Acupuncture

My first acupuncture treatment for my carpal tunnel was this morning. It was much more boring and mundane then I thought it would be. In fact only four needles were used per arm with two for each wrist and two in the forearm. The first needle hurt the most, well, it didn’t really hurt so much as activate the nerve running up the side of my thumb and make it tingly and aching, mimicking the carpal tunnel in a strange way. Before the doctor applied the needles he applied a Chinese herbal balm to the areas that would be treated. The balm was icy-hot and by the end of the half hour treatment I was so distracted by how cold my limbs were that the needles didn’t faze me a bit. Of course, dear reader, I am not a squeamish person around needles, I have always had a fascination with medicine and am no less interested when it is I that is the patient. Plus the needles were so thin and delicate that they bend at the slightest breeze, it was really neat to see that they had the strength to penetrate my skin, I admit, I doubted they would be able to since they were so dainty (a needle dainty? I know, you’d have to see it to believe it).

I’m going back in on Saturday and have yet to experience relief, but then again, like most things results take time.