I've been taking Exemestane for the past 10 months and my Oncologist suggested I try acupuncture to help with the side effects (joint/muscle pain) as well as to help with the nerve damage that came from radiation I had to my ribs. To be honest, I wasn’t happy at the prospect of more needles but these are not supposed to hurt and I am SO ready to feel some relief that I figured it couldn’t make things worse…. Right??
So, after an almost 2 hr chat with the person my Dr recommended, I had my first acupuncture treatment and you wouldn’t believe how it started.
Ready??
The woman (thank God she waa female because I would have walked out otherwise – you’ll see why shortly) told me to disrobe but to leave my bra and underwear on and to lay down on the table. She steps out and comes back when I was ready. She takes my pulse on both wrists and says my Chi is totally fucked up and slow. Well, we can’t have this, so, she needs to unblock me or else none of what she has planned will work. To do this she needs to put 4 needled in 4 very specific spots because they form a circle. So, she begins to explain that one goes in my chin…the other in my upper gum area above my teeth…another goes in my tail bone and the last one goes in my …..(sit down for this or maybe stand up).. my perineum (you know, that space we have between our vagina and our anus). WOAH!! Say WHAT??? Now these needles don’t stay there, she says, she just pokes them in and yanks them out. (Ugh) I can still feel that one in my ‘special spot’ and I left my appointment months ago. And let me tell you, the needles HURT!! I was having hot flashes.
When that embarassment was over, she had me sit up and she mapped out the placement of about a dozen needles she put up and down my back. These she left in place for 10 minutes. Finally, she had me lay back down and she put what looked like little piles of ash on my chest and lit them on fire…yes, I said FIRE. I was instructed to let her know when I felt the heat and she would scoop the ash off. At the end she checked both pulses again. She said I was good to go and could get dressed.
After I left, I began to doubt the good this would do because how could putting needles near my lady parts and burning ash on me help??? Well, I did the thing I do best and I Googled. I found a message board on an acupuncture site and posted my concern. It took a while but I did get some replies. I was told that this was very common with someone who practices The Five Elements Acupuncture and that those four needles are usually done in the first or second session. The ash is called Moxa and its done before the insertion of needles on certain points. It was suggested that I give it 3-4 treatments before I decide to quit.
I did give her the benefit of the doubt and continued to go but there was NO way she was doing those 4 points again. In the end, I didn't feel any different or see any benefits so I cancelled the rest of my appointments.
Moral of the story….if you go to an acupuncturist make sure you ask if she/he is a Five Element Acupuncturist and if so, where might those fucking needles end up before you find yourself in that familiar gynecological position with a strange woman’s hand hunting around your cooch!! This blog is written by Susan Rahn she also can be found on Twitter @Stickit2Stage4.
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