Traditional Chinese Medicine
The Traditional Chinese Medicine approach to health and healing is very different from Western Medicine.
In the West, when something happens we ask what we can do about it. In the East when something happens they ask what has caused it. Traditional Chinese Medicine looks for the underlying causes of imbalances and patterns of disharmony within the body and views each patient as a being unique. Western Medicine generally provides treatment for a specific illness, whereas Traditional Chinese Medicine addresses how illnesses manifest in a particular patient and then treat that patient not just the disease. The Chinese way tends to treat the whole body rather than to try and isolate a particular infected area.
Conventional Western medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine should be seen as complementary to each other, rather than as alternatives. Both types of medicine have their advantage and drawbacks, which is why they need to work hand in hand for optimal results. Research has also shown that Traditional Chinese Medicine can effectively complement western medicine when the two systems are used for acute, chronic or life-threatening disease. In China, a combination of Traditional Chinese Medicine and western medicine has been shown to be more effectively treat cancers than western medicine alone.
Traditional Chinese medicine is based on the philosophical concept that the human body is a small universe with a set of complete and sophisticated interconnected systems, and that those systems usually work in balance to maintain the healthy function of the human body. The balance of yin and yang is considered with respect to qi ("life force", or "spiritual energy"), the Five elements , emotions, spirit. If Qi is flowing freely and smoothly, there is balance and health. If Qi is blocked, pain, dysfunction and disease can result. TCM has a unique model of the body, notably concerned with the meridian system. Unlike the Western anatomical model which divides the physical body into parts, the Chinese model is more concerned with function. Thus, the TCM Spleen is not a specific piece of flesh, but an aspect of function related to transformation and transportation within the body.
TCM practitioners are trained to use a variety of ancient and modern therapeutic methods - including acupuncture, herbal medicine, massage, moxibustion (heat therapy), nutritional and lifestyle counselling—to treat a broad range of both chronic and acute illnesses. TCM focuses on the wholeness of body, mind and spirit and emphasizes prevention and health promotion.
TCM is a holistic medical system that seeks to heal the root causes of dysfunction or disease. It has been practiced for over 5000 years, making it one of the oldest and most widely used systems of medicine in the world. Recent advances in Western medicine are only now beginning to affirm the wisdom of this ancient healing system that integrates mind, body, nutrition, lifestyle and energy fields.
Traditional Chinese Medicine may be used to treat:
- Stress, Anxiety, Panic attacks, Depression, Insomnia
- Colds, Bronchitis, Asthma, Emphysema, Allergies
- Mouth Ulcers, Gastroduodenal Reflex, Hepatitis, Constipation, Hiccups
- Chronic diarrhea, Crohn's disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Prostatitis, Impotence, Nephritis
- Migraines, Headaches, Tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
- Menopause, Premenstrual Syndrome, Endometriosis, Fibroid
- Stop smoking, Myasthenia gravis, Weight Loss
- Arthritis, Frozen shoulder, Neck Pain, Heel pain, Sciatic Pain, Sports injuries
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Neuralgia, Trigeminal Nerval Pain
- Warts, Acne, Lupus, Skin diseases, Eczema
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- Boosting the immune system and easing various symptoms of cancers, and many other ailments.
At its most basic level, Traditional Chinese Medicine can increase energy and provide an overall feeling of well-being.
