Dr. Chandrashekar Pardeshi - A Case History
Dr. Chandrashekar Pardeshi is a well-known doctor of Nashik city, who has earned a name as a reputed and highly experienced acupuncturist. Dr. Pardeshi encourages people suffering from various ailments to give Acupuncture a try, as it has been found to be absolutely effective, safe, and painless. But, the most important thing is that Acupuncture does not have any side effects.
Dr Pardeshi, who has undergone intensive training in Acupuncture, had become highly experienced in the science. Any person suffering from backache, sciatica, knee or shoulder pain, tennis elbow, arthritis or any musculoskeletal pain, are advised to meet the doctor for treatment. Dr. Pardeshi is extremely confident of treating such persons and assures them that they will go back totally cured and free from pain.
Dr. Chandrashekar Pardeshi tells us of life during the days when he was working as a Consultant in an Acupuncture centre that was located somewhere deep in the tribal areas of West Bengal. Dr. Pardeshi and his team had visited those areas to create health awareness amongst the tribals and to improve the medical and healthcare facilities through the medium of Acupuncture. The team performed Acupuncture treatment on more than a thousand patients, and amply demonstrated the efficacy, efficiency, simplicity, cost-effectiveness, and convenience of the treatment even in rural centres.
Dr. Pardeshi tells us of a true-life incident that took place there during one such visit
A 24-year lady came to their medical camp along with her husband, and her child, whom, she was carrying in her hands. As the child could not hold up its head, the mother had to support the child's head with her hands. During the course of the consultation, the parents informed the doctor that the child could not stand, walk, or talk even though it was four years old.
Giving details of the past history of the child, the parents went on to inform the doctors that the child's delivery was associated with delayed labour and difficulty in delivery during childbirth. What made things worse was that the child had not cried for a long time after delivery. The team of doctors, then, conducted a detailed examination and found out that the child, who was irritable, had flaccid muscles with minimum muscle activity. Furthermore, the child exhibited no other activity except for the crying, and it was also observed that there was wasting of all the muscles, in general.
That was a very clear example of cerebral palsy and the child has suffered a brain injury due to oxygen deficiency during delivery. The team of doctors, which also comprised obstetricians and had delivered hundreds of children, knew that nothing could be done for that unfortunate child. The team's opinion was conveyed to the parents, and they were informed that acupuncture could not reverse brain damage caused four years ago. The parents, who were aware of the gravity of the situation, insisted that the doctors try acupuncture on the child as they had heard of recovery in a similar case of their friend's child.
The team of doctors, led by Dr Chandrashekar Pardeshi, reluctantly decided to oblige the parents who had come there from a remote village more than 150 km away. Initially, the team gave the child Acupuncture treatment to the motor area of the legs in the scalp and advised the parents to report on the progress after a week.
When the parents brought in the child next week, they informed the doctors of a slight improvement, but the doctors did not notice any change in the motor functions of the child. The doctors were confident that it could be nothing more than a parental illusion in the hope of a healthy child. The doctors suggested that they continue the same treatment, and advised them to keep the team informed of the child's progress.
The following week when the child was brought into the medical camp, the doctors were surprised to see the child standing on its feet supported by both the parents. Doctor Pardeshi and his team were flabbergasted, as the sight, they were seeing was absolutely impossible! But, what they thought impossible, was reality right before their eyes. The child was standing up and was able to hold up his head.
The team was pleasantly surprised by this dramatic improvement in the child, but their knowledge or Western background prevented them from accepting this development. The doctors firmly believed that when the brain suffers irreversible damage, the cells of the brain do not regenerate. But, what was not thought possible was out there right in front of them. The team of doctors had to realign their entire thought process, as they came to the conclusion that they knew nothing of the complexity of the human body, especially the brain, or about the way the medicines act. They also realized that no particular branch of medicine was capable or adept to tackle any disease or ailment.
The team led by Dr. Pardeshi went on to continue the same line of treatment with little hopes of anything miraculous to happen further, but they were wrong! When the child was brought in for the next session of treatment, they saw something most rewarding that could ever happen in a mother's life. The child suddenly blurted out 'Mumma'! They saw the mother's face light up and a glow of pleasure spread all over her face - something that they had never seen before. While the child's call of 'Mumma' was extremely rewarding to the doctors, it would have definitely have been more rewarding to the mother. A mother-child relationship is something really special, and that single word must have changed the whole depth of their relationship!
