Folklore Cure?

I think it follows the same line of thinking that my father used on me when I was a child. I might have complained to him that my arm hurt. So he would step on my toe with most of his weight, and say, "There, does your arm feel better now?"

I have seen a few girls who were pinching the skin on the bridge of their noses, right between the eyes. They would do this and it would make a red cross. I was told they did that to relieve a headache.

And on their neck too.

Sploke77 wrote:

J... What is the theory behind this 'cure process'? Would anyone have a clue, medically?

The practice is called Cạo gió, which translates to "shaving wind" and from what I've read, it looks like it came from Chinese traditional medicine.  In the olden days, there's Yin and Yang, 4 Elements...something about Fire element entering the body (illness) and you counter it with the Air element.  I've seen many storefronts that offer this service and have been thinking about going there, but only if the person shaving wind is a good looking girl. 

There's a wiki on it but it's in Vietnamese.  You can translate it.  Here's the wiki.

http://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%E1%BA%A1o_gi%C3%B3

Here's a website that shows you how to do it.  It's in English but it reads like someone used Google Translate on it.

http://news.dbv.vn/how-to-properly-shav … 09007.html

As to your medical question, the wiki translates to:

Opinion of the medical [edit]

According to the Traditional Medicine Department of Medicine University of Ho Chi Minh City, the winds scraped not be recognized as a method of treatment in medicine.
In Western medicine, the wind scraped a backward operation, should be limited and eventually abolished. The reason is that the wind scraping down the capillaries under the skin, causing bleeding, and that is why the red skin after shaving wind. Now with even less so in children, it can be painful and dangerous to life because it can cause serious bleeding if it was dengue children (with initial symptoms such as fever, headache, fatigue, etc.).

To me, I don't really care if it is "backwards" or that my capillaries under my skin are bleeding as long as ... "the person shaving wind is a good looking girl."

THD : thank you so much for the interest and effort to seek an answer. That's exactly what I needed to know. I suppose the practice was somehow, also taught to the older generation, who in turn, passed it on to the present generation. It's also probably psychological, as the person would feel 'good' after thus treated.

You have to try the one where they stick 10-20 glass bottles on your back that sucks up your skin and makes it real red. I think they shake down your skin with the method you described above with a spoon and some green ointment.

that is a type of massage

Come to think of it yeah they use it in massages too. But in my family when someone had a cold they'd use those sucking glass jars. Have foggy recollection but I think they heated up those glass jars. Looked pretty painful.

khanh44 wrote:

Come to think of it yeah they use it in massages too. But in my family when someone had a cold they'd use those sucking glass jars. Have foggy recollection but I think they heated up those glass jars. Looked pretty painful.

There's a medical purpose to it.  The fire burns the air inside the glass cups and when stuck to your skin, creates a suction/vacuum.  This probably forces circulation of the blood.  Not an expert on it but this process is called Giác hơi, and just translates to Cupping.



Here's the Wiki on it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupping_therapy

I've seen shops offering the Cupping and Shaving Wind services together but haven't tried any...but... (come on, you can fill in and finish this sentence for me).

My sister did that to my back but with Vicks rub and a quarter. It left a lot of long red marks on my back. I still didn't feel any better. Maybe because it wasn't wind shaved by a hot guy?

MIA2013 wrote:

My sister did that to my back but with Vicks rub and a quarter. It left a lot of long red marks on my back. I still didn't feel any better. Maybe because it wasn't wind shaved by a hot guy?

Haha, I can tell you're not married...good add-on to my joke.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

MIA2013 wrote:

My sister did that to my back but with Vicks rub and a quarter. It left a lot of long red marks on my back. I still didn't feel any better. Maybe because it wasn't wind shaved by a hot guy?

Haha, I can tell you're not married...good add-on to my joke.

THD: Actually it took place before I got married 27 years ago. I'm 45 now. Now and then I tell my husband that I might need to go look for a body massage practioner and he says he!! no! I give you one and put medicine on your back too.

MIA2013 wrote:

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

MIA2013 wrote:

My sister did that to my back but with Vicks rub and a quarter. It left a lot of long red marks on my back. I still didn't feel any better. Maybe because it wasn't wind shaved by a hot guy?

Haha, I can tell you're not married...good add-on to my joke.

THD: Actually it took place before I got married 27 years ago. I'm 45 now. Now and then I tell my husband that I might need to go look for a body massage practioner and he says he!! no! I give you one and put medicine on your back too.

Yah, the "hot guy" comment threw me off.  A married woman would say "my husband" instead.  A happily married woman would, of course say, say "my hot husband".

Ive had cupping done for over 20 years and have it done here in Viet Nam. Get it done before you have the actual massage, it helps with circulation and loosens the back.