Acupuncture Works!

There are now modern professionals trained in both traditional Chinese Medicine / acupuncture and modern Western medicine to conduct research on the development of Chinese Medicine.

Research indicates that modern Chinese medicine and acupuncture is very effective in regenerating organic function and treating chronic diseases.

Eastern and Western styles of medicine arose in different parts of the world, so it’s not surprising that they are based on two fundamentally different views of reality.

Traditional Chinese Medical treatment using acupuncture and herbs is very beneficial in areas that modern medicine is not.

Modern treatment of disease by TCM using acupuncture and herbal medicine has produced indisputable results.

It is possible that one day TCM and modern Western medicine will be so intertwined that they do not even have separate names.

In ancient China, the doctor was only paid if the patient remained healthy. In Modern medicine, the opposite is true.

A consultation with a modern TCM practitioner of herbal medicine and acupuncture can bring areas of subtle disharmony to your attention before they become a problem.

TCM History & Theory - Acupuncture - Herbal Medicine - Modern Chinese/Oriental Medicine  - What does it treat? - Diagnosis - Regulation in British Columbia

MODERN CHINESE MEDICINE and ACUPUNCTURE

by Dan Schalm R.Ac, R.TCMP                            Page Search Help

For years, the Chinese government and the government of the Republic of China on Taiwan have put great efforts into promoting the modernization of Chinese medicine. As a result, there are now modern professionals trained in both traditional Chinese Medicine / acupuncture and modern Western medicine to conduct research on the development of Chinese Medicine. Modern Western Science methodologies have been employed to analyze the effectiveness of herbs and acupuncture treatment on various subjects. Many of the differences between Chinese medicine and modern Western scientific practices are now being studied for their synergistic potential. Joint research efforts with research institutes such as Stanford University, College of Physicians & Surgeons of Columbia University, and National Cancer Institute have been made to evaluate the effectiveness of Chinese Medicine and improve the classification and selection/prescription of formulas and acupuncture treatments. This research indicates that Chinese Medicine and acupuncture is very effective in regenerating organic function and treating chronic diseases.

Modern western methodologies are also making the formula of TCM available globally. Originally, these ancient formula once prescribed were taken home and slowly boiled into soup to be consumed. This four-hour process was done twice daily and the soup often smelled and tasted unpleasant. Modern technology has finally enabled the potent essence of these healing herbs to be extracted in their natural state for delivery to people in need around the world.

How Chinese medicine differs from allopathic medicine.

Eastern and Western styles of medicine arose in different parts of the world, so it’s not surprising that they are based on two fundamentally different views of reality. They differ in the way they explain reality. They differ in the way they describe disease and it's origins. And they are different in the methods they choose to restore and maintain health within their respective paradigms.

Modern western medicine, which is relatively young compared to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), began during a time in history when Newton's philosophy of mechanism was the prevalent scientific thought. Sir Isaac Newton believed that for the most part, the human body was just an intricate machine. Rene Descartes, another reductionism thinker of the time, became known as the father of modern scientific reasoning. Medical scientists that came afterward continued in that vein and using reductionism broke the human body down into smaller and smaller pieces in an attempt to understand how it works. The result is our present, modern day Cartesian style medicine which has become incredibly skilled at repairing and manipulating the biological/material aspects of the human organism. Modern surgeons can perform complicated repairs to the nervous system and with molecular biology, can counter-attack the destruction of viral epidemics.

However, with all the amazing knowledge and skill science has given us, it is still relatively helpless in understanding the disease mechanism itself. Though doctors can repair the damage caused by disease and destroy some of the harmful pathogens that invade the human organism, science is still unable to satisfactorily explain what disease really is and how it manifests. The process of growing old or of becoming chronically ill evades understanding.

This is where Traditional Chinese Medicine using acupuncture and herbs has it's greatest strength. Born thousands of years ago, in a culture that held a deep understanding of the interrelatedness of all things, TCM grew and developed through trial and error into what it is today. Traditional Chinese medicine differs from modern Western science because it doesn't try to reduce the organism into smaller and smaller particles to understand it. Instead, TCM gains understanding into the human organism by observing how it relates to the world around it. TCM makes differentiation's of disease and syndromes by observing the relationship that exists between the different aspects of the internal environment as well. In this way, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) looks at disease as a question of balance, and to be healthy, an organism must be balanced. This balance is profound and must exist at all levels. Internal/external, deficiency/excess, emotional/physical, material/non-material. Most of this is summed up in what is called the theory of Yin and Yang.

Traditional Chinese Medical treatment using acupuncture and herbs is very beneficial in areas that modern medicine is not. It is a superior form of preventative health care and can successfully treat chronic disease and pain that practitioners of Western medicine can’t. Since it's view of reality deals with relationships and follows a holistic philosophy, it is very adaptable. Many other traditional approaches are also based on a similar holistic concept, but their success is minimal compared to that of TCM and acupuncture. This is largely due to the fact that TCM incorporates a Western scientific aspect to it as well. It's descriptions of the workings of the human body follow the guidelines of theories which have been 'proven' over time by repetition. The question of what denotes proof can be argued, but what cannot be argued is that centuries of trial and error in the treatment of disease by TCM using acupuncture and herbal medicine has produced indisputable results.

The Chinese medicine theories of acupuncture and disharmony are adaptable and evolve with newer understanding. Perhaps one of the reasons that TCM has survived over other traditional approaches is precisely because of it's adaptability. Other traditional approaches, perhaps steeped in more rigid views of reality, have been unable to survive the advent of modern Western science. They have not been able to incorporate the idea of Western thinking within their own philosophy.

Because TCM and Western science are different, they have much to share with each other. Western science is for the most part still following a Newtonian framework and is thus limited in the levels of reality it can hope to understand. It might derive a great benefit from adopting the more holistic TCM approach. On the other hand, Western science has become amazingly skilled at what it does, mainly because of it's narrower focus. In this sense, TCM can also learn and evolve by adopting some Western approaches. Now, with quantum physics becoming more and more influential to modern scientific thought, perhaps Western medicine will open up more to the ideas of Qi, and the Yin/Yang nature of the universe. It is possible that one day TCM, using acupuncture and herbal modalities will be so intertwined with modern Western medicine  that they do not even have separate names. Medicine in general will contain the strengths of each approach as human philosophy evolves into the next millennium. That is a worthy goal to strive for.

How to decide if TCM & acupuncture is for you.

If you are like most people, health is a concern when health is an issue. If you are like most people, you have tried the traditional forms of western medicine first and have found them to be good for some things, but not for everything. You may now be in a holding pattern with chronic disease, musculo-skeletal pain,  or a vague set of symptoms that no one can accurately classify, diagnose or treat. Because of the way that traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) looks at the human body, from a biological, emotional and an energetic point of view, there may still be a solution to your problem using acupuncture or herbal medicine. Because of the thousands of years that this type of medicine has been successfully practiced, it has a valid and valued place in our society. That is why doctors are referring patients to acupuncture practitioners more and more. If you are willing to try something different, Chinese medicine may be what you are looking for.

Chronic Illness and Undiagnosed Symptoms

For the most part, our physical existence is a mystery, along with its disease and disharmony. From various angles, the field of medicine has tried to solve the riddle of why people become sick or unhealthy. All medicine has that purpose, allopathic, naturopathic and of course, the Oriental approach. All medicine has its strengths and weaknesses. Because TCM looks at the human body as inseparable from its emotions, energetic dynamics and environmental interactions, it has a good track record of dealing with chronic illness and with the uncomfortable feelings, sensations and pains we experience when we become out of balance. Physical pain and discomfort can be at the energetic level before it manifests at the organic level. Chinese medicine recognizes this and has the tools (acupuncture and herbs) to help. TCM looks at relationship and balance. When we relate well with our inner and outer self balance is restored.

Should See An Acupuncture Practitioner If I Am Healthy?

In ancient China, the doctor was only paid if the patient remained healthy. In Modern medicine, the opposite is true. If you are feeling good, you want to stay that way, not wait until disease comes knocking on your door. The beautiful part of traditional Chinese medicine is that it emphasizes prevention of disease by maintaining balance and harmony. A consultation with a modern TCM practitioner of herbal medicine and acupuncture can bring areas of subtle disharmony to your attention before they become a problem. Qi, or vital energy, needs to move freely and unobstructed throughout the body.  Your TCM and acupuncture practitioner is trained to recognize blockages in this flow, and uses effective tools to keep our inside passages clear. In Chinese philosophy, “stagnation leads to disease.” Just as a sedentary life style leads to heart disease and diabetes on the organic level, blockage in energy movement leads to disease at the energetic level. As all levels relate to each other, energy problems eventually become organic problems.

TCM History & Theory - Acupuncture - Herbal Medicine - Modern Chinese/Oriental Medicine  - What does it treat? - Diagnosis - Regulation in British Columbia