Zen Herbal 仁醫館

WHAT IS TCM?

Traditional Chinese Medicine is a holistic health system which uses and combines the use of acupuncture, specialised massage, herbal medicine, nutrition, movement exercises and other ways to bring the body into balance, restore and maintain your well being. As a complete medical system, TCM has been practiced for more than five thousand years.

Traditional Chinese Medicine works by restoring and maintaining balance and harmony in your body. Everything in your body is interconnected: mind, body, spirit all have a flow on affect to each other. At the heart of TCM is the principle that the root cause of illnesses, not their symptoms, must be treated.



History of TCM

In ancient China, the average lifespan was seventy years old. Because the most brilliant, influential doctors of the day attended and treated the Emperor and his family, his followers and the peasant farmers who worked his lands, medicine focused on virility, fertility, longevity and anti-ageing.

Emperors wanted to produce heirs, wanted their wives to be fertile and bare children and wanted to live to a healthy, ripe old age. They also wanted their farmers to be able to carry out the hard work of farming. Chinese doctors created a medicine, now known as Traditional Chinese Medicine (containing the practices of acupuncture, herbology and Tuina) which excelled at achieving the goals of vitality and longevity. The best minds of the culture gravitated to the practice of medicine and developed the most comprehensive and effective medicine the world had ever seen. It is still growing and spreading.

China has the largest healthcare practice in the world, but Traditional Chinese Medicine is growing even more rapidly in the Western World. It is very effective.

What Does TCM Focus On?
Chinese Medicine aims to balance the yin (water and earth) and yang (fire and air) of the body's life force (Chi or Qi); and is a highly evolved medicine in that it approaches healthcare on the foundation of the meridian system (energy channels of the body). Chinese medicine places an emphasis on the body's elements, and their interrelation with the body's individual systems.

Chinese medicine views the body a composed of four basic elements:

Blood
Qi (pronounced Chi meaning vital energy)
Nervous system
Organ systems
If all four of these areas of substance/function are working well, you will be healthy. If there is a blood flow problem in any of these areas, there will be symptoms and a disease process starts.

Everything the body needs to repair and grow is in the blood: vitamins, amino acids, minerals, neurotransmitters, co-factors, precursors, immune cells, botanic fortifiers. All of these are contained in the blood, arteries, arterioles and capillaries. It is all about the health of the cardiovascular system, and treatment occurs win the vascular system. The number one cause of pain and disease are problems of blood flow and delivery of oxygen to the cells. In Chinese medicine we diagnose from symptoms to treat the root of the problem to achieve relief, stability and long-range improved health.

Acupuncture corrects and improves the flow of blood and oxygen to the diseased or injured area, and the body heals itself. Acupuncture is the only known method which is able to stimulate blood to flow to where you direct it, namely to injured, undernourished or diseased areas to correct, relieve and ultimately achieve health, vitality and longevity.

TCM's diagnostic approach: When you visit a Chinese medicine practitioner, you will discover an entirely different form of diagnostics. In addition to observing a patient's face, our holistic health practitioners perform a pulse diagnosis (palpation of the radial artery pulse), body palpation, and other unique non invasive diagnostic measures.

Once we have formulated our observations and come to a conclusive treatment method, some of the many holistic medicines that we might offer include Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, holistic nutrition advice, moxibustion, cupping, Tuina (Chinese medical massage), among others.

Combining different types of modalities increases the effectiveness of stand alone treatments as TCM modalities work best in synergy. The duration of treatment may also reduce.

As TCM views each person as a unique individual, different treatments may be used to treat the same condition in different people.

What Can TCM do for you?
Whatever your condition or concern Traditional Chinese Medicine can help you. TCM can treat a wide range of conditions - physical, internal, external and emotional problems can all be treated.

Some examples of each include but are not limited to:

Physical: acute injuries to chronic conditions - lower back pain, shoulder pain, stiff neck, sprained ankle, arthritis
Internal: Abnormal blood pressure, palpitations, heart conditions, diabetes, asthma
Others: stress, depression, insomnia, fatigue, headache, migraine, digestive disorders, skin conditions
Your solution may be as simple as a specialised massage, or include a course of treatments over several weeks, combining several different types of treatment such as Acupuncture, Massage and Herbal Medicine.

Determining the 'root cause' of your health issues means a tailored program can be developed to suit your individual needs.

Your energy channels (or Meridians) can be unblocked of stagnant energy (or Qi) returning you to a balanced state. Your condition can be treated, making you feel better.

DISCLAIMER: No information here is intended to be taken as medical advice – or used as a substitute for professional medical advice. Any person with any health concerns is advised instead to consult their doctor. In the case of persons seeking therapy using Traditional Chinese Medicine, this information cannot be taken as medical advice and persons are advised instead to consult a suitably qualified practitioner.