Chinese Medicine Remedial Massage for TCM practitioners and students - Please click here for futher information.

Chinese medical theory and practice is based upon a sophisticated diagnostic and therapeutic body of knowledge that has evolved over at least two thousand years and through many historical traditions. The present body of knowledge is the result of many of these traditions and practices having been amalgamated into a more coherent and structured system, commonly known as Chinese Medicine (CM). The diagnostic categories of CM describe recurring clinical patterns, taking into account both subjective symptoms and objective signs. These diagnostic categories have been used with relative consistency over twenty centuries of recorded clinical practice. This rich clinical legacy is now well recognised throughout the world and the Victorian government has recently legislated to register CM as a health-care profession.

According to the CM paradigm, both health and disease are defined by specific characteristics. These include not only the absence or presence of discomfort and pain, regularity of sleep, digestive, respiratory, sexual and other behaviours but also observable qualities in the patient’s mental function and demeanour as well as the pulse, tongue, skin, hair and other physical attributes. In this way, CM is an holistic form of medicine, which views the interaction between the mind, body and spirit as an integral part of the disease pattern and the restoration of health.

CM shares some ideas with other forms of complementary medicine, including belief in a strong interrelationship between the environment and bodily function and an understanding of illness as starting with an imbalance of energy or ‘vital force’. This is defined as Qi, a fundamental substance that has the potential to activate all bodily functions and therefore is an essential force requiring manipulation in the process of restoring health. Underpinning this vital flow of Qi is the ancient philosophical concept of Yin and Yang. This concept is a sophisticated interpretation of the natural forces operating within both the external environment of nature and the internal environment of living beings.

Disease occurs when the relevant healthy balance of Yin and Yang is affected. This imbalance may occur as a result of external influences such as environmental factors, pathogens, dietary irregularities and/or internal stress-related emotional problems which may result from lifestyle irregularities. The CM view is that it is often a combination of these external and internal influences that may lead to ill health.

CHINESE MEDICINE(CM) PRACTICE

CM is employed in the treatment of both acute and chronic illnesses and it includes:

• Chinese herbal medicine
• Acupuncture and ancillary techniques
• Dietary, exercise and lifestyle advice
• Chinese massage

Treatment is aimed at restoring the vital balance of Yin and Yang within a holistic framework by assisting the person’s innate physiological and, where appropriate, psychological powers of healing. CM physicians consider lifestyle, dietary, environmental and emotional factors as part of the assessment and treatment of disease.

CM places a strong emphasis on disease prevention and health maintenance and the empowerment of clients to play an active role in their own health. Clients are encouraged to learn about the many factors influencing their health and to have regular treatment to maintain Yin /Yang balance.

More about TCM