But, first: Ran across this George Carlin comment, and loved it: ‘If a turtle loses its shell, is it homeless or naked??
And, second: I can’t start telling you about ‘The Acupuncture Experience? without some background noise.
A decade or so ago I had back surgery. Dr. Harold Portnoy diagnosed my disc problem quickly and repaired it quickly. I like him. He’s casually efficient, and spends enough time with me to give confidence.
So, when my left knee started hurting a couple years ago, I diagnosed it as back problems and went to Dr. Portnoy.
His conclusion, after having me go through various checkups, was I had a knee problem.
The recommended knee-man, while seemingly efficient, was much less casual, and, well, I’m not going to give his name.
He said I had a torn meniscus, which he could, and did, repair, but told me the operation would not alleviate my knee pain. Which it didn’t.
By now I’m into my third year of knee pain. If I stand still, like talking to someone for a few minutes, the knee pain forces me to rest the leg on a stool or sit down.
So, why not try acupuncture? Friends have tried it to quit smoking, and while it didn’t work for them, they said it wasn’t painful.
After a get-acquainted interview, I got to take off my shoes and socks and drop my pants and lie on my belly. There’s some back rubbing, that felt real good, before the pricking.
Of the several needles that were stuck in the backs of my legs, only two hit a nerve, so to speak.
Heat is applied for half hour, before the needles are removed. Then there was some talk about getting the poison out of my system the natural way . . . through natural sources, like calcium from organic compounds, plant-based enzymes and chlorophyll.
Since I’m kind of a believer in letting nature do all it can to keep and mend my body, I willingly started taking the doses.
Trouble is, I think my system wasn’t ready for chlorophyll and I developed acid reflux and had some torturous nights. Bottom line, after three acupuncture treatments over two weeks, some words from my last appointment with Dr. Portnoy were dominating my thoughts.
There’s a part of my story I left out. After the knee surgery and before acupuncture, I went back to my back man.
Our conversation was something like this, after his examination: He: ‘It’s your knee!? Me: ‘The knee man said he couldn’t help me.?
Dr. Portnoy: ‘I have trouble with pain in my legs, too.?
Me: ‘You’re saying maybe I should learn to live with it??
He: ‘I think you already are!?
With the remembrance of that conversation so clear, I decided to not stand and talk very long at one time, to put my foot up on the grocery cart while waiting at checkouts and abstain from chlorophyll in my water, but still drink more water than I was before the acupuncture’s nature talk.
Also, I’m going to continue wearing the magnets on my knee as suggested by the needle-man. Magnets are known to help reduce arthritis pain, which was also found in my knee.
I’ll just bet you can’t wait to have me tell you about my ingrown toenails, follicle disruptions and wandering eye . . . oh, no, that’s not a medical problem.
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What does the Sierra Club recommend you do when you see an endangered animal eating an endangered plant?