Acupuncture in India – Teresa’s phenomenal experience!
Recent BSc (hons) in Acupuncture graduate Teresa Dawkes shares her life-changing experience as a graduate volunteer with UK charity World Medicine, whose often self-funded projects send volunteers to provide healthcare, primarily in acupuncture, and alleviate suffering in communities worldwide that have been affected by trauma, disaster and poverty. In January 2023, Teresa embarked on a journey as part of World Medicine’s project to offer acupuncture treatments to rural communities in Chaparda, India, with a team of practitioners and volunteers.
“I first heard of World Medicine during a lecture from Phil Montgomery in my first year as a student at the NCA and I knew immediately that I wanted to be involved! I had previous experience of volunteering in Uganda as a radiographer and knew what an enriching experience it could be both personally and professionally, but also expected that it would be a test of the skills I had acquired during my studies.
In 2021 during the third year of my studies, I applied for a graduate place on World Medicine’s ongoing programme in India, and felt absolutely thrilled when I received the news that I had been chosen to go. Unfortunately, the planned trip in 2022 had to be postponed for a year due to Covid, but at last in January 2023, and with great excitement, we left the dingy darkness of British midwinter behind and took a long, tiring flight to Rajkot. After an overnight stay, we set out on a chatter-filled, excited and bonding journey to Chaparda, which really helped us get to know every member in our team.
This was my second visit to India, having previously had a holiday there, but this was a totally different experience! In Chaparda we were based in a rural location where they were not accustomed to tourists visiting, which was a stark contrast to my previous experience of being hassled at every opportunity by people in the big cities. In Chaparda, the only thing people wanted was a “selfie” with us!
India is, as they say, an assault on the senses; noises, smells and colours are all so much more intense than at home. In this respect, there is always something fascinating to look at; even on the short walk to the hospital in the morning, we would be beeped at and have people waving to us as they swerved to avoid the herd of buffalo and sheep being herded down the road. It really was a magical, otherworldly experience!
Now, I think my idea of an Ashram may have been slightly influenced by reading about the Beatles’ visit to one in the 1960s… my illusions of a tranquil sanctuary filled with people meditating and dancing through the fluid movements of yoga on verdant lawns were quickly shattered! The Ashram of Chaparda was host to a bustling community of hundreds of people, who although would settle to a peaceful quiet in the evenings, inevitably made lots of noise during the day. Despite this, I vividly remember being struck by the friendliness and sense of safety present throughout the community.
I would be lying if I said I did not have doubts and fears about my abilities and experience when I envisaged actually treating the patients of Chaparda. My worries were quickly soothed and proven wrong time and time again during this experience, however, as from the moment of being accepted on the programme to our arrival, the World Medicine team of the wonderful Barbara, Emma, Ruth and Fleur made every effort to encourage and support me, and were invaluable in building my confidence to get the absolute maximum out of my time in Chaparda! Because of this, on my first day in the Women’s Clinic I felt totally capable and comfortable with simply cracking on with my treatments, whilst also knowing full well that I had highly experienced peers on hand to offer support if I ever had a question or needed advice.
It became clear very quickly that the number of questions we would normally ask patients was not going to work in these circumstances, so I took the initiative to trim down this part of the process to gain the maximum information we could in a short space of time.
We were nearly always busy with only Saturday afternoons and Sundays off to explore, but we did manage to squeeze in some wonderful outings to other local villages and towns. I wish I had even more time to travel India at the end of my stay, and would definitely like to get involved in further volunteering projects! There was something so special about not only offering my services to help local people, but to drink in another culture and be treated to the hospitality of people following such a different lifestyle to those at home in the UK.
I was deeply impressed by how smoothly the clinics were run, with a valuable team of administration staff controlling the flow of patients outside the clinic and the knowledgeable translators bringing through patients as soon as a bed became available, who would then assist the acupuncturists in determining the patient’s issues. The highly organised clinics helped to create an incredibly calm environment for us to treat patients in!
Before I went to Chaparda, I struggled to believe how one person could deliver 20 to 30 whole treatments in a day, but quickly realised that this was not only possible, but many more experienced acupuncturists exceeded this amount with ease! I will admit to the experience being very tiring at times, but the sense of achievement and camaraderie shared by the whole team helped immeasurably in making it all so rewarding.
Although I treated many, many patients, two particularly stand out in my memory; one was a woman who got up to begin making bricks at 3am every day, finishing only at 9pm. Consequently, she had incredibly sore and painful hands, and I really hope that not only the acupuncture helped with this but also the deep care and attention she received from Steph, who gently massaged her hands.
The second patient was a young woman from the school for the blind in the Ashram. She arrived in the clinic appearing absolutely terrified by needles and would visibly recoil from even the gentlest touch. After much compassionate persuasion and reassurance, she finally allowed me to practice some acupressure on her, and the rewarding satisfaction of seeing her visibly relax felt just amazing. On subsequent visits, she started to laugh and even sang for us which reduced Batul, the translator, and myself to tears, as it was so beautiful.
This phenomenal experience of working with World Medicine at Chaparda will stay with me forever! I can appreciate it may not be for everyone and presents its own unique challenges, but if you are even thinking of applying, please be assured that you will be surrounded by a brilliant team who are endlessly supportive of each other.
I think the Chaparda programme has definitely changed me, not only as a person learning about other cultures, but professionally as an acupuncturist. It has massively increased my confidence in my own abilities to deliver effective treatments. It has also made me realise that I would be more than capable of running a multi-bed clinic should the opportunity arise, which is something I did not have the confidence to contemplate before. I truly believe volunteering provides a fantastic opportunity to promote the benefits of acupuncture treatments, whilst offering aid to those who may need it most!
Thank-you with all my heart to the acupuncturists, translators, therapists, administration and hospital staff who made it such a memorable trip, and for reminding me of the help and relief I can provide to patients; exactly why I re- trained to be an acupuncturist.”
Teresa trained on our BSc (Hons) in Acupuncture – if you’d like to find out more about the course, click here.