Chinese Medicine: A Beginner's Guide
Chinese Medicine: A Beginner's Guide
The mystique surrounding Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is hard to deny. TCM encompasses a wide range of therapeutic and medical practices that originated in China and have been practiced there for thousands of years. Actually, a compilation of Chinese medical practices that is known to exist as far back as 2698 B.C. People who aren't familiar with traditional Chinese medicine may think that it's all about using strange substances like cow urine and bat poop as medicine. Furthermore, many people have the false impression that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners lack the skills necessary to accurately diagnose their patients' conditions and provide effective treatment.
From sinusitis to muscle spasms, and every ailment in between, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has proven to be an effective treatment and management system. For a wide range of pains, including migraines, lower back pain, and everything in between, Chinese herbal concoctions have proven to be effective.
Both the diagnosis and treatment practices of traditional Chinese medicine are based on the fundamental principles found in Chinese philosophy, specifically Wu Xing and the concept of yin and yang. Traditional Chinese medicine views the body as an integrated whole with distinct components. The components are meant to complement one another, usually by counteracting each other's inherent contradictions. There is a critical role for each component in cognitive operations in addition to its physical ones. This explains why traditional Chinese medicine holds the view that an individual's emotional and psychological well-being are interdependent; that is, that every imbalance in the body is mirrored by an equal and opposite imbalance in the mind. In this respect, it is reminiscent of the yin and yang principles, which may be defined as the union of two seemingly diametrically opposed but mutually beneficial ideas. When one aspect of yin or yang starts to dominate a person's energy, it's considered to be a sign of discord. People believe that illnesses in humans stem from this discord or imbalance.
When trying to figure out where the discord originated, the Wu Xing factor becomes relevant. In many ways, Wu Xing resembles the traditional Chinese view of the five elements—fire, water, wood, earth, and metal. There are various parts of the body that contain each of these elements in different concentrations. When all the parts work together, they create a harmonious whole that is a person's typical level of physical and mental well-being. There are a number of internal and external factors that can influence this equilibrium and shift the elemental balance. Theoretically, a person's health can be influenced by an imbalance between yin and yang, which can be explained by an increase in specific elements in specific areas.
The location and cause of the imbalance will determine the treatment for the patient's condition, be it sinusitis, lower back pain, knee pain, migraine headaches, visual migraines, insomnia, or anything else. Colds and sinusitis, for instance, are sometimes blamed on an overabundance of water in the nasal area, which tipped the balance more towards the yang. This is why traditional Chinese medicine may recommend a mixture of herbs and other unusual substances to help bring harmony back to the body by reducing the influence of water.
Dietary manipulation is just one of many alternative treatments advocated by traditional Chinese medicine.
One well-known subset of TCM is acupuncture, a method of reestablishing "balance" between the body's Yin and Yang energies through the insertion of thin needles into the skin at strategic locations. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) also includes acupuncture as a method for treating what modern medicine would call mental health issues, such as phobias and anxiety. According to traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture can help restore harmony to the body's "chi" (internal energy) flow. The yin and yang of one's emotions and thoughts must be balanced in TCM just as much as one's physical constitution must be.
However, contemporary TCM practitioners in China do recognise that conventional treatments may fail in some cases to restore the body's natural equilibrium. It is common practice to refer patients in such situations to a Western-trained physician. The "balance" between Eastern and Western medical theory and practice is actually highly valued by the majority of Chinese patients and doctors, so this does not cause any friction between the two schools. Surgery for appendicitis, for instance, will not be a problem for Chinese patients. In the meanwhile, they won't think twice about using time-tested herbal remedies to ease post-operative pain or head off appendicitis altogether. This stands in stark contrast to the views of some conventional Western doctors, who are quick to write off alternative medical traditions as nothing more than pseudo-science.
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