Traditional Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a sophisticated and holistic alternative health care system.  Its roots can be traced back to pre-history.  The written tradition and body of knowledge that continues to inform this medicine is over two thousand years old.  The wisdom and experience of countless medical professionals has been passed on from master to student into the present day.

TCM includes many modalities in its scope of practice of which acupuncture is only one of many that I may employ in your healing journey.   A description of the main modalities follows.  Together we decide which of these to incorporate in your course of treatment.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese healing practice that uses very thin needles to restore the body’s natural flow of energy (also called Qi or chi). It is used to treat a variety of conditions. Acupuncture has been around for thousands of years and is still helping people today.  Acupuncture is an extremely safe treatment modality. Many people find it very relaxing and calming, while others feel energized and more balanced mentally as well as physically.

Acupuncture can help you with a wide range of health issues, both physical and mental. It can help treat your pain, anxiety, injuries, inflammation, insomnia, hormonal imbalance, digestive woes, and many chronic and acute illnesses. While you may feel the effects of acupuncture right away—especially its calming effects—lasting benefits will generally take more sessions.

The first thing to know about acupuncture is that it doesn’t have to be painful.  Common sensations after needling include tingling, a dull ache, or a feeling of pressure or heaviness, but it is comfortable, and most patients describe feeling relaxed.  Many take a nap on the table.

During treatment, you lie down on a comfortable massage table while I insert sterile, one-time-use needles at specific points. The needles will be left in your body while you rest for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, depending on your treatment plan and how much time is available.  Heat lamps will often be used to keep you warm, comfortable and enhance your sense of relaxation.  After treatment, you may feel sleepy and deeply relaxed. It’s also possible you’ll feel energized or a bit lightheaded. All are normal reactions. You’re likely to feel really good for the rest of the day.  If you can make some time for the effects of your treatment to settle in, this can enhance its efficacy.

Cupping

Cupping has been used for hundreds of years as a natural means of promoting healing and wellness. involves placing cups on the body and creating suction. These cups may be glass, silicone, or plastic. Cupping treatment may be done on its own but is often included as part of an acupuncture or TCM session.

Cupping can be used for a variety of ailments and conditions, including back pain, neck pain, joint pain, colds and flues, headaches and tension. Cupping improves circulation throughout the body and helps reduce inflammation.  It is a very important mode of detoxification.

In stationary cupping the cups are left on the skin for anywhere from 5 – 15 minutes without moving, allowing for a suction that aids in loosening tight muscles. This is particularly effective for patients who are experiencing aches and pains as well as those suffering from chronic tension.  In moving cupping the practitioner applies oil to the skin, so they are able to move the cups along the surface of the body, creating a massage-like feel that helps to increase blood flow to certain areas. This type of cupping is commonly used when treating muscle tension and stiffness, particularly in the back, shoulders, and neck.

Cupping, especially stationary cupping, can leave circular marks on the skin that look like bruises, which last for a few days afterwards. These marks are not damaging or painful. They are temporary but you may have bragging rights at the pool for a week or two.

MEDICAL QI GONG THERAPY

In a Medical Qi Gong healing session, the focus is on energetic and spiritual levels of the body. From this perspective, the patient’s symptoms are not the cause of disease but rather a manifestation of the underlying imbalance. Treatment is specific to each patient’s pattern of disharmony. The aim is to diagnose the particular blockage, deficiency or deviation of these energy flows and attitudes and bring them back into balance.

What this means in practice is that I work with you to guide energy through your body and clear blockages and deviations of your energetic flow as they arise. These may manifest as physical sensations such as tingling, heat, pain, vibration or chills, as visions, painful memories, overwhelming emotions and so on.  We find healing simply by guiding Qi through the body and re-establishing healthy patterns of flow.  Soul retrieval, talk therapy, guided visualization, acupressure massage, channeling and mediumship all may come into play.  Magic happens in the session!

A session starts by discussing the reason you are seeking care. Then you lie face up on a massage table, fully clothed, while I conduct an energetic diagnosis. Sometimes treatment begins with a guided meditation to bring you into a relaxed and receptive state. The work may include hands both on and off the body; light touch and acupressure massage may be involved. Some sessions are conducted entirely in silence, others will include dialogue or simple spoken instructions.
Medical Qi Gong exercises and meditations will often be prescribed to enhance the healing benefits of the session, empowering your own inner healer.  Clients who follow through with these prescriptions often have the best results.

TUI NA

Tui na (pronounced “twee nah”) is a form of Chinese massage that has been practiced for more than 2000 years. The word tui means “to push” and na means “to lift and squeeze,” which describes some of the common techniques used in tuina.
Tui na is a branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine that uses manual techniques to work with different areas of your body. This can cause muscles to relax and help blood flow freely throughout your body. Sometimes, tui na is sometimes called “acupuncture without needles” because it can be used like acupuncture to target specific acupuncture points and energetic channels (acupuncture meridians).

Tui na is considered by some to be the ancestor of physiotherapy, chiropractic, cranio-sacral and other contemporary therapeutic techniques.

Chinese Herbal Medicine

Written records of Chinese herbal medicine date back to the 3rd century BC. It is one of the great herbal systems of the world. Throughout its ancient history, it has continually developed and evolved in response to changing clinical conditions. Together with Ayurvedic (Indian) herbal medicine, it forms the longest unbroken clinically researched and applied herbal medical science in the world.

Many people in the West do not realize that Chinese herbal medicine is considered by many to be the true “backbone” of Chinese, or Oriental, medicine, with acupuncture and other therapies traditionally viewed as adjunctive. While most people seek out acupuncture as a primary therapy for pain and illness in the West, quite the opposite is true in the East. Chinese herbs are in fact the “Internal Medicine” of Chinese medicine–herbs are the first line of treatment used for signs of internal imbalance or illness.

Diagnosis

Chinese herbal medicine includes a complex diagnostic system, based on evaluation of clear patterns of disease though reporting of symptoms as well as palpation, and tongue and pulse diagnosis. Precise herbal formulas matched to the pattern(s) are then prescribed.

Materia Medica

Chinese herbal medicine includes both of individual herbs and complex herbal formulas. It consists mostly of plant matter-including flowers, buds, leaves, twigs and roots-and also a variety of animal parts, insects, minerals, shells, marine animals, and even fungi.  Specific traits of each “herb” and “combination of herbs” were identified over centuries of clinical application, including thermal properties, taste (sweet, sour, spicy, bitter, salty, bland, etc.), specific organ or tissue targeted, direction it moved within the body (inward, upward, downward), and precise method of cooking to achieve a particular effect.

Methods of preparation

Traditionally Chinese herbal formulas were mainly consumed as teas prepared from the herbs in their dried form. There are still many traditional Chinese herb shops in the Vancouver area.  These days we also have access to high quality powdered extracts of both complete formulas and individual herbs that can be conveniently taken either in capsules or mixed with warm water.

Many people in the West do not realize that Chinese herbal medicine is considered by many to be the true “backbone” of Chinese, or Oriental, medicine. Acupuncture and other therapies have traditionally been viewed as secondary. While most people seek out acupuncture as a primary therapy for pain and illness in the West, quite the opposite is true in the East. Chinese herbs are the mainstay of Chinese medicine (much as pharmaceuticals are in western medicine). Herbs are the first line of treatment used for signs of internal imbalance or illness.

Diagnostics

Chinese herbal medicine includes a complex diagnostic system, based on evaluation of patterns of disease though reporting of symptoms as well as palpation, and tongue and pulse diagnosis. Herbal formulas matching the pattern(s) are then customized to suit the individual needs of each patient.