THE FONDAMENTAL ELEMENT : THE HARMONY

Most of our treatments are based on the philosophy of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

 Here is below a very small view of this ART….

Chinese medical theory is strongly influenced by Taoist beliefs and the ancient philosophers' view of the cosmic law and structure, the universal order, the mystery of life and man's place within that structure. This theory has become the philosophy that governs how people should live their life. It is about discipline, responsibility, values and the best ways to live in harmony with the Universe and has not changed since ancient times. It has been most practical and effective in guiding the huge Chinese population to take care of their health.

A description is used to say that “The Human Being is between the Sky (he breaths the air) and the Earth (he nourishes his body with the food from the Earth)”.

So he constantly has to adjust himself to his environment (climates, people, food), as well as to adjust with himself (emotions, harmony of energy between the organs), to stay “in good health”.

The Traditional Chinese Medicine considers that 12 main meridians run through all the body, connecting the organs, and allowing the energy (the QI) to flow.

The free flow of the energy ensures health and harmony.

We can work on the circulation of this energy, on specific points, by massaging, manipulating, pressing, inserting needles (acupuncture, Tui Na massage, moxibustion and pharmacopoeia).
The result will be to release blockages and to help the free flow of the energy (Qi) and the blood.

	YIN YANG

The Yin Yang theory holds that all phenomena consist of two opposite aspects, yin and yang, which are variously defined as: up and down, left and right, light and dark, hot and cold, stillness and movement, substance and function, etc.

The movements and changes of yin and yang give impetus to the development of everything "Yin and yang are the law of Heaven and Earth, the outline of everything, the parents of change, the origin of birth and destruction...."

Yin and yang represent two opposite aspects of every object and its implicit conflict and interdependence.

Fox example, anything that is moving, ascending, bright, progressing, hyperactive, including functional disease of the body, pertains to yang.

The characteristics of stillness, descending, darkness, degeneration, hypoactivity, including organic disease, pertain to yin.

The nature of yin and yang is relative. According to Yin-Yang theory, everything in the Universe can be divided into the two opposite but complementary aspects of yin and yang and so on ad infinitum. For example, day is yang and night is yin, but morning is understood as being yang within yang, afternoon is yin within yang, evening before midnight is yin within yin and the time after midnight is yang within yin. As the Suwen states, "Yin and yang could amount to ten in number, be extended to one hundred, to one thousand, to ten thousand and ever to the infinite."

The theories of Yin-Yang and Five Elements were the creation and development of the ancient Chinese through their long and faithful tradition of observing nature's cycles and changes. They held that wood, fire, earth, metal, and water were the basic substances constituting the material world. These five basic substances were considered an indispensable part of daily life. They also noted that the material world is in a constant state of flux due to the dynamic movement and mutual antagonism of yin and yang factors.

The ancient Chinese applies these two theories in the medical field to explain the physiological activities and pathological changes of the human body, and to serve as a guide to the clinical treatment on the basis of syndrome differentiation.
These theories have become an important composent of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

	THE LIVING ENERGY : Qi

There is nothing more fundamental to Chinese Medicine than the understanding of the concept of Qi.
Qi is the life force, the vital energy within us. When Qi gathers, we live. When Qi disperses, we die. It is a combination of all the energy within our body to sustain life, control activities and maintain well being.

Every movement of our body requires Qi. Qi is constantly moving, ascending, descending, entering and leaving the body. Qi is there to warm the body, to protect the body from external factors, to transform food and air into body fluids and blood, and to facilitate the body functions.

When Qi is in harmony, we enjoy good health. But there are times when disharmony exists. The deficiency of Qi to carry out simple activities is common with older people. There could be stagnancy of Qi that leads to sluggish flow or blockage. The sinking of Qi can cause organs to collapse. Rebellious Qi occurs when Qi flows in the wrong direction. All sickness could be diagnosed or tracked down to any one of these disharmonies. Chinese medicine brings intervention to the disharmony by acupuncture, herbal medicine and the exercise Qigong to restore the proper flow of Qi.

Qi has a vital relationship with blood and body fluids. It produces blood; it moves blood around the body and holds the blood in the blood vessels. It is doing the same for body fluids. In turn, blood nourishes Qi and carries Qi to all the organs, muscles, tendons and body parts. Body fluids are essential for maintaining healthy Qi and maintaining blood at the right consistency so that it will not stagnate, causing illness. Qi is also vital in moving the bowels, moving the wastage out of the body. When Qi is deficient, the person will suffer constipation.

	THE BLOOD

Blood is transformed from the essence of food via the digestion and absorption of the spleen and stomach. According to the Lingshu, "When the middle jiao (one of the 12 meridians) receives food and water, it transforms it into red fluid which is called blood. After its formation, blood circulates incessantly throughout the body to nourish the organs, the skin, the muscles, tendons, and bones in order to maintain their normal physiological activities.

The following table describes the characteristics of our vital organs.

Each season and climate has adverse effects on one of our organs.
However, during this time of vulnerability, it is also the time when we can treat and benefit the organ by feeding it with the right nutrition.

The five tastes (Sour, bitter, sweet, pungent and salty) are found to have health promotional effects on the five organs. For example, sweet benefits the spleen and digestion. That is why dessert is good after meals. But too much of a good thing can be bad. If the diet has too much sweet taste, it dampens the spleen system and makes it very sluggish and not able to function properly. Likewise, too much salt can lead to kidney stones. Meals with good balance of the five tastes are most beneficial to our health. 

Emotions can have damaging effects on our vital organs. Too much sadness damages our lungs. Over joyfulness causes heart attacks. Extreme anger hurts our livers. Too much worrying causes indigestion. Extreme frightfulness damages our kidneys.

	Mind & Emotion

Our mind and emotions play an important part in determining our wellness. They are the internal factors that affect the proper flow of energy and control internal harmony.

Anger covers a full range of emotions including resentment, irritability and frustration. Anger is found to affect the liver, resulting in the stagnation of liver function. It leads the liver energy to rise to the head, causing headaches and dizziness. Over a long period of time, it may cause high blood pressure and problems with the spleen system.

Joy refers to over excitement rather than the ordinary sense of happiness. When people are overexcited, their body temperature rises quickly, their heart beats faster and is stressed. Heart fire results in agitation, insomnia, palpitations and exerts undue pressure on the other organs. It certainly disturbs the internal harmony of yin and yang forces.

Worry comes from over thinking or too much mental and intellectual stimulation.
Any such activities run the risk of upsetting peace of mind and internal harmony. The organ mostly affected is the spleen. It leads to loss of spleen energy, indigestion and lost of appetite. All these can intensify worry and result in fatigue, lethargy, and inability to concentrate and think clearly. When the digestive system is affected, it fails to nourish the other organs and results in organ malfunctions. If the problem is not rectified early, it can cause permanent damage.

Sadness and grief affect lungs. When sadness in not temporary and is chronic,
it creates disharmony to the lungs and weakens its functions. This will manifest into insufficient energy to the whole body creating other levels of disharmony.

Fear is a normal and adaptive human emotion. But when fear is chronic, it leads to disharmony in the kidneys. In case of extreme fright, the kidney loses its ability to hold energy and may result in enuresis. This is quite common to children when they encounter fear. When kidney energy is deficient, a whole series of problems affecting the balance of body fluid will occur, affecting bones and marrow and in turn affecting the well being of the brain.

Mind and emotions have a far-reaching impact on our state of health.
Most Chinese exercises like yoga, Qigong and tai chi are to train the mind to be in the mindless state. By clearing the mind from thoughts and emotions, the body can reach a state of calmness so that the energies within it can control each other to achieve harmony and self-healing.