create the problems with breathing. Further, rather than considering, for example, a person’s insomnia, headaches, digestive problems, breathing difficulties, and anxiety as separate issues, TEAM will look at ALL of those together as symptoms of a larger root cause and then treat the root, anticipating that the interrelated branches to other parts of the body will all improve as the root becomes healthier. Thus, a TEAM patient does not have five problems in the above example (that would be treated in conventional medicine with five or more solutions), they have one problem. An acupuncturist treats that root problem, which rebalances the system, thereby treating all of the problems simultaneously.
I don’t want to dissuade anyone from conventional medicine,” adds Smith. “I take pharmaceuticals. I see a surgeon when my ankle needs to be addressed. But I don’t think medications and surgery should always be the first choice or the only choice for care. I use many integrative therapies—like acupuncture and herbs—alongside conventional medicine. By explaining how acupuncture works and how it might benefit them, my goal is to empower people to do the same if they so choose.”
Smith is the founder of Chicago Healing Center, located in Chicago, Illinois. Demystifying Acupuncture: Modern Answers About Ancient Medicine is available at Amazon, Walmart,
57th Street Books, etc. For additional information on Sina Smith or Chicago Healing Center, please visit www.sinasmithmd.com.