sense that the Flower That Speaks in A Pollen
Way was spoken into existence as well, and
true to her beliefs, she continues to tell the
stories and pass on her knowledge. Navajo
people have a very community oriented
worldview, and understand that healers are an
essential part of their community. Annie
Kahn was supported by her relatives while
becoming a medicine woman, and fulfills her
place within the community as the strong
medicine woman she has become.
The principle of equilibrium is the
guiding force in Traditional Chinese Medicine
(TCM). In an interview with Pam Kemp, a
practitioner of TCM
in Carlsbad, CA, I
learned she uses her
skills as a healer to
recognize
disharmony within a
patient. She did not
begin her path as a
healer in Traditional
Chinese Medicine.
In
fact,
she
Pam Kemp, courtesy of
originally intended
www.pamkemplac.com/about_pam.h
to follow a path to
tml, 2 01 3.
western
medicine
and become a nurse. She began school for
nursing, but realized that working in that field
was not really what she wanted to do. Her
mother is Chinese and she grew up with
influences of Traditional Chinese Medicine, so
she made the decision to pursue healing as an
acupuncturist. She attended a prominent
acupuncture school and began to learn that in
TCM physicians examine a patient as a whole
person including being, behavior, interaction,
and life signs (Kemp, Pam, 2013). In TCM the
physician observes the patients feel of p ulse,
color of face, sensations of comfort or pain,
expression of emotions, and moral fiber
(Kaptchuk, Ted J, 2000). Now, when a patient
comes to see her, she places great emphasis
on the interview and observing the patient’s
colors, odors, and emotions. She takes the
patient’s pulse, but not for the same reasons
that a western medicine physician might. She
gave this example, “If you turn your hands
palms upward and place the index, middle and
ring finger of your right hand just below the
wrist of your left hand (on the thumb side)
you will feel the pulsations that in TCM are
related to the small intestine, gall bladder,
bladder, heart, liver, and kidney” (Kemp, Pam,
2013). The sensation of these pulses might
assist Pam in determining if her patient has
any issues relating to the organs with which
they are associated. Traditional Chinese
Medicine is grounded by the understanding
that nothing happens in isolation but in
connection to what is happening in the
internal and external environment (Kaptchuk,
Ted J, 2000).
The origins of Traditional Chinese
Medicine date back to over 8000 years ago. Fu
Hsi a legendary Chinese sage, who lived at
that time, formulated the symbols of a broken
and a fixed line through observation of the
ebb and flow of energy and nature. He used
these symbols as a representation of heaven
and earth, the two main forces in the universe,
and they have become known as Yin and
Yang. The duality of Yin and Yang is the basis
of TCM philosophy and practice (Kaptchuk,
Ted J, 2000). Today most
people may recognize Yin
and Yang as a divided
circle with one dark and
one light side. While this
circle may indicate a
division, it is really a
representation of the flow and
balance of the Yin and Yang together, shown
by the small dot within each color reflecting
the opposite color. The Yin and Yang each
represent elements and energies within the
universe as well, and in TCM a person
exhibits patterns that are used to identify
illness causation, reach a diagnosis, and decide
on treatment.
The path that is necessary for doctors
in western medicine to become healers has
many differences, but also a few similarities,
to the path followed by Eduardo Calderon,
Annie Kahn, and Pam Kemp. Like Eduardo,
16