Acupuncture and Massage Professional

The Acupuncture and Massage Major (hereinafter referred to as the Acupuncture Major) is a formal clinical major under Traditional Chinese Medicine. The core is to train professional medical personnel who have systematic Chinese medicine theory, are proficient in acupuncture operations and massage techniques, and can independently carry out diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation intervention of common diseases. After graduation, they must pass the National Practicing Physician Qualification Examination before they can start clinical work. They are by no means the popular stereotype of "massage workers who can start working after just two months of training."

A while ago, I accompanied my uncle who suffered from lumbar disc herniation to the Provincial Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine Rehabilitation. The doctor who treated him was a doctor who graduated from this major. My uncle was so painful that he bent his waist like a prawn and had to be supported by two people even to move. Doctor Zhang first touched his lumbar spine, then checked his tongue coating and pulse. He diagnosed that he was in the acute stage of qi stagnation and blood stasis type. I inserted 0.25*40mm filiform needles into the Weizhong, Yaoyanguan and Ashi points on both sides, and applied electroacupuncture for 10 minutes. After the needle was removed, I used rolling and plucking methods to loosen the tense muscles in the waist for 15 minutes. Finally, I performed a small-angle lumbar reduction. My uncle was able to walk slowly while holding on to the wall on the spot, and his brow that was throbbing in pain suddenly relaxed. The young man waiting next to him had his neck stiffened due to the air conditioner being turned on the night before. His neck was so stiff that he could not move. Dr. Zhang pressed the Fengchi and Stiff Neck points for two minutes, and gently stretched his cervical spine. The young man let out an "ouch" and turned his head left and right on the spot, saying "I'm so impressed."

In fact, there have always been two different voices in the industry regarding the training focus of this major. Many teachers in the teaching and research departments of traditional Chinese medicine schools think that basic theory is the foundation. If they can't even figure out the course of meridians and the logic of syndrome differentiation, and press whichever is painful and which is sore, what's the difference between that and ordinary massage parlors on the street? For example, if it is the same stomachache, if it is caused by cold, moxibustion should be performed on Zhongwan. If liver qi invades the stomach, it should be treated with Neiguan and Taichong. If the syndrome differentiation is wrong, no matter how skilled you are, it will be useless. There are also many veteran doctors who have been practicing clinical practice for decades. They feel that many of the contents taught in schools today are too unrealistic. Some students have memorized "Treatise on Febrile Diseases" so well that they dare not even do a stiff neck. After touching for a long time, they still can't find the misaligned position of the cervical spine. It is better to spend more time practicing hand skills. After all, this profession is ultimately about "hands producing therapeutic effects." In the past two years, the views of both sides have gradually merged. The acupuncture major at my alma mater has now advanced the time for outpatient clinics with teachers from the fifth year to the third year, and the proportion of usual practical class hours has also increased by almost 30%. This means that students must understand both theory and practical work.

Many people think that after learning this, they can only open a massage parlor at the entrance of a community. This really underestimates the employment prospects of this profession. Some of my classmates in the same class studied for a master's degree and entered the Provincial Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine to do pediatric massage. Now every day, children have to wait for a week to get their appointments. Many children with food accumulation, crying at night, and allergic rhinitis do not need to take medicine or injections. There is also a junior student who joined the sports rehabilitation center of the provincial team after graduation. He usually follows the athletes everywhere in competitions. After the games, he provides muscle relaxation and emergency treatment for acute sprains. He even followed the national team to the front line for support at the Winter Olympics last year. Some went to the geriatrics department, which specializes in physical rehabilitation for patients with stroke sequelae. Many bedridden patients followed the training for the first half of a year and were able to walk on their own with crutches. The sense of accomplishment is really difficult to experience in other industries.

Don’t look at this profession as if it is quick to get started. If you really want to learn it, the hardships will be no less than other clinical majors. My classmate who does pediatric massage practiced acupuncture when he first went to school. He first pricked his own hands, and his hands were full of small pinholes. He screamed in pain when his clothes were stained with water. He practiced massage techniques by pressing the sandbag for two hours every day. He practiced for almost half a month until his arms were swollen and he shook even when holding chopsticks. Now the calluses on his hands are thicker than those of people who have been doing farm work all year round. Last time he told me that an aunt who had suffered a stroke had been undergoing eight months of rehabilitation under his care. From the beginning, she could not even lift her hands while lying on the bed, but later she was able to carry a basket of home-grown oranges to the hospital to see him. He said that at that time, he felt that all the hardships he had endured were worth it.

However, this profession is quite troublesome now, because there are too many unscrupulous people in society who are cheating under the guise of acupuncture. Last time I chatted with Director Li of the acupuncture department, he said that he had just received an emergency patient a while ago. He had acupuncture to lose weight at a health center outside the community. The operator did not even have basic knowledge of anatomy. There are also gimmicks such as "one shot to remove wrinkles" and "7 days of massage to cure myopia". They are all lies. Graduates of regular acupuncture majors know that these propaganda are either spoofed concepts or do not comply with medical standards at all.

Nowadays, people are increasingly accepting non-drug treatments, and the prospects for acupuncture are actually quite good, but in the end, this industry still needs to be calm, and you can't think about making quick money. After all, what you are holding is a needle, what you press is force, and what is behind you is the health of the patient. To be worthy of the profession you have studied for so many years, you must also be worthy of the trust of the patient.