Pulse miracles

Having said in another post that I don't emphasise pulse diagnosis especially in my current way of working, I wanted to share a pivotal experience I had during my acupuncture training.  We were a few weeks into the course, and I was struggling quite seriously to buy into some of the concepts of Chinese medicine.  Pulse diagnosis was one of them.  How could feeling the pulse give more than basic information about the way the patient's heart was pumping blood around the body?

We had a class on pulse taking, led by an experienced tuina practitioner, and advocate of qigong.  She asked for a volunteer.  Being entirely sceptical, and feeling as though some others may be inclined to agree with whatever was being said in a similar way to victims of cold reading, I put my hand up.  Perhaps it was fate, but I was chosen to come to the front.  I had not spoken to the teacher before that day.

She had me sit down, placed her fingers on my wrist, and closed her eyes.  I was expecting to hear something like 'You have some kind of medical condition, don't you?' - something vague that everyone would answer 'yes' to if they wanted to believe.  But I was astonished when she said 'You've had a pain in your left shoulder, haven't you - not at the moment, but a few months ago?'.  She put her hand on my upper back in the exact area I had struggled with a nagging pain for some time - as she correctly said, it had cleared up quite recently. She went on to reveal most of my significant medical history, including my asthma, and several other past and present ailments.  Nothing she said was wrong.

From that day on, I had a new perspective on pulse taking, and what was possible in Chinese medicine.  I don't think it is possible for most people to reach that level of skill, but I now believe it can be done by some, and that anyone can get to a level where meaningful and clinically useful information is obtainable from the pulse.

So for me, rather than dismissing the power of pulse-taking, it's a case of acknowledging my current limitations and building an overall picture of the patient from all available sources.


Please note: this blog is intended for educational and general interest purposes only. If you have any health concerns, please discuss them with your doctor.

www.tomtheacupuncturist.co.uk