Posture Overkilled

I went to the Chinese style osteopath clinic in Taipei with Irene and Peggy. My backpain was almost gone after the hot water bottle treatment but I am very curious about traditional Chinese way of sorting out muscle ache or sprang ankles. Although growing up in Taiwan, I rarely visit any Chinese doctors. Well, my brother and I have been healthy kids was also one of the reasons.

The clinic is very different from dentist practice or surgery that we know of. There is no smell of antiseptic or bleach. There are only 3 KungFu masters and 5 massage beds (2 masters were absent that night). The waiting and treating areas is only seperated by a low bookshelf filled with comic books. It is quite shocking to see how the treatment is carried out. The masters twist and stretch and pull and fold the patient's body. At the same time, the patients howl in controlled volume, I guess it really hurts.

The masters are all around their 20s. However, unlike those stereotype 20 something, they are very patient, amiable, modest and big-hearted. Perhaps the long history of KungFu training and meditation disguises their true age, but they are indeed very nice people.

After a long wait, it is finally my turn. I told the master how my back and knees hurt sometimes, he looked at me and asked "how old are you?". Well, the real reason of my back pain revealed itself when the master made me lay flat on my stomach and felt my spine. My pelvis is obviously protruded (which may explain why my bottom is sticking out). Since I don't have hunch back, which normally happens in case like this in order to balance, the muscle in my lower back contracts most of the time to obsorb the pressure.

I was folded, pulled in many directions for around 15 minutes. This is the technique widely used to loose the joins. The master then corrected my sitting and standing postures. Well, I have always forcibly straightened my back because I think it is the right thing to do, it turned out I could have straight back easily if relaxing and letting my upper body lean backward a bit.