I have a partially compressed disc in my lower back (a side effect of a previous career in distance running), and I have this idea that a really good Chinese doctor who specializes in Tui Na might be able to offer me some relief from the dull ache I have there. Unfortunately, although I’ve seen a number of Chinese doctors over the past few years, I haven’t found one that has been able to offer anything other than temporary relief. Does anyone have any recommendations?
Yeah, go to China. I’m serious … I have been extremely disappointed in the practice of TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) in Taiwan. The Beijing Qigong Institute is (supposedly) the best in the world. If you need to get acupuncture, though, be sure you’re getting sterile needles. Tui Na may or may not be the best course of treatment. Certain other forms of Qigong therapy also can work well (the kind where they put your hands on you though, not that crap about energy transfer from 6 feet away).
That’s certainly true to a point but then many Chinese medicine practitoners (there’s nothing traditional about it but that’s semantics) here have studied in China.
Personally I’d opt for a combo of accupuncture and tui na.
Don’t know how good your Chinese is but that too has to be a consideration.
Actually I do have one contact passed on by a friend, a French man but I’ve not met him nor can I vouche for is abilities. Oddly though, the French do have Chinese medicine faculties in their medical schools.
Frank at Yu-Sheng Chinese Medical Clinic on 2367 0436.
Sorry but I’m not sure of the address. If Frank can’t help you I’m sure he will know someone that can.
Cheers.
HG
My husband, who is Taiwanese, has constant back pain. We must have been to half the dr.s in Taiwan, both Chinese and western, and have found nothing. There are those private dr.s who insist surgery is required. Of course, they make a tone of cash from the procedure. There are the hospital docs who, in Kaohsiung give him an injection of moraphine, or in Taipei give him pain pills, and rush him out of the office. The Chinese dr.s insist that surgery is bad and will mess up the chi, but they can’t do anything that helps.
The physical therapy helps, but only for a couple hours after the visit. I hope you do find something, but the “great” health care system in Taiwan is very lacking in many ways. If you do find help, please post!!!
Have you considered a Western Chiropractor?
I have been seeing Dr. Mark Griffin for the last 4 years and have referred many patients to him. He has been living and treating people in Taipei for over 10 years. He is a California licensed chiropractor and has helped me and many of my friends with back problems. Very professional and friendly.
You can find his contact info on www.oriented.com, search in the Business Directory for Taipei under “Dr. Mark W. Griffin DC, Doctor of Chiropractic”.
Isn’t calling a chiropractor a “doctor” stretching the definition of the term just a little too thin considering the whole field is based on pseudo-science?
Isn’t calling a sociology PhD “Doctor” stretching the definition a bit considering how the field is neither a science nor an art? 
By the way, what do you think of Doctor Mark’s new banner? I think it looks like an ad for an archeologist.
Good point 
Although A PhD “doctor” and a medical “doctor” are different things so nyah 
Or the Museum of Prehistory, or whatever it’s called.
Chiropractors ARE Doctors, and are recognized by the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) as primary healthcare physicians. Genuine Doctors of Chiropractic must attend University for 4 years, followed by 5 1/2 years of specialized education. The course curriculum is virtually identical to an MD’s education, except that DC’s (Doctors of Chiropractic) study more anatomy, neurology, radiography, and physiology than their MD counterparts. DC’s do not study pharmacology or surgery except as non-credit elective courses.
The term “Doctor” actually means “Teacher”, and in England a surgeon is refered to as “Mister”. A Doctor could be a physician who teaches his patients about health & sickness, whether Chiropractic or Allopathic.
The absurd notion that Chiropractic is a pseudoscience was proven to be nothing more than an effort by the medical monopoly’s lobby to discredit and control the Chiropactic profession starting in the 1930’s. The AMA was sued in superior court in the 1980’s, and petitioned to the Supreme Court where they were found guilty of violating anti-trust laws, spreading untrue stories about the Chiropractic profession and deliberately mis-leading the public. They were ordered to apologize, and cease & desist. Which they did. Nowadays, you will find MD’s, Chiropractic Physicians, Chinese Doctors, Physios, and therapists working together, for the benefit of the patient, in progressive hospitals & clinics in the USA, Canada, Australia, the UK, Hong Kong’s Matilda Hospital, etc.
That’s certainly true to a point but then many Chinese medicine practitoners (there’s nothing traditional about it but that’s semantics) here have studied in China.
Personally I’d opt for a combo of accupuncture and tui na.
Don’t know how good your Chinese is but that too has to be a consideration.
Actually I do have one contact passed on by a friend, a French man but I’ve not met him nor can I vouche for is abilities. Oddly though, the French do have Chinese medicine faculties in their medical schools.
Frank at Yu-Sheng Chinese Medical Clinic on 2367 0436.
Sorry but I’m not sure of the address. If Frank can’t help you I’m sure he will know someone that can.
Cheers.
HG[/quote]
Has anybody tried this guy? I’m currently looking for a new doc.
i go to some really nice guys at jing an station. their methods are very good. they have a very special therapy that gets rid of stiffness. the name of the place is “tong an bao jian zhong shing”. i trust them.
you can pm me if you need help going there. i go every so often. they are great bunch of guys.
This post reminds me of a Simpsons episode, the one where Homer creates a back-cracker with a garbage can and all the chiropractors get all pissy and try to destroy his new business, cuz he’s doing what they do…only better and cheaper.
Just because there’s a lot of specialist education involved doesn’t mean it’s not crap and doesn’t mean it’s medicine. Shaman’s go through entire lifetimes of specialist training, but I wouldn’t call them doctors.
Like I said - stretching the word doctor mighty thin there.
The WHO might refer to chiropractors as physicians… but I wouldn’t. And neither does the US Government:
[quote="US Department of Labor
Heres my NT$2 worth of advice since I know how serious this matter is. Maybe I can offer some respite to the constant pain others may be suffering. For myself, I had herniated disk about 5 years ago. I had a CT scan done to really see for myself what was going on and it was a complete L5 blowout, pretty serious. I went to a orthopedic specialist at the ChungShan hospital at the end of Civil Blvd, off of YenPing N. Rd. (easy to find). His name is Dr. Chen. (I have his card somewhere, so can forward his #) The hospital has a very clean, modern physical therapy room with a caring staff. The regime I did was:
-20 minute hot pad on back, 30 minute on traction bed, 20 minute electronic/suction cup like lower back muscle stimulation.
I did this for about 3-4 months, every day (except sat/sun) and my pain went away. Unfortunately, it came back a few times afterward, mainly due to my job (sitting at a desk all day) and going uphill on a mountain bike once made it come back also.
Dr. Chen is also highly sought after for acupuncture treatments. I have always been skeptical of this, but he talked me into it since my pain was severe. I had 5-6 sessions, including 1 with electronic shock attached. To tell you the truth, it was worthless. Maybe it was due to my thinking, although I tried to be positive and open minded about it or maybe I need more treatments. I can
I was seeing a tui na doctor for back pain “prior to” herniating a disc in my back about two years ago. Judging from they way they reacted when they saw me last they are as convinced as I am that tui na aggravated my condition.
So many things could help. Maybe learn how to relax more and change your entire personality. People can make their diabetes disappear or remove the need for eyeglasses. It can be done.
About more possible things. Yoga could work. A friend’s family was friends with Iyengar. After a serious paralyzing scooter accident, Iygenar made him walk again.
I suppose my advice is whatever you choose, see if you can learn alot about it yourself. Maybe take a calm, curious, child-like attitude towards your studies; and you just might get there.
I don’t have anything as serious as a compressed disc, but I’ve had a really painfull kink in my lower back for the past week or so, due partly to my starting to bicycle again after some time off and without stretching properly in advance and partly due to too much time in front of the computer. Lately it’s been quite painful and my posture sitting and standing has been very erect as a result, so last night I gave in and went to the local Chinese medicine clinic, at my wife’s urging. I’m not back to normal, but I think there’s an improvement.
First I sat on a stool and they shot herbal steam at the sore spot for about 20 minutes. While the muscles are extremely tight, that did start to relax them a little.
Then I laid on a bed and they stuck 6 accupuncture needles in my back (on either side of the spine at the lower, mid and upper back). The doc then left for a while as a hot lamp shone on my back. That felt good too. It was my first ever accupuncture experience and I was a little nervous in advance but it didn’t hurt much at all – just a tiny prick (like some people in the IP forum).
Then to the massage table. I was a little nervous about that, too, because I’ve only had one massage in Taiwan – a foot massage – and that was extremely painful and unpleasant. This was also painful, but I felt the masseuse was very perceptive and the treatment was reasonable. He described where my injury was based on his observation of my back muscles and legs, and by slowly, gently working his thumbs down my spine, and I think he pinpointed it better than I had been able to. Then the treatment. It involved some twisting of arms and legs and then pushing very hard with his thumbs to the point that I almost told him not so hard, but I figured I’d endure it and see what happens.
Finally, they gave me two huge sticky herbal patches to stick on my back last night as I slept. When I peeled them off this morning I felt they too had been a good thing.
As I said, I’m not back to normal, but I definitely feel that it helped. My wife suggested I go back tomorrow. No way, too much pain, but I may go back this weekend for another session. The most amazing thing about the whole experience though is the cost --NT$250 (with my health insurance card). That’s less than US$10 for four different treatments, including massage. No wonder those places are so busy.
EDIT: I was mistaken. It was NT$150. Less than US$5 for 4 treatments. Wow!
i see. did the guy say anything about its cause? i think you could probably find out yourself just by listening. see yourself better and you may see its etiology