CHINESE MEDICINE:

Chinese medicine is a fully-developed paradigm of medicine that has a documented history of over three-thousand years. It is based on the premise that the body's life-force, termed qi, tends to want to remain in a state of balance, and when this balance is disrupted pathology or disease results. Although enjoying a rediscovery in this country, Chinese medicine is neither fad or "new-age".

In Chinese medicine, there is no separation between body and mind. Each directly influence and regulate each other. . Signs and symptoms are gathered and seen as pieces of a puzzle which can only be viewed in context.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, Qi is believed to be the essence that gives the world, and the individual body, life. Qi moves blood through the body and energizes the organs. This energy is derived partly from our genetic make-up, partly from our breathing, and partly from the food we eat. Signs of deficiency are believed to be, among other things, fatigue, shortness of breath, weak pulse and a pale tongue.

Within the past few years, organizations such as the World Health Organization, the American Medical Association, the British Medical Society and other major Western medical organizations have recognized the benefits and legitimacy of this foreign medical system. It has been said that Chinese and Western medicine fill each others holes. Whereas Chinese medicine doesn't appreciate surgical procedures or shows an efficacy in acute situations, it has been shown to be effective in chronic conditions, pain control, nausea and pathologies not well understood by the West such as fibromyalgia. Further, because of the use of herbal therapies (of which there is also a fully-developed 3,000 year history) and treatment modalities that are "friendly" to the body, it enjoys a certain appeal as a natural form of healing.

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ABOUT ACUPUNCTURE: Acupuncture is the use of extremely fine needles inserted into the body at specific points in the attempt to rebalance the flow of qi. There are over 360 acupoints, the majority of which lay along channels in which the qi flows. Treatment requires the correct choice of points and point combinations.

The needles themselves are typically sterile, single-use items. They are solid and rounded at the tip. Western needles, in contrast are hollow and sharpened. That is why Western needles cause bleeding. They are designed to slice through tissue. Acupuncture needles, on the other hand, separate the tissue. This is a large reason that acupuncture patients experience two unique phenomena: it doesn't hurt and they don't bleed.