Traditional Chinese Medicine

TCM practices include such treatments as herbal medicine (中药), acupuncture, dietary therapy, and both Tui na and Shiatsu massage. Qigong and Taijiquan are also closely associated with TCM.

TCM is rooted in meticulous observation of nature, the cosmos, and the human body, and is many thousands of years old. Major theories include those of Yin Yang, the Five Phases, the meridian system and Zang Fu organ theory,

Much of the philosophy of traditional Chinese medicine derives from the same philosophy that inform Taoist and Buddhist thought, and reflects the classical Chinese belief that the life and activity of individual human beings have an intimate relationship with the environment on all levels.

Diagnostic techniques may include:

• Palpation of the patient's radial artery pulse (pulse diagnosis) in six positions
• Observations of patient's tongue, voice, hair, face, posture, gait, eyes, ears, vein on index finger of small children
• Palpation of the patient's body (especially the abdomen, chest, back, and lumbar areas) for tenderness or comparison of relative warmth or coolness of different parts of the body
• Observation of the patient's various odors
• Asking the patient about the effects of their problem.
• Anything else that can be observed without instruments and without harming the patient
• Asking detailed questions about their family, living environment, personal habits, food diet, emotions, menstrual cycle for women, child bearing history, sleep, exercise, and anything that may give insight into the balance or imbalance of an individual.

Methods of treatment

• Acupuncture is a technique in which the practitioner inserts fine needles into specific points on the patient's body. The intended effect is to increase circulation and balance energy (Qi) within the body.
• Chinese food therapy - Dietary recommendations are usually made according to the patient's individual condition in relation to TCM theory. The "five flavors" (an important aspect of Chinese herbalism as well) indicate what function various types of food play in the body. A balanced diet, which leads to health, is when the five functional flavors are in balance. When one is diseased (and therefore unbalanced), certain foods and herbs are prescribed to restore balance to the body.
• Chinese herbal medicine In China, herbal medicine is considered as the primary therapeutic modality of internal medicine. Of the approximately 500 Chinese herbs that are in use today, 250 or so are very commonly used. Rather than being prescribed individually, single herbs are combined into formulas that are designed to adapt to the specific needs of individual patients
• Cupping: A type of Chinese massage, cupping consists of placing several glass "cups" (open spheres) on the body. A match is lit and placed inside the cup and then removed before placing the cup against the skin. As the air in the cup is heated, it expands, and after placing in the skin, cools down, creating a lower pressure inside the cup that allows the cup to stick to the skin via suction. When combined with massage oil, the cups can be slid around the back, offering what some practitioners think of as a reverse-pressure massage.
• Gua Sha as above but with a scraping technique
• Tui na massage: a form of massage akin to acupressure (from which shiatsu evolved). Choreography often involves thumb presses, rubbing, percussion, and stretches.
• Exercise recommendations