Earlier this year I had the pleasure of treating an elderly man in his room at a nursing home in Glenwood Springs. His daughters had asked me to come give him treatments for his hip pain from a fractured femur, and an old shoulder injury that was flaring up with the use of a walker. I loved treating this man. He had twinkly eyes, a sweet smile and a sense of humor. I gave him a total of 5 treatments over a few weeks and although the pain in his hip and shoulder did reduce some, it was the other observations made by his daughter that really stayed with me.
She told me the acupuncture treatments had brought his mental clarity back about 3-5 years. Even his son who came to visit from out of town could not believe how much more clear his father was. After his first treatment his daughter said he sat up straight in bed, got out his glasses, and started looking through one of his favorite horse books that he hadn’t looked at in months. The other observation his daughter made was around mealtimes. She said he used to be unaware of the need to wipe his face and mouth after eating and she would have to remind him or do it for him. After the acupuncture sessions she said he had so much more awareness of his body that he would wipe his mouth himself whenever he needed to.
She also told me a funny story about how he used to slowly drop the phone out of his ear while talking to his family and eventually couldn’t hear anyone and didn’t know why. After he started acupuncture he would hold the phone right up to his ear and talk with his relatives without any issues. The sweet old man passed away about a month after our last visit, but his daughter told me he remained clear right up until his death. I told her I thought those were the best results I had ever had.
Besides realizing how beneficial acupuncture would be in a nursing home situation, it really sent home the message about all the other benefits the patients are receiving from treatments, even though we may not even realize it is happening. People report a sense of calm, feeling more relaxed, less stressed, better sleep, better mood, more energy. They just feel better. When you feel better, you start to do more of the things you love. So I also hear things like increased productivity, more positive outlook and better relationships. Those are the real results we’re looking for, we just might not know it.