Elkin Community Acupuncture | Chinese Medicine

The statements made have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The statements on this website are based principally on traditional knowledge accumulated over thousands of years of Chinese medical practices.

Elkin Community Acupuncture

Elkin, North Carolina

Understanding Chinese Medicine TCM

To many Westerner, Chinese medicine seems mysterious and strange, but understanding the basic principles of Chinese medicine helps to clarify this ancient and lasting system of medicine. Chinese medicine is a practical system of medicine that grew out of empirical traditions and thousands of years of proven results. Chinese medicine actually has five branches of practice including herbalism, acupuncture, Tui-na medical massage, medical Qi Gong, and food therapy.

Most diseases are chronic and begin developing long before a diagnosis has been assessed. The body develops imbalances even before symptoms begin to appear; left unchecked, this imbalance will develop in to a disease pattern. Each individual will develop disease patterns in very individual ways depending on their own personal ‘weak links’ due to genetics, lifestyle choices, and stress levels. Chronic illnesses, by nature, manifest in many different ways as they progress; one disease pattern may have a hundred different symptoms.

Chinese medicine is unique in its ability to approach one disease with many different protocols depending on how the disease manifests itself. Chinese medicine is a very complex medical system, and it is easy for an Oriental medical doctor to over explain the subject and cause greater confusion. Obviously, every detail and nuance cannot be understood without many years of study; however, basic knowledge of Chinese medicine allows people to have a better understanding of how to take responsibility for their own health, and how to make better lifestyle choices regarding their health.

We are learning that our Earth can only take so much abuse, neglect, and toxic build up before the natural balance is disrupted. We are also learning that the resulting negative implications do not creep up on us slowly, but once the critical point of imbalance occurs, change happens quickly. This is true with our health also. We spend years pushing our bodies; we function while sleep deprived, overstressing, and undernourished. We spend many years ignoring or disguising symptoms that are meant to serve as warning bells. Then, it seems, that overnight our body falls apart.

Chinese medicine has always viewed the universe as a

macrocosm, and our bodies as a microcosm that mimics the

natural world. We can learn from our collective experience to

take better care of our environment and act through society to

correct our errors. However, we individually have souvenir

control over our bodies, and must take individual responsibility

to learn how to maintain its’ health and implement our own

systems of preventative health care.

The origins of Chinese medicine are shrouded in

thousands of years of mystery, myth, and ancient

lost texts. One of the oldest surviving texts dates

back to around 2,500 B.C. and is called the Yellow

Emperor's Canon of Internal Medicine. While the

actual written text is only dated back to 1,000 B.C.,

it is thought that it represents and older verbal

tradition.

Much of the theory revolving around Chinese

medicine is based on Taoism, and texts such as

the Tao Te Ching. Taoism and Chinese medicine

revolve around basic Universal Truths, and in

following common sense practices to maintain a

healthy and happy life. In Chinese medicine, it is

not enough to simply be disease free; rather, wellness is viewed as the combination of a thriving body, a clear mind, and a peaceful Spirit. It is only when Body, Mind, and Spirit are unified in balance that one can be well.