In this episode we ask the question, “Did you know that acupuncture is just one of the five branches of Chinese medicine?”
Today’s Everyday Acupuncture Podcast question is answered by
Stacey Whitcome of Shift Acupuncture in Bellingham, WA.
My name is Stacy Whitcomb. I am in Bellingham, Washington, licensed acupuncturist, and the podcast host of the AcuSprout podcast. Did you know that acupuncture is only one of five branches of Asian medicine? That’s only 20% of the big picture
The five branches include herbal medicine, manual therapy, acupuncture, cheek, cultivation, and diet. In this three minute acupuncture point, I’m going to cover each branch and tell you how each one is an essential 20% of the big picture.
Let’s start with herbal medicine. Typically in the United States, practitioners who studied herbal medicine in school started by learning 365 single herbs. And about 10 key pieces of information about each herb, including, but not limited to the English name, the opinion or Chinese name. The herbs properties like bitter the temperature it’s key characteristics such as does it tonify or move and its actions and indications.
Once we’ve memorized all of the herbs, we then move on to learning how to combine them in formulas. And then we learn how to customize those formulas specifically to the patient in front of us, because we’re all different. , we’re also dynamic and our physiology can change, which means that our formula might change over time.
Next we have manual therapy, SHSU and tuna are types of body work that help put the body back into balance, alleviate pain and stress and heal. Typically the practitioner listens to the chief complaint, completes some diagnostic tests, and then does the massage or body work acupuncture?
Acupuncture is the use of tiny filiform needles, about the size of a human hair on points on the body to balance the body and help it heal. This is done using the principles of Chinese medicine to influence nerve signals to the brain and create a healing response. There are many different styles of acupuncture.
So treatment styles may vary. Chi cultivation because we have no truly great translation for Chi in the west. I was actually tempted to rename this branch for simplicity. Tai Chi and Chi Kong are soft martial arts that are akin to movement meditations, which help all of.
Mind body, soul, and spirit be in alignment with your true nature. Daily movements builds an awareness of balances and imbalances, , which govern our life force and health, their long game solutions practice daily to increase vitality. It’s like this. Major league baseball players have been swinging at fastball since they were seven in hopes to be in complete alignment, to hit a home run on a 95 mile an hour fastball, they have been aligning their Chi for this experience, all of their lives.
And then one day in one swing in one second, they are in complete alignment, but one would argue that all of that cultivation has actually provided more gifts than just that one home. Lastly diet, actually, I think I’d rather say food or nutrition here. Diet is such a loaded word, much like herbs food is also medicine.
Foods also have properties like herbs. The nature of food can be salty, or sour. It has temperature and how, and when we eat food changes with the seasons, our constitution and how strong our digestion is, all food is like this.
What is good for one person may not be easily assimilated by another person, eating foods at the right time to strengthen and heal are an important branch of the tree. If you wanna learn more, be sure to subscribe to the everyday acupuncture podcast.
