complicated patterns

[Guest guest]

" Whenever there are such complicated patterns, one

should first identify all patterns present in order of predominance;

two, state the requisite treatment principles ofr each of those

pattterns in the same order; and three, compose on an ad hoc basis a

treatment plan that addresses all those patterns in the same

proportions and with the same priorities. " (p. 358) "

 

Is this possible? How could one treat such serious conditions, in

particular the deeper Kd Yang indications as well as the more branch

like indications, namely the Yin Xu difficulties. Seems that it would be

more appropo to treat the underlying condition as a first line and the

branches as a second, i just have not seen practitioners utilize both

aspects of treatment, it is almost always one or the other with some

inclination to a holistic plan.

Tymothy

--

Tymothy

jellyphish

[Guest guest]

Yes, it's possible. In fact, treating all the problems it's possible

to treat at the same time is a standard TCM approach.

 

I don't have MS, but I have had CFIDS and FMS for over 30 years. I

didn't get TCM treatment until after I had been sick for over 20

years. I had " knotty " problems - a very complicated presentation.

 

At the worst, I was crawling to the bathroom at night. Even if I

had had the strength to get to a standing position, it hurt too much

to do so. The brain fog was severe. I couldn't follow the most

mindless sitcom on TV. My memory was shot. I couldn't use a

computer. During the worse of it I couldn't read or write.

 

I got some relief with mega dosages of vitamins, minerals, and

assorted supplements, including digestive enzymes. I also took a

homeopathic remedy. My husband and the people at the health food

store had to look up the recommendations for CFIDS and

mononucleosis. He had to help me count everything out at first.

When I improved to the point where I could do this (and could write

again), I had to write down everything I took immediately after I

took each supplement. If I waited until I had taken them all, I

couldn't remember if I had taken them or not. I was reacting

negatively to just about every thing I ate. I also was reacting to

most prescription drugs, including antihistamines. That was really

rough considering how bad my allergies were.

 

Eventually I got more improvement from the magnesium and B12 shots.

When I finally saw a TCM herbalist, I had improved a lot, but I was

still very sick. I was having to take several hot baths a day to

warm up. My husband was still doing most of the shopping. I rarely

got out except to go to the doctor or hospital. I was also ending up

in ER a lot for various things, including dehydration. By that time

I also had the symptoms of polycythemia vera.

 

I saw a very gifted TCM herbalist whom I realize in retrospect did

exactly what is recommended here.

 

> " Whenever there are such complicated patterns, one

> should first identify all patterns present in order of

predominance;

> two, state the requisite treatment principles ofr each of those

> pattterns in the same order; and three, compose on an ad hoc basis

a

> treatment plan that addresses all those patterns in the same

> proportions and with the same priorities. " (p. 358) "

 

In addition to the pulse and tongue diagnosis, he asked a lot of

questions. The questions were grouped according to Organs. I

answered " yes " to a lot of things, but in the section on the

Kidneys, I answered " yes " to just about every single question in

that section, including the questions about the ears and hearing.

Kidney Yang Deficiency was by far the worst problem I had. It was

so severe that it masked most of the Kidney Yin Deficiency symptoms.

I remember there were a variety of other problems as well. Blood

Deficiency, Blood Stasis, Qi Deficiency, Qi Stagnation, Dryness as

well as Dampness problems, etc. Even though I had severe problems

with Cold, there was Heat in the Upper Burner (Heart and Lungs).

 

There was a basic formula which contained several herbs for

different things. I brewed this into a tea which I took twice a

day. In addition there was an alcohol extraction of various herbs

for the kidneys, and an alcohol extraction of herbs for something

else, a capsule with several herbs in it for the constipation

(colonic inertia) problems I had, and a capsule with herbs for

females. There was an additional tea which consisted of one herb:

Horney Goat Weed. The basic formula was changed from time to time,

but I stayed on all this for quite some time. In addition, I was on

Minor Blue Dragon tea for a few months. I was briefly tried on

osha, an herb native to the southwest of the US, but I couldn't tell

that it did anything for me.

 

I continued to improve the longer I stayed on treatment. I began to

learn all I could about TCM. I got to the point where I could fine-

tune treatment even more. I began to incorporate acupressure in

addition to choosing appropriate herbs. As my clinical picture

changed, the empahsis changed. Whenever possible, all imbalances

were treated at the same time (or at least the same day -

predominately Yang tonic tea in the morning, predominately Yin tonic

tea in the evening as an example). As the clinical picture changed,

the emphasis changed.

 

BTW, this changing the emphasis of the treatment as the clinical

picture changes works very well not only in TCM but in other medical

systems as well, including allopathic medicine. Sometimes you have

to concentrate on bringing various things partially up, one at a

time, and then returning to each of them one at a time. This doesn't

mean that you don't treat the other problems at the same time, but

that the emphasis is on a different problem each time. The problems

are so severe and there are so many of them that they aggravate each

other, and its impossible to solve each totally at one time. It's

also standard TCM practice that treatment will change as the

clinical picture changes.

 

Here's an example: When a person has been Kidney Yang Deficient for

many years, the person also is going to be very vulnerable to

Invasion by Exterior Cold. In the beginning, the emphasis probably

needs to be on supplementing Yang, warming the Interior, and

strengthening the Kidneys. This is a priority. Get the person

warmed up and supplement that Yang. Treat the other things too, but

include more than one herb for warming the Interior and more than

one for supplementing Yang.

 

Because chronic Kidney Yang Deficiency renders a person very

vulnerable to invasion by Exterior Cold, and Cold from whatever

source attacks Yang and weakens both the Kidneys and the Spleen,

eventually the emphasis will have to shift briefly to increasing the

resistence to Exteior Cold (as well as avoiding it when possible).

Otherwise, you have a situation which is like bailing a leaky

rowboat without repairing the hole. Also as fast as you can

supplement the Yang and strengthen the Kidneys (and Spleen), the

invasion of Exterior Cold is attacking the Yang and working to keep

the Kidneys and Spleen weak.

 

In addition to Protective Qi Deficiency and long-term Kidney Yang

Deficiency, long-term Blood Deficiency also can render a person

vulnerable to Exterior Pernicious Evils. At some point, the Blood

Deficiency problems will have to be concentrated on. Keep in mind

that the Spleen is vulnerable to Cold from any source, and that the

Spleen plays a major role not only in Qi accumulation but in Blood

production.

 

What do I mean by emphasizing a treatment? In TCM, when you want to

increase a certain treatment, instead of upping the dose of a

particular herb (like a Blood tonic herb or a Yang tonic herb), you

add a second (or even third) Blood tonic herb or Yang tonic herb.

 

When problems are complex and aggravating each other, sometimes

before one can improve Yang Deficiency from say point D to point B,

it is first necessary to bring the Yang Deficiency AND aggravating

problems like Blood Deficiency, Spleen weakness, etc. up to point C.

As long as the Blood Deficiency remains at point D, it's going to be

very difficult if not impossible to improve the Yang Deficiency to

point B.

 

The more severe the problems and the more numerous the problems, the

more emphasizing one problem at a time (while treating all of them

at the same time) is needed. The closer to overall balance the

person becomes, the less necessary this becomes.

 

Knowing the etiology of a problem also can aid a healer at arriving

at the best treatment at the time. For example, knowing that Cold

can damage Yang and weaken the Kidneys can prompt the healer to

emphasize increasing resistence to Exterior Pernicious Evils and to

avoiding Exterior Cold when possible.

 

Another example of when knowing etiologies can help the healer

choose an effective treatment is when pain results from Blood Stasis

and/or Qi Stagnation, and the Blood Stasis and Qi Stagnation are

coming from Invasion by Exterior Cold. The usual herbs for moving

Blood and Qi aren't going to do much good in these cases. The

Exterior needs to be warmed in order for Qi and Blood to flow

properly. In this case, Herbs to Warm the Exterior and/or the use of

heating pads applied to the affected muscles are called for. If the

person says something like s/he was fine during warmer weather but

started having this problem when the weather got chilly, chances are

this is a case where Blood Stasis and Qi Stagnation will need to be

treated with Herbs to Warm the Exterior. Voice of experience here.

I've improved to the point where I'm getting out more in the winter

than I used to. Even to the point of going on a walking tour of

homes and churches decorated for Christmas in the historical

district. The weather had turned very chilly that weekend. I

thought I was dressed warmly enough, but evidently not for my feet

and legs. My muscles contacted to the point where I was in pain and

having trouble walking. After I got home, I wrapped the one

microwaveable heating pad I had around one foot and took a nap.

When I woke up, there was no pain in that foot or leg, but the other

still hurt. The next time I went to sleep, I wrapped the heating pad

around the other foot. When I woke up, the pain was gone from that

foot too. I since have bought a second microwaveable heating pad so

I can do both feet at the same time when needed. I've also

discovered that putting one heating pad on the lower back and the

second on the upper back works a lot better than putting one heating

pad on either the upper or lower back. Cold weather had brought a

big increase in back pain, but since I've started using two heating

pads, when I sleep, I'm not having much back pain.

 

BTW, knowing 5 Element Theory also can help a healer fine-tune

treatment and gain insights into how to treat particularly complex

problems.