Traditional Chinese Medicine, or TCM, is a collection of ancient medical and therapeutic methods that originated in China and have been practiced there for thousands of years. One of the earliest compilations of Chinese medical practices that are currently known to exist dates back to 2698 B.C. Uninformed individuals commonly believe that Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is all about making use of exotic substances as medicines, such as cow urine and bat excrement.
Additionally, many wrongly believe that TCM practitioners’ diagnoses and treatments are nothing more than guesswork; and that these doctors don’t know how to tell the patient’s symptoms apart.
Traditional Chinese Medicine is a complicated system that has been around for centuries and is effective at treating and managing a wide range of conditions, from sinusitis to muscle spasms. Chinese herbal remedies have also been shown to be effective for everything from migraines to lower back pain.
Wu Xing and the concept of yin and yang serve as the primary foundations for both diagnosis and treatment methods in traditional Chinese medicine, which can be found in Chinese philosophy. In traditional Chinese medicine, the body is viewed as a whole, with distinct parts. The components are designed to work together harmoniously by balancing their naturally opposing ideas.
In addition to performing a physical function, each component is crucial to mental processes. This explains the belief in Chinese medicine that what affects a person’s physical health also affects their mental health, and that every imbalance in the body has an equivalent imbalance in the mind.
This aspect echoes the concepts of yin and yang, which can be summed up as the amalgamation of two opposing but complementary ideas that are in no way superior to one another. When one or the other of the body’s yin or yang becomes more dominant, it is said to cause discord. Human diseases are thought to be caused by this imbalance or discord.
When looking at how the disagreements developed, the Wu Xing factor comes into play. Wu Xing is like the old-style idea of the essential components which are made out of fire, water, wood, earth, and metal. The body contains each of these elements, though their concentrations vary depending on where they are concentrated. A person’s normal state of physical and mental health is the result of the elements working in harmony together.
The elemental balance can be swayed in a variety of ways by internal and external factors that can affect this balance. Theoretically, a person’s health could be impacted by an imbalance between yin and yang caused by an increase in certain elements in areas that carry out particular functions.
The location of the imbalance and the cause of it ultimately determine the course of treatment for the condition, which may include sinusitis, lower back pain, knee pain, visual migraines, insomnia, or any other ailment. Colds and sinusitis, for instance, are frequently attributed to an excess of water in the nasal area, which swayed the balance more toward the yin.
A traditional Chinese physician might prescribe a formula made of herbs and more exotic ingredients to counteract this, suppress the water element, and bring the yin and yang back into balance.
Other treatments that are supported by traditional Chinese medicine include those that involve altering the patient’s diet.
The practice of acupuncture, which involves inserting needles into the skin at specific points on the body to help restore “balance” between the Yin and Yang, is another well-known component or branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The treatment of what Western medicine refers to as mental health disorders, such as anxiety and phobias, is the focus of TCM’s acupuncture branch.
Acupuncture is thought to be a good way to get the body’s “chi,” or internal energy, in balance. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), achieving balance in the human body is just as important as achieving balance in the mind and heart.
However, contemporary TCM practitioners in China are aware that there are times when traditional treatments are unable to restore the body’s natural balance. When such circumstances arise, the patient is typically advised to consult a Western-trained physician.
However, because the majority of Chinese patients and physicians value the “balance” between Eastern and Western medical theory and practice, this does not result in a conflict between the two schools.
Chinese people, for instance, will not have any issues undergoing appendectomy for appendicitis. In the same way, they won’t see anything wrong with using traditional herbal remedies to help recover from surgery or stop appendicitis from happening in the first place. This stands in sharp contrast to the mindset of some practitioners of traditional Western medicine, who frequently view alternative medical philosophies, schools, or theories as merely fictitious.
