Earthquake Relief Fund: Rebuild Chanaute's Clinic

In three week’s time we have delivered a total of 282 treatments to 70 unique patients. The age range is typically 40-60 years old and roughly 65% female.  Most patients have returned for treatments at least four times, and only 15% of patients haven’t returned at all. So far people have come to clinic seeking relief from pain (shoulder/arm, sciatica/low back pain, joint pain/arthritis, burning pain in the legs, gout), severe menopausal symptoms, hypertension, thyroid issues (mostly hypo), constipation, gastritis, urinary issues, headaches and insomnia. 

Shoulder pain is by far the most common chief complaint. So far acupuncture has been effective at alleviating pain in nearly every patient with shoulder pain.  Sometimes the pain decreases incrementally over the week and other times the pain is completely gone by the end of the treatment (but typically returns within 24-48 hours, progressively getting better throughout the week).  

Treating the same patients daily for a week affords many learning opportunities.

Twenty years ago, my wife Linda and I began our partnership around our shared value of participating in compassionate collaboration with underserved people. Linda has lived out this value in the classroom, teaching in predominantly non-white Chicago Public Schools. My professional journey began with social work and agenting in the music industry. After a bout with cancer in 2014, I experienced the healing benefits of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Subsequently, I embarked on the process of becoming a TCM practitioner as my main modality of compassionately collaborating with people to improve and maintain health. I'll graduate from the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (PCOM) this month.

When Grainne came to PCOM to tell students about MMW, I knew right away that participating in their mission would be a great opportunity to live out my values and to cultivate a solid foundation of practice. MMW encourages volunteers to practice mindfulness; that is, engaging with patients, peers and periphery purposefully and non-judgmentally. Extending my services to the people of Nepal, where medical needs exceed the availability of care, is a unique opportunity to grow as a practitioner in an environment devoid of professional or financial ambition.

My desire is to carry this experience into the rest of my future practice, and to my family. To that end, Linda and our nine-year-old daughter Eve will join me for the second half of my two-month residency. I am thrilled that the seeds of compassion and mindfulness will be sewn in Eve, and am grateful for MMW's help in exposing her to a broader perspective of humanity and the world.