A Different Oriental Art
For the past six months, I have been studying a different kind of Oriental art and my belly dancing has largely gone by the wayside as a result of the demands on my time. I have been studying medical acupuncture through a course taught by the Helms Institute of Medical Acupuncture, accredited by the David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA.
My first exposure to acupuncture began six years ago during my residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Many of the staff physicians had taken the Helms course and were using it to augment their out-patient clinic treatments. At that time, I learned of only a handful of acupuncture procedures from the staff as I was rather busy as it was. Later, once I was settled into clinical practice, I enrolled in the Helms course and flew to California last fall (2006) for an introductory weeklong unit. I received lectures and hands-on practice every day. I learned new concepts and approaches to medical problems as well as a new vocabulary. Some of the concepts were difficult to grasp such as the internal organs over-seeing energy movement and emotions. For example, a nauseated stomach is referred to as having "rebellious stomach qi" (qi is pronounced "chi"). The stomach is also associated with the emotion of worry.
After the introductory unit, I returned home with over 40 DVD's to view and answer test questions upon. At times, I had to stretch my mind to grasp some of the concepts, some of which seemed based more in a poetic realm than in a scientific sense. For example, in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the kidneys are considered the source of qi. The meaning of the word qi is a close match to the English definition of "energy." However, there are different forms of qi, such as rong qi (pron."rong chi") meaning "nourishing energy" and wei qi (pron. "way chi") meaning defensive energy.
Another concept that differed from the Western school of thought was that of the definition of good health. Here in the West and in a very broad sense, good health is generally considered as having no significant medical problems such as heart disease, obesity, or diabetes. In TCM, good health is considered having balanced life forces, the "yin" and "yang", as well as living a balanced life: physically, mentally, and spiritually. If an imbalance occurs in one sphere, this affects the balance of another and then possibly more depending on the severity and duration of the problem. In the West, health providers might find it difficult to grasp the concept of analyzing numerous facets of a person's life as well as their life choices in respect to health problems.
Foremost, who has the time in our HMO-dominated healthcare system to truly get to know patients and what makes them tick? However, the TCM approach finds it difficult to grasp why it is that Western Medicine often only treats the tip of the iceberg in regards to many healthcare problems. Granted our Western pharmaceuticals are a powerful tool to prescribe patients in order to remedy many health problems. Yet, for example, one of the concepts in TCM is that the first medicine a person takes every day is their food and drink. If a person chooses to eat greasy food and drink sugary soda on a regular basis, they are literally medicating themselves with that grease and sugar. Perhaps, and again in a very broad sense, I might summarize that TCM incorporates many more elements of a preventive and nutritional medicinal approach to healthcare.
In regards to acupuncture, it is just one aspect of TCM. It is a useful tool, but it would be incorrect to linearly believe that is a cure-all to many ailments. Again, the true aim of TCM is that of restoration of balance to one's life. Acupuncture, used in conjunction with appropriate medical treatment (whether one lives in the West or East), making diet and lifestyle changes, and seeking harmony from daily demands and life stressors, can be highly effective treatment. I recently attended the third and final clinical unit for certification to practice medical acupuncture, and I am very glad that I took the course. I look forward to not only using acupuncture in clinic but also taking a somewhat different approach to treating patients. I am also planning on adjusting some of my own personal habits, and lastly, I am very much looking forward to returning to more belly dancing again!
An informative website by the NIH with many Q&A's on acupuncture is located here:
Acupuncture NCCAM Health Information