Written by Tae-Woo Yoo, O.M.D., Ph.D.
There are several levels of treatment in Korean Hand Acupuncture,
but the foundation is the treatment of the corresponding point,
or Correspondence Therapy, exemplified by the story of the discovery
of KORYO SOOJI CHIM. Figure 2 shows the area where my headache had
been, together with the treatment point I discovered. As you
can see, the headache was located on the right side, in the area
of the traditional acupuncture point Gallbladder 20. The treatment
point was on the left hand at a point I have named K-M5. (The nomenclature
for HAND ACUPUNCTURE Points and Meridians will be explained in Chapter
3 : Meridian Theory)
Figures 3 and 4 show the general correspondence between the front
and back of the hand, and the front and back of the body. More specifically,
the index and ring fingers correspond to the upper extremities,
while the thumb and little finger correspond to the lower extremities.
The palm correspond to the abdomen, while the dorsum of the
hand corresponds to the back. These correspondences have exact
limits so that the joints of the hand divide it up in proportion
to the joints of the body as a whole. Thus the distal interphalangeal(DIP)
joints of the index and ring fingers correspond to the wrist joint,
the proximal interphalangeal(PIP) joints of the index and ring fingers
correspond to the elbow joints, and the metecarpophalangeal(MCP)
joints of the index and ring fingers correspond to the shoulder
joints. For the thumb and little fingers these correspondences
are: DIP joints represent the ankle joints, PIP joints represent
the knee joints and MCP joints represent the hip joints.
Each hand represents the whole body, so every part
of the body is represented twice-i.e. once on the left hand, and
once on the right hand. Thus my right-sided headache was treated
on my left hand, but the treatment point, in order to correspond,
was found on the right(radial) side of the back of my middle finger(of
my left hand).
Figures 5,6, and 7 show how specific points of the
Governing and Conception Vessels(GV and CV) correspond to the front
and back, of the hand. Figure 8 shows the general correspondences
of the back and sides of the middle finger.
Establishing the correspondence between every part
of the body and its point on the hand is the basis for the first
level of treatment in KORYO SOOJI CHIM. This type of treatment
is based on the discovery that when there is a disorder of some
part of the body, the corresponding hand point becomes tender. This
tender point is useful as a treatment point. (This is the
same phenomenon as the "Ah Shi" or "ouch" point
becomes more sensitive on the hand which is on the same side of
the body as the symptom. Also the more severe a disease is,
the more clearly will the corresponding point stand out, so with
milder complaints you will need to search more carefully for the
corresponding point. If the point is not sensitive to finger
pressure, you may want to use a probe to help you test points more
discriminatively. If the corresponding point is still not
showing up as a sensitive spot, you should be able to bring its
sensitivity out by stressing the disordered part of the body prior
to testing, either by pressure, motion or some other form of painful
stimulation. With careful examination, you should always be
able to find a sensitive corresponding point.
