There is a great deal of confusion as to what to call what we do. We are called "acupuncturists" but acupuncture is only one modality utilized in our medicine. Herbal medicine, massage, nutrition, moxibustion, gua sha, cupping to name a few therapies, evolved together over centuries into what today constitutes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). The term TCM is also problematic. TCM, Oriental Medicine(OM), Chinese Medicine, and Traditional Asian Medicine (TAM) are often used interchangeably. The medicine originated in China and was exported over the years to neighboring countries which modified and developed their own styles. Currently Traditional Chinese Medicine is what is emphasized in most American acupuncture schools with Japanese and Korean styles being also very popular. At our clinic, we received the foundation of our training at a lineage-based, Chinese owned school. However, our current needling style is influenced by Japanese acupuncture. The term Oriental Medicine has often been used to give credit to other traditions based on TCM that evolved in the counties surrounding China that are often used by American practitioners. However, currently many are trying to change the term to the more politically correct Traditional Asian Medicine (TAM).We choose to use the term TCM, though it continues to be a problematic term, because it is the most popular and commonly understood term for our medicine.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), has its origins at least 2,500 years ago in China (according to the oldest written records, 5,000 years ago according to some experts.) TCM is an extremely sophisticated system of medicine. It is not a "folk" medicine as we in West sometimes call it, nor is it based on superstitions. TCM developed over a few millenia of scholarly and practical trial and error. It is based on the concepts of Daoism, Buddhism, and Confusionism, although today it is mostly secular in its practice. The focus of TCM is on balancing the Yin and Yang of the body and the 5 elements, which creates a state of health. The ideal is to deal with imbalances before they manifest as serious disease and to achieve a higher standard of health. TCM employs numerous modalities. The most common are acupuncture, herbal medicine (internal and external), moxibustion, nutrition, cupping, tuina (Chinese massage), and Qigong.
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