I went to the acupuncturist at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (OCOM) today, after going to my primary care physician and making sure he didn’t have anything against acupuncture. (He didn’t have anything against chiropractors, either.) I didn’t get an acupuncture student but the instructor of the school. He was good. My usual acupuncturist, who was a student at OCOM, says, “Tell me when there’s a dull ache.” The instructor didn’t have to ask; he hit it on the first try. After the acupuncture with electric stimulation, he gave me a tuina massage. It was the oddest massage I’ve had, like being rolled from side-to-side. But it seemed to work on my back pain.

I liked the acupuncturist a lot. He asked about my medical history and he had a good idea of what was wrong. I think he even diagnosed the opposite of what the chiropractor did as far as the difference in my leg length. The last part of the treatment was him yanking on my leg to try to even the length. That also made me want to laugh, which put me in a pretty good mood.

We’ll see tomorrow if I’m able to walk or not, but I enjoyed my traditional Chinese treatment.