Good Ol' GB 20

Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing, Riverfront Trail

Put air in my bicycle tire when I heard a hissing noise followed by a completely deflated tire. Having no confidence about changing the rear tire, I loaded my bike and headed to the shop.


Had a great ride and listened to a nice podcast, The Sporty Ones, Part 1: The Swimmers. It’s from a now defunct Australian series called The Body Sphere.

Several Australian swimmers were interviewed on the podcast including Shane Gould who participated in the Munich Olympics in 1972.

Someone taught their swimmers a thumb up technique because they saw Gould doing it but she said:

I’m a very physical person. I live in my body. I pick up information from the water, on my skin – the pull, the pressure etc...I think the sports scientists have taken over. It’s all measured in charts and graphs and angles...

I like Gould's take on interacting with the water and getting a feel for how to swim...

After bicycling, I made myself presentable and went for an acupuncture treatment. I’ve been producing lots of mucous. Clear but mucous nonetheless. And when I went for my bike ride, I sneezed like a crazy person. When I see mucous I feel like a superhero that loses a super power and is utterly shocked that a villain has made them bleed.

Sometimes I regret what I tell the acupuncturist. Chinese medicine, Bryan tells me, treats colds and allergies the same. Bryan then proceeds to stick a fair amount of needles in my face. Three in the right arm. Several in the arms, legs, ears and two in the base of my skull – good ol’ GB (Gall Bladder) 20.

Not sure what it is about the needles hitting pressure points and meridians, but I breathe very deeply once they’re in – a deepness that I’ve yet to achieve when I practice yoga.

Rx for The Chronically Tense

I don't even remember where I got this flyer from and waffled about whether or not I wanted to go but I'm so glad that I went.

Pressure Point Defined:

Pressure = Stress
Point = Position Location

The workshop was in Dr. Dusty's office and there were about eight folks there, including four who were already clients of Dr. Dusty. Can you tell that I like to write -- Dr. Dusty?

Dr. Dusty had a little slide show situation, told us who discovered pressure points, that soda is bad news and how western medicine treats sickness instead of concentrating on preventive care etc. etc.

From there, it was a hands-on workshop and I have to say that there is a new 'Drea because I would not have been comfortable before touching a stranger's body and being touched by someone else that I didn't know. We broke off into the proverbial pairs to try our hands at pressure points and were shown points for low energy, headaches, sinus/congestion and carpal tunnel issues.

I think my favorite pressure points where for headache and neck tension where you put pressure one inch to either side of the spine. You hold the pressure for about 10 to 15 seconds. The pressure on the neck felt incredibly good. And do I really need to say anything about the attention to the back? I almost melted...

I don't remember all of the finer points so I ordered a few books from the library but even without books, I've practiced on a few folks and one said that she felt relief from her headache.

With carpal tunnel symptoms, you can easily treat yourself but Dr. Dusty said that it's better if you have someone else do it for you which echoes what Healing Touch practitioners Kimberly Gray and Vicky Slater said in their podcast: Hands in motion (energy work) is more powerful when you have someone else do it.

Oh yeah, Dr. Dusty demonstrated on me at one point.

Dr. Dusty: Oh, you're tight.
Me: Yes, I know. Even when I'm not tightly wound, I'm tightly wound.

Ever had acupressure before? What's your Rx for stress?


P.S. To Dr. Dusty et al., when you tell someone that their tension is "unprecedented," that doesn't foster a relaxed state. Just saying...Also, to use a Phoebe Buffay phrase, Dr. Dusty is freakishly strong. Hands of steel, I tell ya.