Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine
A Different View on Depression
This section explains my personal experiences with depression in acupuncture and Chinese medicine. It also includes various mental and emotional disturbances, showing how traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) views depression and reveals the techniques TCM uses to promote better mental and emotional health. However, before we begin, I must tell you that this condition can be very serious and in many cases the outcome is unpredictable. And I do know that by just being able to talk to someone when you need to, can make all the difference. So if you feel you must speak to someone straight away, Beyond Blue in Australia offers more information plus a telephone support. So call the number on their website. If you live in the USA, go near the bottom of this page from the National Institute of Mental Health and you'll see a list of telephone numbers you can call to speak to a helper. For other countries, please check with your local Health authority or do a search for facilities offered in your country. Now, let's continue... In order to make it easier for you to understand depression or mood disorders, I present here two points of view, one based on the Western medical paradigm and the other on the Chinese medical paradigm. There are in fact, parallels and overlapping ideas in both systems. In this section you'll be able to learn about: What is depression? Are we really depressed? Questions about antidepressant drugs, are they helpful? How acupuncture and Chinese medicine treats depression Shen (heart-consciousness) Disturbance in depression. In my acupuncture and herbal medicine practice, I have observed that the majority of patients who have been diagnosed with depression or mood disorders have in fact manifested various mental and emotional disturbances that we diagnose in TCM as Shen Disturbance. How acupuncture and Chinese medicine prevent depression will tell you more about acupuncture and Chinese medicine's role in the prevention of depression, mood disorders and the promotion of good mental and emotional health. Please keep in mind that information presented here is aimed at helping you understand depression. It does not replace a full diagnosis and treatment by a registered health professional. For the Western trained mind, it is important to consider that acupuncture Chinese medicine and Western medicines are discrete systems. Although they are complimentary, they should be understood separately. There are differences in the ways in which illnesses are described and the causes attributed. Accordingly, treatment methods and the prevention of illness differ. In particular, it is important to know that Chinese medicine is not a disease-oriented model in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Instead, it is a bio-energy based system. Chinese herbal medicine has developed over the past 5,000 years, waxing and waning, as dictated by political and social spheres of the time. Ideas have been constantly tested in clinical practice, the worthless rejected and the useful absorbed. China, being one of the most populated countries in the world, provided a wide and varied supply of patients on which treatments could be tested and proven. Before implementation into mainstream Chinese medical practice, the first test of validity was to prove that its practice gave positive and healthy results. Success was the only proof required. This legacy guaranteed the effectiveness of Chinese medicine and contributed to its survival, right through from its early Shamanistic and Imperial years in China to the new millennium in the West. Today traditional Chinese medicine is a valuable medical system consisting of medical theories, philosophies, lifestyle and self healing practices and best of all, thousands of years of practice and observation by both teachers and practitioners. Drawing on this worthwhile resource has led to the suggestions offered in this article, which is a synthesis of the wide empirical experiences amassed in ancient and modern Chinese health practices. --- P.S: If you find this website useful, feel free to recommend it to a friend.
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