Friday, May 13, 2005

Blue Black Everywhere

Went for a traditional Chinese treatment on my achilles tendon.

First, the practitioner gave me a massage on my back to loosen up the muscles. Then, she applied oil and did a "guasa" - a traditional way of rubbing your body with a "comb" made by bone to smoothen the blood flow. After the guasa, we normally feel very relieved and light. However, as the result of the rubbing, there will be red and sometimes blue back marks on the areas that are rubbed - a sign of body tireness.

After my guasa, the practitioner heat up my tendon area by using a burning "joss-stick". Then, she put empty bottles above my ankle and pumped the air out. After a while, she released the bottles and poked the swollen area with a needle. She put the bottles back on the area and pumped the air out again. You could see that the blood flowing out! What a scary view!

Now, I had to skip my training for the next few days. Otherwise, the blue black marks will certainly frighten off many people!

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