Goodbye body pain!

CEBU, Philippines - Fifty-two-year-old Alvin Tentativa of Lahug, Cebu City, fell off the terrace of his house sometime last year and fractured his heels. After his doctor took care of the fractures, he was sent home. Months after, he felt low back pains and had a hard time sitting or standing for long periods. Doctors told him he had a slipped disc, possibly a result of the fall and advised him to have therapy. After 23 sessions with the therapist, the pain was still there. By April of this year, the pain in his lower back disturbed his sleep. He also could not walk without using a cane to support himself.

“It was really difficult. It was hard for me to be always sitting down and I could not bear walking or standing for even just a few minutes. I thought the therapy would help me but it made my condition worse, to think I already spent a lot of money,” he said, adding that he even bought an expensive steel back brace, which, he joked, made him look like Iron Man, upon the advice of his therapist.

And then he met Melche “Boy” Caudor, a specialist in advanced therapy for muscular pain and injuries.

After just three sessions with Caudor, which started September 5 this year, the pain was gone. After five sessions, he could already walk for a short distance without the cane.

“Before, I would be in a wheelchair when the family went to the mall. Now, I can walk,” he said. Just recently, Tentativa shared that he was already able to drive from Cebu to Samar without the back and leg pains.

Caudor, a member of the American Massage Therapy Association, runs the MC Back To Health Center located at the La Paloma Subdivision in Tisa, Cebu City. MC Back to Health Center offers surgery alternatives for sports injuries, back pains, and even scoliosis.

“I studied a chiropractic course in the US that specialized in Myoskeletal Alignment Techniques, orthopedic massage therapy and accupressure for the alignment of the spine, twisted spine rotation, correction of leg discrepancy, release of pinched nerves, as well as the treatment of tendonitis and other lumbar ligament injuries,” he said, adding that the treatments he specialized in are non-invasive and are great alternatives to having surgery.

Caudor said most medical practitioners, when diagnosing the abovementioned conditions, usually suggest surgery to alleviate or stop the pain. “But surgery is not the answer. Undergoing surgery is not a guarantee that the pain will not come back or that your injury is healed. In fact, there are conditions, such as tendonitis, that medical practitioners can diagnose but cannot treat. To get rid of the pain, you just take painkillers,” he pointed out.

Aside from the therapy techniques, Caudor also uses an Infratonic Qi Gong Machine and a Gua Sha Tool to promote proper blood circulation. The Qi Gong Machine is a therapeutic massage tool that transmits a low frequency vibration wave. It promotes circulation and can relieve minor aches and pains and relaxes the muscles. The Gua Sha tool that Caudor uses, which is made from the horns of a buffalo, meanwhile, is a popular massage tool of accupuncturists and is a traditional Chinese healing technique. Gua (gwa) means “to scrape,” “rub,” or “extract,” while Sha (shaw) means sediment, signifying congestion or toxins. The constant rubbing of the Gua Sha tool on the body balances the chi of the body to promote blood circulation and the removal of toxic heat, stagnant blood and lymph fluid. The Gua Sha can relieve pain, fever, chills and other acute or chronic disorders.

Caudor added that the Qi Gong Machine also melts down scar tissue in injuries.

The list of Caudor’s patients are growing. Just last month, a 57 year-old woman who is based in California came to Cebu for treatment. The woman, Caudor said, had been suffering from low back pain for years and was diagnosed with a slipped disc. A friend of the patient advised her to come to Cebu and consult Caudor.

“Ninety percent of people who feel pain in the lower back that radiates to the legs down to the heel are diagnosed with a slipped disc. Most doctors would suggest surgery. But most of the time a slipped disc is not really the cause of the pain,” Caudor said. The patient, after a few sessions with Caudor, was relieved of the pain and has since gone home to the US, painfree!

Another patient of Caudor is a medical doctor who has been suffering from low back pain since 1971. The doctor’s son, who is also a doctor that specializes in pain management, has been giving his father morphine to relieve the pain. “The doctor came to me, just this year and after four sessions, the pain, which he had been suffering for a long time, was gone,” Caudor shared.

Even the famous Dr. Vicki Belo and her daughter Cristalle Henares, as well as ABS-CBN star Karylle have also been treated by Caudor. Belo, he said, complained of shoulder and arm pain, and was scoliotic. Cristalle and Karylle were also treated for scoliosis.

“Undergoing surgery is a great risk and you also have to spend more. Therapy, the kind of therapy I offer, is more affordable and you will feel the results immediately,” Caudor said.

Body pains, especially chronic body pains, can affect how we live our lives. It’s about time you say goodbye to your body pains!

MC Back To Health Center is located at the Calantas Circle, La Paloma Subdivision, Tisa, Cebu City. You can also reach the center at 261-9166 and 0922-8607312 or [email protected]