Qiological Podcast

Chinese is not that easy, and the 文言文wen yan wen the classical Chinese, that stuff is a whole other order of magnitude in challenge to the modern Western mind. And yet if we are going to practice this medicine with deep roots into a long gone time and culture, we need access to the stepping stones that have been handed down to us over centuries through books and writing. Translating language is one thing. But translating culture, bringing something of the mind and perception from another time, that is a whole other task. It helps if you can understand the poetry, the stories, the world view and beliefs of the time. And it helps if you can track the changes in the meaning of words and ideas across the centuries of commentary. In this episode we are sitting down for tea with a self described "lover of dead languages," for a discussion of Resonance from chapter five of the Simple Questions.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

Forty five years is a long time to have a practice. Especially when you consider that the average American marriage isn't even half that number, and in this day and age people change jobs like they change their hair style.How do you stay interested in something for decades? How do you change with the times? Work through the areas that you don't yet know, and let the practice itself give you insight into how you work?If you've read more than a few books on Chinese medicine, the fingerprints of Dan Bensky has certainly been on at least one of them. In addition to his medicine practice, he's been involved in both the translation and editing of books on Chinese medicine since 1981. He has taught and lectured widely over the years. And is one of the founders of the Seattle Institute of East Asian Medicine.In this episode I sit down for a conversation with Dan with an eye toward the long arc of practice and how while our work centers on patient care, it involves a whole lot more. 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 words "qi and blood stasis" frequently work their way into our diagnosis of a patient's situation. But getting blood stasis from the realm of theory and  into our perceptual vocabulary takes some practice. And this can be quite helpful especially when working with cases that don't resolve the way we think they should.In this conversation we look into how the long term effects of blood stasis can cause problems 5, 10, 20 years down the road that become baffling as the usual stuff just doesn't work. Or makes things worse.Listen in for how paying attention to this commonly seen problem in clinic can help you to improve clinical results and unwind some knotty problems. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

There are currents in our medicine that say we should be very cautious around the heart, in fact, it’s best not to treat it directly. And even in our modern world, treating cardiac issues is something I suspect most of us would feel some uncertainty and anxiousness about as we don’t really get that kind of training here in the West.It is easy when thinking about cardiology to think about ischemic heart events, but most of a cardiologist’s practice is about managing the various risk factors so as to help people avoid a heart attack. Or in dealing with the slow decline of aging and heart failure.In this episode we discuss ways of approaching this vital organ, and how Chinese medicine can be used to promote a healthy heart.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

Fifteen plus years ago when I was living in Beijing and studying medicine and language I was gifted with a copy of Dr. Huang's Ten Key Formula Families in Chinese Medicine.At the time it was an astonishing read, as I'd never been exposed to his ideas about constitutional type and how certain people have an affinity for a particular herb or formula family.It changed how I thought about herbal medicine.And I've been fortunate to have now known Dr. Huang for many years, and had an opportunity to introduce his work to the western world. I was recently in Nanjing for a visit and had an opportunity to sit down with him and some of his foreign Ph.D. students and have a discussion around his latest thoughts on the classic formulas and the practice of medicine. Please enjoy this podcast in either English or Chinese, as I was able to edit for both languages.Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview

在這片podcast我們外國的中醫師和黃煌教授談經方的魅力。

In this solo episode I review the past six months of Qiological and give you a preview on the next six months. Also I'll talking in some depth about the Practice of Business, why SEO is a process, not a product and some thoughts on what makes for an effective website. Finally, I have some news to share with you about being more involved with Qiological.I used to think that business was a necessary evil, but have come around to realizing its a powerful opportunity. And I have my family to thank for that.And speaking of business, your web site is an important part of that. I've some opinions about it too, as mine has become over time an appointment generating machine.If you would like your phone to ring with people saying "I want an appointment" instead of "I have some questions about acupuncture" after they've been on your web site, then you are going to want to listen to this show and take notes. 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 are trained to know a lot about a person from looking and touching. And while we have our “10 questions” or other interviewing checklists, there is a lot that comes from the interview and relationship with the patient that can help us to better understand them and hopefully be of service to them as well.In this conversation we take a look into how the connection we cultivate with our patients can help not only to inform our clinical thinking and treatment, but become an essential part of the therapeutic process as well. Listen in for a discussion on the importance of rapport, why judging our patients is not helpful (but we do it all the time), the power of gaining comfort with uncertainty, and a few gems from the Simple Questions and Classic of The Virtuous WayHead on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

No one gets through Chinese medicine school without some exposure to the Shang Han Lun, and if you're lucky, the Jin Gui Yao Lue as well. But there is a big difference between reading the classics, and understanding how to apply them in our clinical work. What's more, throughout the ages there have been various 專家 (zhuan jia) experts, who have deeply engaged these texts and distilled out a unique perspective that is both rooted the classics and informed by their particular clinical experience. The work of Drs. Hu Xi-Shu and Feng Shi-Lun give us a unique view into the connections and interplay of the 六經 (liu jing) the six levels or confirmations.Listen in as we investigate how illness can span multiple confirmations and how the classic formulas can readily treat complex and confusing clinical presentations. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview. 

Pressure, vibration, puncture, and heat, we know there are a variety of ways to stimulate an acupuncture point. In this episode we explore the clinical use of light, in the form of low-power lasers. And especially for those of you that don’t really understand electricity, the physics of light, or the difference between an LED and the coherent light of a laser, this conversation will be especially helpful as we go over basics that will help you to better understand these devices and how you can use them in your practice.Listen in as we learn how to safely use lasers in clinical practice and what kinds of tissues and points that respond to these devices. Head on over to the show notes page for more information about this episode and for links to the resources discussed in the interview.