Spatter

Acupuncture For Shaynee

For some time now we've been discussing acupuncture for Shaynee.  In addition to losing her hair, she's lost muscle strength and we've been thinking it would help to get some chi flowing to help. that...and who knows, maybe help with her disease. Her first acupuncture treatment took place while I was in Maine.  Judy told me how well it went...both the session and the after effect from it. 

Her second treatment was today.  I got to watch this one.  The vet...Dr. Anna Simms...comes to the house to do it.  She's a veterinarian who specializes in acupuncture.  Here's some background on her that I extracted from a Floyd Humane Society newsletter:

Dr. Anna Simms DVM is a slight, elfish woman with a soft voice and gentle manner that puts pets and people at ease. This belies her inner and physical strengths.

Graduating VaTech in ’00, nurturing a keen interest in acupuncture as “complimentary treatment”, she completed the latter training in ’01. It remains her “main focus”.  2004-05 found her studying animal chiropractic. These skills enable her to, foremost,    practice in “the animal’s best interest”, “to do no harm” while relieving discomfort, AND to work with “a wide variety of species”.

Dr. Anna has been covering Floyd, Montgomery and Roanoke counties for 6 years, happily accommodating animals who cannot travel, seeing it as a continuation of her important rescue work. Be aware, she offers no routine care, such as vaccines. She prefers her patients’ families retain their close, cooperative relationship with their primary vet. Her acupuncture and chiropractic are used as strong adjuvants to traditional care. Compassion has guided her to be available for home euthanasia, including non-regular clients.

Living in Floyd since ’02, Dr. Anna has become one of our best, and most cherished, natural resources. Everyone in the FCHS thanks her for such joyful, steady, generous support. She approaches all of life with those qualities.

I can attest that she's got a wonderful energy about her. Caring, kind, and sweet are all adjectives that come to mind. 

Shaynee waited patiently while Anna took some notes as Judy's updated her on Shaynee's behavior since the last treatment... 

Then Anna went down to the floor and examined Shaynee...touching her, talking to her...relating to her...gaining her trust. 

I didn't take too many pictures.  For starters, I didn't want to get Shaynee excited.  This was a time for calm.  Too, I thought snapping a picture when needles were in might cause her to flinch and by doing, cause her pain.  But now I realize that wouldn't have been a problem.  Shaynee moved some on her own...seemingly without any discomfort. 

A total of eight needles were used today...some at points that address the bladder; some at points that address endorphins and overall energy; one at a point that addressed the stomach.  Shaynee seemed to know it all was something that was going to help her. She didn't resist or object at all.

One More Reason

I read in the newspaper today that bone density medicines...Fosamax and Actonel were specifically noted...are now being suspected to contribute to bone fractures.  Here' are some  links to the story:  here  and here and here.   This is being denied and refuted by the drug manufacturers, of course.  But even with the jury out on this matter, I've read enough anecdotal stories about the horrible side effects of these drugs to stay off of them as long as I can.  This latest news is just another reason added to the list.

Health Update

I've not yet reached a point where I'd call myself "healed", but I definitely am moving in the right direction...at least as far as my tailbone injury is concerned.  I had an acupuncture/cupping session Friday. I got some noticeable relief through most of the weekend. I've three more sessions scheduled for this week. I think some tui-na is going to be added too.  In sum, between treatments, rest, and an occasional pill, it's definitely on the mend.

My foot? It's difficult to say what's happening there.  It's not hurting as much...but then...I'm not doing as much.  In fact, I'm hardly doing anything. I'm getting very antsy!  I'm definitely going to give it this week and see how it's doing.  After that, I'll have to make a decision as to what to do next.  On the one hand, the podiatrist has some sort of concocted injection that kills the nerve. It's not something I want to do, so probably won't.  There's surgery too...an even worse choice.  On the other hand, if need be I can live with it and then once up in Floyd, continue tui-na sessions at the Blue Ridge Center For Chinese Medicine where I know they do good work. I went there this past summer for my other foot (yes I'm tired of foot problems).  Treatment there seems to have eradicated that foot's chronic pain after so many years.  All I know is that hiking 5 miles a day in the Tetons seems like a long time ago :-).  

Thanks for all the well wishes!

Bummed!

It's been so long since I'd been out shooting thanks to my bum foot and then, a tumble down the stairs got my tailbone area to hurting. I was feeling a little better and feeling the itch to go out, so I went to Butterfly World today thinking it was a manageable place to take a "test run". It turns out even that was too much. My body definitely let me down. My foot pain reared its head again, but that wasn't the worst of it. When I crouched down to take a picture, the pain in my lower back registered off the scale. By the time I left I was hobbling. I got a few keepers before crying uncle, but I went home knowing that my photo taking days are on hold. Not happy!

Much Ado About Nothing

I had my follow-up visit with the OB/GYN today.  All good news and it seems the thickening that got all this started turned out to be scarring...who knows why scarring. Nothing to be concerned about. 

In the meantime, I took a tumble down our stairs this morning.  I had looked over to coo at Shaynee and mis-stepped. Down I went.  The good news is I got up! 

According to my chiropractor, nothing broke, but my sacrum is out of place.  Here's why it hurts: many muscles attach to it, including the gluteus maximus...aka the buttocks...as well as a number of deeper muscles under the glutes. All that soft tissue got yanked around and they yanked the sacrum with them.  Now they're all ticked off and screaming.  I think the sacrum got a bit bruised to boot. What a pain in the ass!

Dusting & Cleaning

Got dusted and cleaned today.  I spent the whole morning and half of the afternoon at the hospital, though the procedure itself took all of fifteen minutes.  I'm feeling fine...just the expected discomforts.  Reports to follow, but nothing bad expected.

And speaking of hospitals...did I mention that my insurance provider approved my appeal for the claim re: North Carolina hospital's ultrasound?  I really wasn't expecting it to be, so that was a nice Christmas present.

My New Left Foot

A while back I wrote a post about starting Tui Na sessions.  To briefly recap: Tui Na "uses a variety of hand techniques and passive and active stretching to restore correct anatomical musculo-skeletal relationships, neuro-muscular patterns, and to increase the circulation of Qi and blood to remove biochemical irritants". 

Up to now, I've had fairly general work done.  The therapist and I agreed to hold off working on my problematic left foot until after my trip to Wyoming.  Well, now I'm back and we began today. 

For an hour and a half the therapist worked at releasing the energy flow of my tendons, ligaments, and muscles.  Surprisingly, it hurt more on the top of the foot than the bottom...where the pain shows itself.  I guess that's because that's where the nerves and energy channels are.  When she was finished and I walked around a bit, I felt like I had a new foot.  When I stepped on it, it flattened down and out...it was able to now...so much more flexible feeling than before.  I had never noticed it hadn't been until now, when I could feel the difference.   More sessions to follow. 

Tui Na

This week I had my second Tui Na treatment at the Blue Ridge Center For Chinese Medicine here in Floyd County.

I'm going to address, once and for all, pain at the ball of my left foot...pain that at one time kept me from walking or wearing normal shoes, but now just rears its ugly head at the most inopportune times.  Over the years I've had all sorts of doctors give me all sorts of treatments including one doctor who wanted to remove my sesamoid bones without even knowing for sure that they were the problem!  I finally found a podiatrist that seemed to literally put his finger on it.  He's given me a steroid shot when the pain starts coming...turns out a shot about once a year keeps things in a pretty good place.  The only thing is, the potential for pain is always lurking around. 

I decided I wanted to try this to address the cause and not the symptom. And while I was at it, we...the practitioner and I...discussed all my other "aches and pains" and she's integrating all the information as she treats me. 

I'm a long time recipient of deep, therapeutic massages and even rolfing.  They feel great and they do wonders, but the foot was always off limits since palpitating it always awakened the pain. 

Tui Na uses rhythmic compression too, but its focus is along energy channels more than muscles. It doesn't just work the muscles, or even the bones and joints.  It works the energy of the body at a deeper level.  

My first treatment two weeks ago felt good, but this treatment felt wonderful.  By the time it was over I had gone into a meditative state and got up feeling buzzed.  Things are feeling pretty darn good...just in time for the start of my travels.  In anticipation of need, I've made another appointment for just after my return. 

Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

For those who shudder at the thought of a public health care option...who want no part of government running their health care...please sign up to give up your medicare coverage. 

Sign Up 

Not interested?  I didn't think so.  For the life of me, I don't understand the fear out there.

Bad News, Good News

Bad news: I have sniffles two weeks before my big trip.  Good news:  it's two weeks before my big trip and not one! I've been feeling like I might be getting something for a few days and have taken some Emergen-C and Cold-Eze...guess now I'll start pumping it in.  Wondering if exerting myself on my daily walk will help or hurt the cause...