There is more to the practice of acupuncture than the application of needles. Acupuncture is a part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), an ancient and complex system that has been evolving over the past five thousand years. Besides acupuncture, TCM also includes herbs, diet and breathing exercises.
The underlying difference between TCM and Western Medicine is how TCM approaches disease and the human body. In TCM no disease is seen as a separate entity (e.g., a virus or bacteria as in Western Medicine), to be attacked and destroyed. Instead, how the individual responds to an invasion by a “Pernicious Evil Influence” is what determines the diagnosis and thus, the treatment. TCM states the body has the potential to cure its own diseases rather than the philosophy of Western Medicine where an external force or chemical provides a cure.
The body and mind are seen as intimately connected in TCM. Each organ in the TCM system correlates to an emotion and when the organ is out of balance the respective emotion is out of balance. For example, Heart disharmony can cause anxiety or insomnia. The opposite is true too, when an emotion is out of balance this can affect the organ; for example, excessive worry can upset the Spleen/Stomach digestive system.
Each organ also has a related taste, which helps soothe it. For example, sweet soothes the Liver organ. When we are stressed, frustrated or angry this adversely affects the Liver organ which then craves sweet to soothe it.
When the body is in balance, we can easily make decisions, which benefit our health and well-being. TCM supports you along your journey to optimal health by reminding the body what it feels like to be in harmony and balance. When a number of acupuncture treatments are received together, the body builds up and holds onto this “memory” of balance for longer and longer periods.
This is in contrast to Western Medicine, where the body is seen as representing one functioning system and the mind is seen as another system.
