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Mental Health and
Chinese Medicine
‘Body-mind therapy’ can help
with many anxiety disorders
By Tara Bissell, M.Ac., Dipl.Ac., L.Ac., Artemesia
More Common Than You Think:
Mental health is a topic that is close
to us all: 18 percent of the population (nearly one in five people)
has some form of anxiety disorder,
which includes anxiety and panic
attacks and obsessive-compulsive
and post-traumatic stress disorders.
Despite the prevalence of these disorders, many people are reluctant
to discuss their mental-emotional
issues with others, causing many of
them to bear these stressors alone.
Many people, in fact, do not even
seek treatment. Racing thoughts,
excessive worry, sudden fearfulness, awareness of one’s heartbeat,
light-headedness, low mood ... these
are a few of the common experiences within anxiety disorders.
Conventional treatments, including
counseling and pharmaceuticals,
may not be the ideal solution for
everyone – and even with those
therapies, many people continue to
feel something is still “off ” with their
inner sense of well-being.
Chinese Medicine Has Much to
Offer: Chinese medicine is a complete medical model that originated
in ancient China over 2,000 years
ago. It encompasses acupuncture,
acupressure, tuina (medical massage), cupping, moxabustion (a
warming herbal pain-relief therapy)
and Chinese herbalism. Inherent in
this medicine is the view that body,
mind and spirit are all connected
and they interact within the person
to produce their state of well-being.
Chinese medicine is often known
as a “body-mind therapy,” so it is a
great fit for treatment of anxiety disorders that manifest with a mixture
of mental, emotional and physical
symptoms.
Treat the Body to Treat the
Mind: As a holistic form of medicine that treats the whole person
rather than simply the symptoms,
Chinese medicine approaches mental health issues as part of an imbalance in the entire body-mind system.
In this model, there is no diagnosis
of “disease,” only a unique form of
imbalance that can be addressed
by looking into the person’s innate
constitution (body type, personality) and the life factors that are
interacting to create this imbalance.
By treating the physical body with
acupuncture, acupressure or Chinese
herbal therapies, we can positively
effect the mind and emotions and
bring them into greater harmony.
An Individualized Approach:
Chinese medicine is personalized
and specific. For example, instead
of treating a “generalized anxiety”
disorder, we practitioners would
look for the ways an imbalance specifically manifests for the individual.
Is there more worry and overactive
thinking, a sense of “stuckness”
or lack of hope or indecisiveness
over the individual’s life direction?
Has this arisen along with some
circumstance in the individual’s life
or has it been with them as long as
they can remember? Initial appointments afford practitioners plenty of
time to learn about the individual’s
experience and to design a treatment
plan. From there, treatments can be
December 2015 article correction:
The article “Men Enjoy the Benefits of
Acupuncture” was written by Kathleen Fluhart,
R.N., M.Ac., Dipl.Ac., L.Ac., not Kris McClanahan.
&
17
often follow treatment as the individual feels better. This is a welcome
sign that the person is rediscovering
a sense of balance in life. Finally,
many people experience a gift of
increased self-awareness as they are
guided gently toward greater health
and balance.
adjusted to fit the changing needs of
the patient as he or she moves forward toward feeling better. There is
no prescribed number of treatments;
rather, the process unfolds naturally,
with both practitioner and patient
learning more about what’s needed
to regain a state of wellness.
A Complementary Medicine:
Chinese medicine is safe and effective and can enhance the benefits of
other therapies and pharmaceutical
treatments. Positive lifestyle changes
How Do I Learn More? Most
Chinese medicine practitioners
(often referred to as acupuncturists)
provide a great deal of information
on their Websites and are happy
to answer general questions about
whether it may be a fit for your
needs. Reluctant about acupuncture
and needles? Rest assured that most
people find this therapy incredibly
relaxing and are surprised at how
thin and painless these sterile, singleuse needles actually are. For those
who are not ready to try acupuncture, non-needle based therapies
such as acupressure may be the place
to begin.
Practitioners undergo extensive
training in the United States and
China to learn the Chinese medical system as well as a good deal of
western medicine, so be sure to look
for practitioners that are licensed
by your state medical board and
also by the National Certification
Commission for Acupuncture and
Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM).
Voted BEST Acupuncture Clinic in Lexington!
CLASSICAL ACUPUNCTURE
www.ArtemesiaWeb.com
296 Southland
Drive, Lexington KY 40503
859.402.2430
Tara Bissell,
M.Ac., L.Ac.| artemesiaweb.com
Licensed in Kentucky
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