Korean & Chinese medicine
Chinese and Korean medicine has existed for over 2,000 years, and continues to be used today in both countries alongside modern medical treatments. Since the 1970s it has spread across the Western world, bringing with it a philosophy, logic and treatment methodology very different from Western medicine.
It is based on the idea that no single part can be understood except in relation to the whole. Whereas Western medicine identifies a particular symptom and traces it back to a specific cause, Chinese and Korean medicine looks at a symptom as part of the bigger picture of a patient's health. If a person has a complaint, the practitioner wants to know how it fits into the patient's entire being and behaviour.
Reading the whole pattern
- Diet
- Lifestyle — sleep, exercise, alcohol
- Demeanour and mood
- Facial complexion
- Pulse
- Colour of the tongue
- Quality of voice
- Posture
- Constitution
- Psychological wellbeing
As the pieces are put together, the symptom or complaint can be understood within an overall pattern. The skilled practitioner can then prescribe the right treatment, or combination of treatments, to restore a healthy balance.
See the treatments