted, and was encouraged to keep talking as the needles went into my stomach.
When the needles were placed in my feet and hands, I felt my nerves jump, as though I was biting down with a filling on a piece of silver paper.
However, this feeling was instantaneously replaced with a warm, pulsing sensation spreading up my hand and arm.
The stainless steel needles vary in size from half an inch to three inches long, the length determined by the illness and the patient’s size.
They come in sealed packs and are disposed of after use.
Shipsey says clients often drift off to sleep for the rest of the session, but I lay stock still, acutely aware of the needle I knew was sticking out of the top of my head.
Although it was not a miracle cure in one session, the effects of the treatment were surprisingly immediate.
One week and a weekend of surfing later, my knee joint is markedly more mobile.
I was also able to sit through a five-hour car journey without having to pull over and flex a painful knee joint.
And all for the price of a visit to the doctor.
- Feb 2008:The Sunday Business Post: Nothing Twee about these Treatments
- March 2004: GCN: Alternative Options
- February 2004: Garda Review: Speaking In Tongues
- November 2003: The Sunday Business Post: Getting the Point
- August 2003: Irish Tatler: Mother And Baby: Aches & Pains
- June 2003: Ireland on Sunday: Body & Soul: In at the sharp end
- November 2002: The Sunday Business Post: Just A Little Needlework