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Chinese Medicine practitioner
I have a question if anyone used a chinese medicine practitioner in a past or present and what was the outcome?
I don’t want to write too much.. but my experience was very disappointing.
His professional specification is a Registered Practitioner and Acupuncturist.
I was hoping to get some acupuncture on my mid back because of the tightness from working out.
Unfortunately, he said it’s not what he does. His massage table was tucked in a conner with boxes of papers and products, the whole office was very unprofessionally set up. It was actually a chinese herbal store and his office was in the back slightly partitioned by a shabby curtain. So he was running the store and patients at the same time. So, cant expect acupuncture done in this kind of setting.
Instead he set me at the table and by listening to my pulse was trying to give me diagnosis. 8 diagnosis were wrong. I recently had a full physical exam done by my MD. When I got tired of listening to his side of the story I told him that I don’t have any symptoms of what he is referring to, and recently been checked. Then he started to correct himself as if guessing and that made me very uncomfortable there. I told him that I came to see him for my back pain and was hoping to have an acupuncture procedure done. He said acupuncture is not going to help and I have to have ultrasound procedure done or injection of some sort which he wasn’t able to even specify, instead because my lateral muscle is “twisted”. I felt as if Im sitting in front of “witch doctor”. How I can even take his advice after all these mistakes. So, I asked him how much this all cost. He told me to pay $40 which he refused to take credit card for despite of running the business with cash register in the front. I had to go to the bank machine to bring the moneys to him.
Was very strange and scary experience for me. But the worse of it that I wasted my time driving outside the city, sitting in traffic, waiting for this appointment, hoping to get some medical help or advice instead was very unprofessional, unacceptable data of info to deal with, outside the normal scope of diagnostics. Practitioner failed to integrate western medicine with what he was practicing.
I felt as if I was visiting a fortune teller. -
24 Replies
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If he is a Registered Practitioner of some kind you should be able to report your experience to some kind of governing body that keeps track of/investigates these things.
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Yes, thought of that as well, just trying to find out if anyone else was a pray to similar quackery in order to compare the experiences.
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Check out Muscle Activation Technique. https://muscleactivation.com/
I am not a provider of this service nor do I have any reason to promote it other than it has been helpful to me, my husband and my sister for various chronic injuries. I have it performed by a physical therapist and am lucky that my insurance covers it but it can also be performed by trainers, etc. who have gone through the training. It’s pretty amazing how the technique can improve range of motion and muscle resistance on the spot.
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That doesn’t sound like a good experience at all. I see a registered acupuncturist every 6-8 weeks now. I certainly thought it was a waste of my time at first. One of my specialists had suggested it and she is amazing so I decided to listen. At first, I had to go weekly to get my headaches under control but as I mentioned, I now go every 6-8 weeks. We start by talking about my issues since my last visit and she goes from there. Anything I have ever asked her to work on (including my tight hamstrings) she has been more than happy to help me with. Sometimes she will do a different area and explain how it will help another. I also love cupping, it’s probably my favorite part. She never tries to “diagnose” me, nor would I want her to. It’s interesting because she told me once that someone had come in with something and she told them to go to theat emergency room immediately. She realizes what needs medical attention and what is something that she can help with.
Any who, I defiantly think that this guy shouldn’t be in business. Check out reviews online if you decide to see someone else, or maybe ask some friends/coworkers if they have any great places they know of.
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Greyeyes
I researched about MTA. It’s very expensive were Im. The initial appointment is $200 and then $135 after.
Can you share about the experience bc if I will decide to do it Im pretty sure it will be more then one session.
So, my problem is mid-back muscular weakness, exercise resistant. Something that out of my control. if I invert more then normal amount of times I have to take brake the next day, two, three… Now my recovery started to be even longer. Which is interferes with my schedule of planning things.
Im a little bit sad about it, in a mean time resting and trying to find a good solution. -
That’s about what I was charged as well. I think my initial was $175 and my follow up visits are $130. I have it performed by licensed physical therapists so my insurance covers it, which I suspect is rare but I am lucky to have very good health insurance.
I suspect it would be more than one session too but perhaps not many. For me they work on an area and send me home with a few exercises to do (usually quite minimal) to help whatever area they worked on stabilize. In the very beginning I think I went weekly or every other week and now I’m going more like every three weeks. My practitioners are very aware that it is expensive and an out of pocket expense for most people so they don’t insist that you come in every week or whatever–they make a recommendation and leave it up to me. I don’t know if all practitioners operate the same way.
The initial problem I went for is healed so if I was paying out of pocket I would probably not still be going but since it’s covered for me I’m attempting to have them fix all the many aches, pains and stiffness in my 46-year-old body.
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How this procedure exactly done? Is it device operated or man-powered technique?.
Im trying to get my initial appointment soon.
but Im scared about them not knowing how much resistance I can take. Do I need any X-rays from my MD which I already done just in case?
I also had an appointment with NUCCA specialist that works with misalignments in your body but he promised very slow recovery like years??? In a mean time Im going to sports chiro on Monday. It’s just so difficult to find a right type of treatment that will work. But I think it’s always healthier to stay with health professionals that work in sports field at least they can understand you better, others will see you as $$$$ target and immediately make you sicker then you are. Except of course your family physician. -
I tried a Chinese medicine practitioner years ago who came highly recommended-not acupuncture but herbal stuff. I had the same experience with the pulse taking which I thought was fascinating! Unlike in your case I thought his diagnosis sounded accurate. But alas the nasty tea and abstaining from coffee and chocolate for a month did not help me at all.
I have tried MAT and found it promising but prohibitively expensive. On the other hand, Feldenkrais worked for me after 1 session and was cheaper. 🙂 (note that all these visits were for different issues so it’s not a side-by-side comparison!)
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Thank you but I dont think Feldenkrais technique is suitable for my case when I require from my muscle system more then usual output and endurance. MAT though is.
So, may be it’s worth to try it. At least I will be able to feel the difference and if not I won’t continue. -
My MAT practitioners use their hands–really fingers to apply pressure to the insertion site of the muscles. In many areas I find it tender–usually didn’t realize I was tender there–but they ask if it’s okay and will stop if I can’t tolerate it. I have never had to ask them to stop.
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Not trying to overwhelm you with body work modalities, but sometimes you can find someone who works with ALL of these (or many of them) and they can decide which technique is best suited to your needs, so here are some things that may be good to look for
Faves:
– Rolfing– ART**** this should come with a million little stars cuz it’s awesome, if you go to their website it can find practitioners for you and it will tell you what theyre certified in upper body, lower body, spine, etc. if you can find all of them though that’s preferable cuz unfortunately every issue is a full body issue
– Myofascial release (although people use this term loosely so maybe not the best search term
– FMS or functional movement screening is also a good certification because that means they are trained in analyzing faulty movement patterns that can contribute to or reveal some deeper issues that may need to be addressed vs just slapping a body work band aid over it every few weeks/months/whatevs
New things that have been working for me
Fascial distortion model
Dry needling
MedicuppingGiven the area of tightness your having it may also be helpful to investigate postural resoration institute (PRI), I don’t have any experience with them but thought I’d throw it out there in case it pops up on a practitioners site or if you just want to research it
Even in my smallish suburban area I found an awesome guy who does all of this stuff, sometimes you just have to know what to look for (also I live in Texas so maybe cuz football). The guy I found is a chiropractor but doesn’t do any popping, he just draws from everything else he knows (cuz popping can be detrimental to cartilage and it risks injury blah blah) but the ART website is what originally led to me to this guy and is a great resource. It essentially gives you a Google map of practitioners in your area then in the side bar you can look closer at their credentials/specialties. Generally doctors aimed at sports rehab are your best bet, especially because you are involved in a very physical sport. And always cross reference yelp if you can!
Sorry if this is an overload of info but bodywork/alternative medicine can be a beast to navigate but can be incredible if you find the right person! Let me know if you have any questions, this stuff rocks my world so I’m be more than happy to help in any way I can!
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Thank you Greyeyes booking my appointment for MAT next week.
Thank you Lucca for sooooo much info
I looked into ART and found out that my sports medicine Dr. practices together with one in the same clinic. I will book an appointment with her too.
But the direction of treatment should be geared towards active sports specialists who understand the mechanics and demand of the body’s needs under more then usual strain.
When I was the other day at chiro’s office explaining my injury he compared with the injury mother’s get by lifting a baby from the carriage and Im sitting there and thinking: Should I start caring my pole to these appointments for people to understand? -
Thank you again Greyeys
MAT works!!!!! -
Yeay!!! So glad to here this. I just found a massage therapist that days she practices similar modalities .. I dont know how similar But she is amazing every time she helps me at the chiro so I think I’ll got ahead before I move into the end phase of my p t . have you just been once? And you would you recommend this obviously? 🙂
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Shoog
I was 2 times only.
It was my back from Allergra. I was taking my time to heel but would go back to inverting and pain would be right back and third time I felt really broken. Like I was thinking about not even touching pole anymore.
After first appointment my back pain was completely gone. Im taking it slow now coming back to my routine, because I’m scared. Second appointment I had he was working to strengthen my left side (from the neck, shoulder,mid back and lower back) and Im stronger now. I want to have some more sessions with MAT specialist because he doesn’t waste my time and money -
That is so good to hear!!! This break I’m on now is calling for a Massage… Thanks for the insight into your story.
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Whoever works on you do not let them crack or pop anything, especially your neck, it’s more damage than a cure. My MAT specialist doesn’t do anything like that. 3 weeks before I seen him I went to massage therapist and he decided to crack my neck. I didn’t feel good at all and had severe headaches after that. I went to chiro same thing, electrical modalities, ultrasound and cracking. The results were very very poor.
MAT specialist that I found knows 750 muscles in your body and 350 bones. He works by charts and activates muscles that are responsible for your injury. It was like seeing egyptian anatomist from BCE.
I didn’t even have to tell him where is the problem. He finds it by touch. He works with circus performers, gymnasts, acrobats, hockey players. His focus is to make your body functional or sometimes hyperfunctional if there is a need in a short period of time. If he cant work with trauma, or feels it’s not gonna respond to his approach, he will tell honestly right away instead of playing God doctor as all of these quacks I’ve gone to especially chinese medicine doctor. -
That’s Interesting. I have been getting adjusted for the last 6 months once a month I’d not more and it doesn’t seem to be getting better, but I wasn’t doing anything outside of pole and yoga to nuture. I guess I always blame myself when things don’t work because that’s been a mentality I’ve had all my life. Now I see I am doing enough, just need to prioritze. The therapist I will see barely touched me the other day and I swooned. And shrieked in a lovely painful release. Of course it was me sitting up waiting for chiro she checked me out. Kept going back to the right shoulder and saying uh huh uh huh. Funny how they talk directly to the body with those magical fingers. Our antennas of sorts. So I also have been having more and New lower back pain and neck pain since seeing the chiro…. I hate to think they dont fix me because they want more money. But who am I kidding greed runs most shows. So this lady is healer of sorts, I feel it when she’s near. May sounds crazy to the non energetically concerned person but at this point in my journey I am learning to trust my Intuition. Its always right. Boy do I pay dearly when I don’t listen. So I think I’ll take some time off the chiro and do this pt and massage along with my shakti acupressure mat and I just know I am ready fort his pain to leave me. I am not my pain or emotions but good grief they can take the wheel! Your story and Information is appreciated 🙂
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OMG that is a horrifying story about the massage therapist cracking your neck…massage therapists should absolutely never crack people’s necks (it is very illegal to do so in the U.S.) and yeah in general I try not to go to chiropractors that snap or pop, it’s rarely necessary and like you said can do more harm than good
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Crazy stuff. The first gentle chiro would tape me immediately and I did feel some relief he 2nd gentle chiropractor I went to when I dislocated my ribs seemed like a nut, she charges me several hundred the first visit and I received no gain, besides her looking at me all weird like 🙂 she was out of business within a couple month of my visit and she gave me the run around about how I’m mot using her technique to my benefit .. My response. Couple hundred dollars is all I can spend at a time and with no relief why is would I continue. It seems like a very low way to tell me why I got 0 relief. Because I didn’t spend more than 400$ in 2 visits. Phew. I think I’ll stick to my roller and roller accessories for now, maybe a hang from The hammock 🙂
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@zoilife6233 I am so glad you like your MAT practitioner! I love mine too. He really listens and pays attention to all my many little aches and pains and genuinely seems to want to figure them all out. Most doctors, etc. glaze over by the second or third thing I mention. Wish I had started seeing him sooner.
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Acupuncturists, as with any practitioner, have all skill levels. It’s important to ask where they were trained, how long they have been practicing, how many cases like yours they treat, etc. I have been having weekly acupuncture for years and it absolutely works for anything from backs to menopause. He comes to the house, sets the table up in my living room with a full body heating pad and it’s fabulous. I put on meditation music and meditate while he goes in the other room and reads a book, then he takes the needles out. Chinese medicine diagnoses are not the same as western medical diagnoses, btw, but he can nail it just by taking my pulse and looking at me. The only downside is I tend to overdue it because I know he will fix whatever damage I do. 🙂
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Catsanctuary
Now that you mention it I have to say I did inquire with a number of doctors including family physician and sports medicine doctor about use of acupuncture in my case and decided not to go ahead with it. I’m a pharmacist myself and it is very obvious for me which treatment or course is more appropriate, same with meds.
Acupuncture will block the pain via nerve passages and will reset pain receptors level which will be tolerable or non-existent for sometime. It doesn’t change the nature of your injury and doesn’t prevent it from reoccurring. In athletic sense the use of it is limited.
I chose MAT because the specialist was able to identify the root of the problem, corrected and secure it from reoccurring, also enhanced the muscle function at the same time. So it’s not a temporary fix and gets you back where you left. I was able to assess it as the most efficient and economical. Unless it is a bone fracture or rupture of a muscle, MAT is a deal for active people with sports injuries because of it anatomical and practical knowledge and application
As for diagnostic methodology I prefer verification by X-rays, ultrasound, lab tests and thorough med check by MD as a conformation on any pulse reading, iridology, palm reading, etc. Im trained in Homeopathy, Naturopathy and Nutrition as well. So Im familiar with methods, remedies and preventative medicine as a whole. Each case is different and we have to resort to our best options out there avoiding mistakes and high costs -
Hmmmm, interesting interpretation of acupuncture. Acupuncture is definitely not comparable to palm reading. My practitioner is a doctor of acupuncture who attended formal training at New England School of Acupuncture. Actually recommended by my MD. Remember, “modern medicine” as we know it has only been around for a couple hundred years. The Chinese have been using Chinese medicine for thousands of years. It isn’t for everyone but the right trained professional can certainly achieve results.
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