Traditional Chinese Medicine TCM Theories

Traditional Chinese Medicine

By Catherine Browne, L.Ac., MH, Dipl.Ac.

Basic Principles:

Water Element

Wood Element

Fire Element

Earth Element

Metal Element

To many Westerner, Chinese medicine seems mysterious and strange, but understanding the basic principles of Chinese medicine as outlined above will clarify this ancient and lasting system of medicine. It helps to understand that 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 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 within us. Chinese medicine is not a quick study, and this website is designed to help clarify these health conditions and explain some treatment options according to Chinese medicine for the lay person.

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. Every effort has been made to simplify Chinese medical concepts and still remain true to the core theories and concepts of Chinese medicine to make this healing system more accessible to the general public.

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.

While many traditional systems of herbalism in the West utilized similar energetic diagnostic systems to Chinese medicine, those systems have not survived intact through the eradication of Native American culture, and the domination of Science based pharmaceutical medicine in Europe and the U.S. Chinese medicine has also suffered from broken lines of tradition, lost or destroyed texts, and political pressures that have changed Traditional Chinese Medicine over the centuries; however, it is one of the few traditional systems of medicine the has maintained a functional set of theories.

For information on Chinese Medicine, visit the National Library of Medicine, the The Chinese Medical Journal, or Chinese Medicine News. This is not an endorsement of these organization, just a resource guide.

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