Qiological Podcast
Michael Max
Acupuncture and East Asian medicine was not developed in a laboratory. It does not advance through double-blind controlled studies, nor does it respond well to petri dish experimentation. Our medicine did not come from the statistical regression of randomized cohorts, but from the observation and treatment of individuals in their particular environment. It grows out of an embodied sense of understanding how life moves, unfolds, develops and declines.
Medicine comes from continuous, thoughtful practice of what we do in clinic, and how we approach that work. The practice of medicine is more — much more — than simply treating illness. It is more than acquiring skills and techniques. And it is more than memorizing the experiences of others. It takes a certain kind of eye, an inquiring mind and relentlessly inquisitive heart.
Qiological is an opportunity to deepen our practice with conversations that go deep into acupuncture, herbal medicine, cultivation practices, and the practice of having a practice. It’s an opportunity to sit in the company of others with similar interests, but perhaps very different minds. Through these dialogues perhaps we can better understand our craft.
Medicine comes from continuous, thoughtful practice of what we do in clinic, and how we approach that work. The practice of medicine is more — much more — than simply treating illness. It is more than acquiring skills and techniques. And it is more than memorizing the experiences of others. It takes a certain kind of eye, an inquiring mind and relentlessly inquisitive heart.
Qiological is an opportunity to deepen our practice with conversations that go deep into acupuncture, herbal medicine, cultivation practices, and the practice of having a practice. It’s an opportunity to sit in the company of others with similar interests, but perhaps very different minds. Through these dialogues perhaps we can better understand our craft.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Nov 12, 2024 • 1h 14min
382 Reconsidering Ren One • Orit Zilberman & Hila Yaffe
When thinking about our toolkit, most acupuncturists, and patients too for that matter, think about needles. Our job, it’s to use those whisper thin slivers of steel with skill and accuracy. But sometimes the best tool for the job might not be a needle.In this conversation with Orit Zilberman and Hila Yaffee we consider the use of Hui Yin, Ren One.For sure this point it’s important and there are challenges to using and learning to use this influential meeting of yin.Listen into this discussion on both the trauma and healing that can result from working with Ren One, how our own image of what it means to be a doctor can influence how we think about working with this point, and some non-needle ways to powerfully unlock the capacity for healing at the Meeting of Yin.
Nov 5, 2024 • 1h 7min
381 Daoist Medicine, Ritual and Talisman • Lindsey Wei
Ever wonder about the unseen forces that shape health and illness? Sometimes it’s the things we can’t measure that hold the most sway. Healing isn’t always about what we see, but what we’re willing to explore.In this episode, we sit down with Lindsey Wei, a practitioner deeply rooted in the world of Daoist medicine. She has spent years blending the physical practices of qigong and martial arts with the mystical art of talismans, incantations, and ritual healing. She brings a unique perspective on what it means to heal both the body and spirit.Listen into this discussion as we explore the workings behind Daoist talismans, how the celestial realm might influence your well-being, and how movement and ritual intertwine in martial arts. There’s more here than meets the eye, as we explore the boundaries between science and spirit, logic and mystery—and how these might be a little more porous than you realize.
Oct 29, 2024 • 1h 21min
380 History Series, Building Bridges with Modern Healthcare • Bill Egloff
Being in business is not just about tracking the financial health of your enterprise. It is about having a mission worth engaging, a kind of fire in the belly that fuels you through the difficult parts, and a sense for working at the edge of your capacity.Having a business and all that goes with it, it gives you the opportunity to grow into potentials you can only dream about in the middle of a difficult night.Our guest in this History Series conversation, Bill Egloff has been helping patients and practitioners for a long time with the products and services he’s provided over the years. He’s got a keen eye for business, regulatory details, and working with seemingly competing interests. It’s a long road from running a natural foods store to collaborating with Sloan Kettering on cancer patients.As with the other history series pioneers, there have been some interesting forks in the road worth taking.
Oct 22, 2024 • 1h 29min
379 The Art of Inquiry • Vance Crowe
In acupuncture school we learn the 10 questions, which will get you some information. But it’s more interrogative than rapport building, more about eliciting information than revealing meaning.Listening with a mindset of noticing the small anomalies. Listening to understand someone from their own point of view. To be inquisitive about how the difficulties might hold unrevealed lessons, and how troubles are lessons in progress.It’s more than having an unfettered sense of curiosity, there’s something else that goes into it.In this conversation with Vance Crowe we explore the transformative potential of conversations that invite the stories that haven’t had an audience. Like many of us, Vance did not set out to do what he does. It found him.Listen into this discussion on rapport, connection, surprise and delight. Often enough, there’s a harvest of wisdom that comes with following the threads that are usually just out of sight.
Oct 15, 2024 • 1h 36min
378 The Sixth Element • Slate Burris
We have the two of yin and yang, the three of the jing, qi, shen, the four levels of pathogenic invasion from the Wen Bing, the Five Phases of the Wu Xing and the Six Elements— wait a minute, Six Elements?Have you ever wondered why the Classics speak to the Five Zang and Six Fu? Especially when we have an equal balance of yin and yang meridians. And what is going on with those two troublesome organs, the Triple Burner and Pericardium that have a “function” but no form? Furthermore, have ever wondered how it is that Fire gets four organs, but all the other elements only two?Our guest in this conversation Slate Burris had those questions as well. He’s an inquisitive guy, so he went looking. What he found is surprising, and once pointed out— a bit obvious as well.Listen into this conversation on the Sixth Element, how that can guide your clinical work, the power of palpation to track what is happening in the moment for patients, and how one needle in the right place can set off a domino effect that dramatically changes your patient’s physiology.
Oct 8, 2024 • 1h 41min
377 Constitution and Condition • Peter Eckman
In our work as acupuncturists, we use differential diagnosis to understand the warp and woof of a patient’s problem, to see how various seemingly marginally connected aspects of their problem give us the pattern that allows for skillful intervention. We also look at constitutional factors, those aspects of our patients that provide a kind of gravity and centering to their life and how they live it.Both aspects need our consideration in clinical practice. In this conversation with Peter Eckman we discuss the differences between a person’s constitution and their condition. Both give us a handle on working with people, but these are very different aspects of our make up.How are they different? And how to approach work with these? Listen in, there’s a lot to discuss.
Oct 1, 2024 • 1h 23min
376 Ba Zi, Revealing the Influence of Character • Howard Chen
We are encoded beings. There is a song that plays out through the patterning of our DNA. We are influenced by the tides of culture, family and peers. And there is a great turning of Stems and Branches that leaves an imprint on our mind/body as we enter the world.The Ba Zi is a description of the moment we enter this world, it’s the weather we carry with us from that first breath. It shows tendencies of expression, not unlike how DNA plays a familiar rhythm through us.In this conversation with Howard Chen we explore the Ba Zi and in particular the influence of the Day Master, which is a helpful place to begin when sorting through the complex interrelationships of the phases, especially if you’re a practitioner of acupuncture.Listen into this conversation on why we have tendencies to rely on our generation or control cycle, how our superpower is a resource and at times trouble to overcome, and how we can balance out the wobbles we all carry that make us uniquely ourselves.
Sep 24, 2024 • 1h 21min
375 History Series, A Love Affair with Herbs • Cara Frank
In this History Series episode we time-travel with the vivacious Cara Frank. Her story begins in the gritty, creative pulse of 1970s New York City, where as a teenager, she was navigating the counter cultural scene. Her first encounter with acupuncture was anything but ordinary—an illegal treatment that changed her life and set her on the path she travels today.Cara’s journey is a tapestry woven with threads of rebellion, discovery, and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. From the scarring moxa treatments of Dr. So, to her worldview changing with the discovery of herbs in a Beijing hospital. Cara’s story is one of exploration and deep connection to the roots of Chinese medicine practice. Listen in as we explore the alchemy of Cara’s life in Chinese medicine—as she reflects on the influential figures who guided her, her insights into the community's growth and the importance of mentorship. All with her hardscrabble wisdom, humor, and a dash of New York grit.
Sep 17, 2024 • 1h 33min
374 Saam Acupuncture- Modern Korean Practice • Andreas Bruch
You’re probably somewhat familiar with the four needle technique. It’s an innovation said to have arisen through the meditative practice of the Korean Buddhist monk Saam, roughly four hundred years ago.It has since been passed down both through the monastic tradition, and used as well by ordinary doctors. Today you’ll also find the “Saam Method” used in academic research studies and employed as a key part of their acupuncture practice by Korean practitioners.In this conversation with Andreas Brüch we explore the more modern thinking and application of Saam as it’s used by Korean doctors today. He’s spent 20 years studying with some of those doctors and using the method in his work.Listen in to this discussion on organ pairs, phase energetics, six qi influences, a psycho-emotive model that expands your thinking, and how the Sam Boo character of the transport points can help you to select individual points to add focused potency to your treatments.
Sep 10, 2024 • 1h 7min
373 Softening Our Gaze- Shiatsu and the Inner Landscape • Joyce Vlaarkamp
How we engage the mind can have an effect on our wellbeing in profound ways.What is even more interesting is how the mind and body interact. We are all familiar how the emotions can be the source of internally generated illness, and we are all familiar with how injury or illness can in turn have an effect on our emotional life.Some would go so far as to say all physical illness is rooted in the emotions. To me that seems a bit simplistic. but I’d agree that our physiology and the internal “climate” generated by the emotions… they are not disconnected.In this conversation with Joyce Vlarrkamp we discuss the inner landscape, not just of the patient, but the practitioner as well. Along with the metaphors and imagery through which patients navigate their experience. If you’re keen on investigating the inner landscape, you’ll enjoy this conversation.
