What is Traditional East Asian Medicine?

Originating in China over 5000 years ago, Traditional East Asian Medicine has been practiced and refined in countries such as China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam, as well as more recently, in the West.

This form of medicine treats each person and their condition as a whole, recognising the interactions and links between the body, mind, emotions and the environment in which we live.

Utilising unique and gentle Traditional Diagnosis methods, a skilled practitioner can identify particular patterns of illness and disharmony and then develop a strategy to treat these problems.

Treatment is considered a team effort between the practitioner and the patient.

Because it is a holistic medicine, often several methods will be used to address the core problem. These may include:

Acupuncture & Moxibustion
Chinese Herbal Medicine
Guasha and Cupping
Nutritional Education
Lifestyle regulation

What Can Treatment Help?

Traditional East Asian Medicine is a very practical form of therapy,
useful for resolving a variety of health concerns, including:

Promoting:
Well-being Maintenance.
Positive Life-Style Changes.
Effective Stress Management.
Rebalancing of Bio-energy Systems.

Improving:
Digestion, Circulation, Breathing & Immunity.

Reducing:
Stress, Fatigue, Tension & Emotional Pain.

Increasing the Rate of Recovery from:
Injuries, Pain, Muscle Strain,
Exercise & Exertion.


WHO says…
 The World Health Organisation (WHO) publishes an extensive list of common illnesses for which Traditional East Asian Medicine is used. These Include:


Traditional Diagnosis:

Each treatment is based on an individualised diagnosis which takes into account both a person’s constitution and lifestyle, as well as the nature of their disease or disorder. A practitioner of Traditional East Asian Medicine has several unique, gentle and non-invasive diagnostic methods to use in identifying the patterns of disharmony which are affecting your health.



Observation & Palpation: “Reading the Braille of the Body”...
 The flesh carries a record of past events and body functions.
This can be read by trained fingers, in much the same way as a blind person reads a book of Braille. Various areas on the surface of the body, such as the back and the abdomen (Hara), and the lower arms and legs, may be observed and gently touched to assess significant changes in colours, textures and relative temperature differences throughout the system, and to test for areas which are tender, tight, or weak. Skin signs, especially colours and lines in the face, may be used for visual diagnosis.

Questioning:
In order to build and confirm a complete picture, a practitioner of Traditional East Asian Medicine may need to ask particular questions regarding such things as: life-style, past medical history, the existence of physical sensations, and any symptoms of body function which have changed from normal such as: pain, sweating, appetite, thirst, sleep, urine and stools, and for women, gynecology. It is also important that a practitioner knows about any medications you may be taking.

Feeling of the Pulses:
Subtle changes in the Qi or Energy can be observed by palpating or feeling the pulse at the wrists. The changes in the pulse can be quite remarkable over the course of a disease and during the restoration of health. The pulse is one of the best indicators during treatment of the internal changes that occur in response to the methods being used.




Observation of the Tongue:
 The colour, shape and coating of the tongue holds enormous information for the trained eye about the state of health of the internal organs. For example, a tongue with a thick yellow coat equates with a condition of excess heat and dampness, whereas a thin, dry, or cracked tongue, with no coat, could indicate a deficiency of Yin.

The tongue acts as kind of weather-vane that can be used to monitor the progress of a disease and the internal processes of recovery.


Theories of Traditional Chinese Medicine:

Traditional East Asian Medicine utilises a logical system of processing and categorising phenomena in order to discern and treat patterns of illness and disharmony. Some of the traditional theories used to discern these patterns include: "Five Elements", "Six Divisions", "Eight Principles", "Zang Fu" and "Channel Theory". These patterns are described through relative paradigms such as: Yin and Yang, Excess and Deficiency, Internal and External, Hot or Cold.

There are hundreds of excellent text-books available which explain these theories in detail, available from: http://www.chinabooks.com.au and e-links are included at the bottom of this page for further on-line reading.

Some of the scholar-practitioners whose theories we particularly utilise in this clinic include:

Mark Seem:
"Body/Mind Energetics"
"Acupuncture Energetics."
"Acupuncture Imaging."
"Acupuncture Physical Medicine - Treatment of chronic fatigue, pain, and stress disorders"
"New American Acupuncture - Acupuncture Osteopathy"

 Ted Kaptchuk:
"Chinese Medicine - The Web That has No Weaver."

 Dan Bensky:
"Acupuncture A comprehensive Text."; "Chinese Herbal Medicine Formulas and Strategies."

Kiiko Matsumoto:
"Hara Diagnosis: Reflections on the Sea."
"Kiiko Matsumoto's Clinical Strategies Vol 1"

Bob Flaws:
"The Tao of Healthy Eating."

Professor Wang:
"Food For the Seasons."

Arya Nielsen:
"Guasha."

Giovanni Macciocia:
"The Foundations of Chinese Medicine."

These books can be purchased in Australia from China Books in Sydney or Melbourne http://www.chinabooks.com.au

For further on-line reading:
http://www.tcmbasics.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi
http://www.guasha.com

© 2007 Kyle Powderly