Traditional Chinese Medicine (or TCM) is a healing modality that’s been around for thousands of years. In TCM, the human body is not just a collection of separate parts, but a holistic entity that is healthy when it finds inner balance and harmony.
There are two fundamental principles of TCM:
- The idea of Qi, or life energy. TCM practitioners believe that constantly Qi flows through the body, and their job is to ensure a healthy, optimized and resilient flow.
- The idea of yin and yang. Qi can possess either quality. The Yin is the feminine principle, and embodies concepts such as dark, cold, solid, and passive, whereas Yang is the masculine principle that represents light, hollow, hot and active.
TCM states that a healthy body is one where these energies are balanced. When out of balanced, disease and sickness results. The goal, therefore, of TCM, is to balance and maintain the flow of Qi.
TCM is practiced in many ways:
- Tai Chi: These are slow, graceful movements that focus on breath and energy control
- Acupuncture: The practice of inserting ultra-thin needles into the meridian lines along the skin
- Herbal remedies in the form of tinctures, capsules and ground powders
- Cupping: Using heated cups to create suction on the skin’s meridian lines
- Meditation: A way to still, focus and balance the mind
- Moxibustion: The use of burning dried herbs applied close to the skin
You may recognize some of the above practices; meditation and acupuncture, for example, are now far more mainstream.
Four core beliefs of TCM can help us understand its practice:
- Your body is a single, interconnected whole of body, mind and spirit
- Your body is itself connected to all of nature
- Prevention is always better than cure
- The human body is endowed with a natural ability to heal itself
TCM is something that can form a part of everyday life. It’s an excellent approach for everyone, including those are well and want to avoid illness, those who’d like to offset the side effects of Western medicine, or those who have tried Western medicine and found it unhelpful.
