We mistakenly thought our conversation with Dr Yu had ended, but what can I say… wrong again. There is a little more of the conversation genereated from Dr Yu’s thoughts on the qi transformation of the six confirmations and the role of theory in the clinic. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.
Learning formulas is far more than memorizing as series of functions and indications in a book. It requires a kind of attentiveness. A sort of rigorous and yet flexible way of parsing a patient’s signs and symptoms and checking it against both your book knowledge and clinical experience. In this discussion we explore that tender edge of knowing, not knowing and how to operate in the clinical reality of uncertainty. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and f...
Discussing medicine with a seasoned practitioner is like drinking well aged whiskey. Dr. Yu Guo Jun graciously agreed to sit down with Michael Fitzgerald and myself after his morning lecture at the Shen Nong Society’s conference. If you’re an herbalist, you’ll enjoy this discussion of the six confirmations. Listen carefully, there is something in here about how the levels connect that you might not have heard before. And do check out the PDF in the show notes area that our friends at The Lantern...
When we are putting herbs in a bag, or mixing together granules we are probably not thinking about the various laws and regulations from the FDA, or the historical arc that actually allows us to work with herbs in the way that we do. In this conversation we go into the history and impact of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994. There is a lot in the background that we don’t think about on a daily basis, and yet it provides a foundation for being able to practice with herbs. Li...
Some of the most important crossroads in our lives were not marked with a big Flashing Warning Sign, but rather instead were barely notable moments of “Oh, maybe this would be interesting.” Our guest in today’s conversation had just completed a medical degree and was looking to take a little vacation. That vacation turned into a lifelong inquiry into acupuncture and East Asian medicine. Listen into this conversation on how a sense of curiosity lead our guest from California to England to Korea a...
Electro-acupuncture is a fairly new innovation. And thinking about its use in clinic does not quite match up with the traditional ways we’ve been taught to think about acupuncture and how it works. We know the body has a profound reliance on electricity for everything from how our brain’s function to how we sense and move our body. But how does electro-acupuncture influence our systems? And how can we combine our traditional thinking with modern bio-science? Listen in for a discussion about need...
It’s not uncommon for children of doctors to also become doctors. Sometimes there will be a string of docs that run for a number of generations. Which can be a good thing as you can learn at lot at your grandparents knee. In today’s conversation we talk about a lineage of practice that goes not just a few generations, but a handful of centuries. Zhejiang province is well known for its fu ke, gynecological doctors. There are actually several streams of doctors that have attended to women’s health...
How we make sense in clinic is not as simple as ticking items off a list. It’s more than mentally sorting through the models, theories, admonitions from our teachers and some chatter from a recent glimpse at Facebook. While the theories and mental models we crafted through our experience have a place in clinic, there is also the experience of sensing without a story being attached. If we are attentive and quiet enough there is something that arise in our mind, before the label of “it’s that!” ge...
It is easy to think of Chinese medicine as a clear step by step process of diagnosis and treatment, but it does not always go that way in clinic. It can take time for a diagnosis to clarify, and then there is the level of skill we bring to treatment. It’s a process that reveals itself as we go. And while it is easy to look back and see the solid stepping stones that lead to a successful treatment; that clarity can be quite elusive while in the middle of the process. In this episode we discuss th...
The textbooks tell us that sinew channels are important in the treatment of pain and musculoskeletal issues and they are accessed through the jing-well points. But beyond that not much else is said. In this conversation we investigate the channel sinews from both the Chinese medicine and western functional anatomy and physiological perspectives. This gives us a more nuanced look into how structure influences function and it further helps to illuminate channel theory and its profound impact on bo...
It’s not hard to study acupuncture these days. A quick internet search will bring up plenty of choices. But back in the 1980’s, it was a different story. Our guest, like many of us, did not set out to become an acupuncturist. It was a process of fortuitous circumstances that opened those doors. Listen into this conversation that covers some of the early days of acupuncture in New York City at the beginning of AIDS epidemic. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this epis...
The Yi Jing speaks in the language of image, resonance and metaphor. Its not a good place to go for direct answers, but can be helpful in finding some guidence. Our converation today touches not just on the ways it is used for divination, but more importantly how it is a mirror and once you have a knack for it, you don’t need it for divination. We discuss how the commentaries are as important as the original text itself. And touch on how it is a kind of operating system that can help you to unde...
It is always hard at the beginning. It's difficult to learn to see and move in the world in ways that feel foreign and uncomfortable. We like to feel like we know what we're doing. We want to be of service to our patients and help in the best ways possible. And when learning something new it brings back all the discomfort of anytime we have had to grow into a larger version of ourselves. This is another conversation with Kristin Wisgirda and Tim McGee along with Toby Daly on learning to use the ...
We know that Chinese medicine and the martial and cultivation arts of East Asia share a common root. In our healing practices we are paying attention to the medicinal side of this continuum. We don’t think about the points can be used for martial purposes, or how structures in the body can be used to generate power and force. Our conversation today looks at some of the internal dynamics and structures from the martial point of view, as well as a tour of some of the points that can be used in par...
Ahhh, the new year. A moment in time to reflect on the path recently traveled and what’s up around that bend in the road. This is a solo show reflecting on some of the podcast highlights of the past year, a glimpse into some things already on the calendar. Along with my clinical observations about using the Sa’am acupuncture method in clinical practice, how it has helped me to better understand the connections between the 六經, the six levels and the 五行, the five phases, and some thoughts on the f...
Sometimes takes an instant to know you might fall in love with something. And then it takes years, even decades to unfold all contained in that initial spark. When it comes to the study and practice of Chinese herbs, you’re signing on for a lifetime of learning. Some would see that as a barrier, other’s as an opportunity. The guest of today’s podcast conversation took it as an opportunity. One that not only has helped her to expand her own clinical understanding, but also assist others with thei...
Have you noticed that sometimes, simply when allowing a patient the space to unspool their story something happens. Not only do you hear something vital and important, but the patient might pause as they seemingly for the first time listen to themselves. The 10 questions in Chinese medicine is not just about gathering information so we can find out what is wrong. It is an opportunity to listen our patients into their own wisdom and experience. Listen in as two practitioners of the art discussion...
Page through the Material Medica and it is easy to think that Chinese herbal medicine is one unified body of knowledge and practice. But, it’s not. If you look closely you’ll see that different formulations come from different dynasties. Some were written in times of famine and war, others first penned during heights of peace, cultural exchange and affluence. While it looks like one coherent collection of prescriptions it is actually a history of doctors striving to cope with wildly different co...
Chinese medicine and Korean medicine share a lot of similarities. But there are a few differences. And when it comes to constitutional types, there are some significantly dissimilar perspectives. This is one of the delights of East Asian medicine. Coming across a perspective that is close to something we understand, but different enough to edge us toward either a feeling of “wrong, this can’t be right,” or “oh, I’ve not seen it that way, I wonder how this works.” It’s at the edges of our underst...
We tend to think of movement in mechanical terms. How this muscle contracts, how blood perfuses a certain kind of tissue or how tendons and bones allow for particular kinds of movement. But beyond this we we can see that movement is a kind of vocabulary of the body. It has nuance or not. It has a range of expression or not. And just like micro-nutrients are vital to our metabolism, so to micro movements are vital to our physical wellbeing and nervous system. Today’s conversation is not about tai...
Inflammation is a popular topic in the worlds of both alternative and conventional medicine. It’s a pathologic process that is the result of certain disease processes and the generator of others. It is also something that can be treated very well with East Asian medicine. In this episode we explore how the fundamentals of the Liver/Spleen relationship, the Heart/Kidney axis and digestion in general all can contribute to treating lingering heat in the body. We also take a look at lingering pathog...
The best teachers are perpetual students. They are ones who when things don’t work as expected don’t say the medicine doesn’t work. These people dig into finding out why they don’t yet know how to make it work. While aspects of medicine can be taught, there is much more than can only be discovered. Discovered anew within the experience of each generation. And it is those teachers who can help us along in that this kind of learning to learn who set us off on a life-long voyage of discovery. In th...
It’s easy to think there is one way to take the pulse, and natural to fall back on the habits that formed early on in our learning to attend to this vital aspect of diagnosis and prognosis. Pulse is something our teachers help us to orient toward, but it is our experience and patients who help to understand and learn to trust what we feel. In this episode we have a research scientist’s eye view of the pulse. And how outward beauty is an expression of inward strength and balance. Head on over to ...
Sa’am has a good backstory. The meditative attainment of a Buddhist monk sparks a stream of acupuncture that can be taught to simple monks to help alleviate the suffering of the world. It is a good story. But, more importantly this is a perspective on acupuncture that gives some penetrating insight into the connections between the six levels (六經) and the five phases (五行). This method can help us to work with our patient’s constitutional, physiological and psycho-dynamic process all at the same t...
There are basics, principles, fundamentals, some building blocks of how the matter and energy of creation interact and transform. Over the centuries, through wildly different ideas of illness, health and workings of the human body, doctors have applied these principles to the challenges of their day to relieve suffering. As practitioners, we too are part of this stream. We use the ideas and perceptions of those who came before, and do our best to see how these fundamentals play out in our clinic...
Liver qi constraint might be one of the most common diagnosis in the modern Chinese medicine clinic. But the role of the Liver has changed over time, and at one point it was even considered to be part of the neurological system. In this episode we take a nuanced look at that wide and slippery constellation of symptoms that falls under the general rubric of “stress.” Listen in for a conversation about Chinese medicine from a historical, anthropological and clinical perspective. And be prepared to...
We trace our medicine back to the Nei Jing, but most of our actual practices come from a more modern perspective. Going back to those roots is not easy. Even for native speakers of Chinese, reading the 文言文 wen yan wen, the classic Chinese is difficult. For those of us in the modern West, these ancient texts are challenging. They require not just language, but a minset that views the world from through a completely different set of lenses and prisms than Cartesian and materialistic science offers...
Like hitting black ice, suddenly all sense of traction and stability evaporate into a gut wrenching vertigo. Adverse reactions of our patients to acupuncture can trigger this kind of disorientation. And this is when we have an opportunity to learn something that we didn’t previous know. Adverse reactions could be due to a botched treatment, we were thinking one thing, but did another. Or our diagnosis was off. Or maybe it was on, spot on but the patient’s processing of the treatment gives rise t...
It’s easy for us to think that because we have a darned good English version of the material medica that the centuries of herbal knowledge is at our finger tips. But there is a lot of back story to the medicinals that we use everyday in our practices Where herbs come from, how they are cultivated, how different plants have been used over the centuries; there is a lot we take for granted. Or simply trust our suppliers to have worked out the details of identification and quality. The medicinals we...
These days we worry about getting through school, passing the boards and then getting a practice started. But there was a time when there were no schools, or national accreditation and practicing acupuncture was a felony. That world was not so long ago, and as is often the case, it is difficult to understand the present moment without a sense of the history that it contains. Our guest in this conversation began practicing acupuncture before there was licensing and accreditation. He has a view of...
