Qiological Podcast

This is a series of short conversations with some of the attendees of the Pacific Symposium.Listen in to the wide variety of perspective and practice as it relates to Acupuncture and East Asian MedicineHead on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

Access to acupuncture point location and function has not always been a matter of a few clicks on your mobile phone. This kind of information has not always been at our fingertips. And there is a great wealth of material has not made its way into your digitial library, let alone into English.In this conversation we talk about knowing what’s true in Chinese medicine, the problem of cherry picking resources, and the work of translating a Qing dynasty text on acupuncture.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

Stems and Branches are old Chinese science. Our medicine touches on it, but most of us rely on the more modern perspectives for our clincal work. The Stems and Branches speak to a perspective of the universe and our place in it that is foreign to our minds not because of language and culture, but because we live a world that focus more on humanity than cosmos.In this conversation we touch on the influence of numbers, the spiral nature of unfoldment and change, a few things about the Hun and Po that will surprise you, how time and space give us different glimpses into reality and how a sense of playfulness wtih medicine and philosophy just might be a most wise approach.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

The medicine we practice doesn’t just help us to help others. It can help us to live more deeply into our own lives. The challenges, adversity and difficulties we encounter show us what we are made of and build resiliency. The practices we create are a living expression of who we see ourselves to be. Furthermore, the process of creating a successful practice that we want to work in, it’s an on-going process.Listen into this conversation on the power of mentorship, the transformational influence of having a business, and how being your authentic self is the best way to build a practice you want to work in. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

With Chinese medicine we know that issues of the skin are more than skin deep. That imbalances in the internal environment can manifest on the exterior. And that if we focus solely on what is seen on the surface, we’ll miss the larger picture that is unfolding below.In this conversation we explore dermatological conditions with an eye toward internal organ function, the emotions and how diagnosis can be easy but the treatment more difficult.Listen in to the conversation on healthy skin from the inside out.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

The characters for acupuncture in Chinese, 針灸zhen jiu, literally translate as needle and moxa.You surely were introduced to the cigar-like pole moxa and large cones of smoldering mugwort on slices of ginger or aconite in acupuncture school. Perhaps you also were exposed to the Japanese rice grain moxa techniques or burning balls of moxa on the head of needle. Not surprising there are a variety of forms of using Ai Ye to bring a kind of simulative heat into the body.In this conversation we explore the use of moxa that is combined with touch, rhythm, warmth, and with an eye to the channel dynamics that Yoshio Manaka, one of the great masters of the 20th century, wrote about in Chasing the Dragon’s Tail.Even if you don’t use much moxa in your clinical, you’ll find this percussive bamboo method goes beyond the simple induction of heat into the body. And indeed can be used in a variety of contexts where you’d usually employ a needle, but in this case, it’s motion, rhythm and moxa.Listen in to this conversation that will have you looking at moxibustion in a whole new way.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

Musculoskeletal issues are the bread and butter of many acupuncture practices. Many people only think of acupuncture when they think about the treatment of pain, and not without good reason. Acupuncture is helpful in the treatment of pain. And as acupuncturists we know we could probably do a lot better too.In this conversation we explore the use of the Dao Zhen, the knife needle. But more importantly, we take a look at how the body is put together. And how to “see” the story of a person’s physiology. Listen in for a conversation about understanding structure and function and a surprising method of needling.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

We pride ourselves on being connected to an ancient medicine, to a way of thinking, working and treating that ties us back to the luminaries of our field. But medicine is always influenced by the times. And the influences that brought Chinese medicine to the west, and the ways we learned it shape our thought and practice.In this conversation we discuss the difference between 辨證理論 bian zheng li lun, pattern differentiation, and 陰陽五行 yin yang wu xing, the transformation of yin and yang through the five phases. And take a look at how 醫 yi, medicine differs from what’s commonly called TCM.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

Resonance, 感應 gan ying, is an aspect of Chinese philosophy that runs through many aspects of our medicine.We see resonance as we look through the unfolding of life through the five phases. The way we see east, spring, liver, green, beginnings and wood as having shared energies; the way they resonant the phase of wood. We see it in the how the six conformations express health or illness through five phase relations that are emblematic of each side of the conformation. The way Tai Yang can express with the cold of the Urinary Bladder, or the heat of the Small Intestine. The way Shao Yang Gall Bladder and San Jiao tend to go outwards, while the Jue Yin aspects of Liver and Pericardium move inward.Resonance is built into how we work. And in this conversation we explore how resonant nature of music and vibration can be used in our clinical practice. Along with a look at the kind of knowing that arises when you have the ability to cozy up to irrationality.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.  

We all know that Tech is part of a modern practice. And regardless of whether we love it, or hate it, it plays a central role in our day to day operations, marketing and communications.Just like our patients find the language of Chinese medicine to be confusing. Many practitioners find the language and work flow around technology to be foreign territory. Where to find a translator who can speak our language? Right here on the podcast!Listen in to this conversation as we discuss tech in a down to earth way with an acupuncturist who used to inhabit the high-tech world. Tech really is not so difficult when you understand some fundamentals. You might even find you have some fun with this stuff. Especially after you learn not only how to get yourself onto the first page of Google on a local search, but also make your phone ring with people looking for an appointment.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.