Maciocia on Zangfu versus Channel Pain (for students)

[Guest guest]

Thank you teacher,

This information was very helpful for putting things in perspective. Could

you, or someelse on the list, please explain the different syndromes and the

names they go by i.e. Bi-syndrome, running piglet syndrome, Shen, etc. For a

long thime when I read things and they were mentioned I had no idea what was

meant and had difficulty finding info on them. I still have very little info

and would welcome the input

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Background: " Channel " is another word for " meridian " (pathway of Qi

(pronounced " chee " ) flow).

 

Two of the classifications used in Chinese medicine are Exterior and

Interior. The " Exterior " of the body is the head, neck, arms, legs,

skin, muscles, bones, and meridians. The Inteior refers to the

Organs.

 

Zangfu is translated as " Organs " . (Actually, that's not the exact

translation, but good enough for now.)

 

What Maciocia is talking about is how to differenciate between the

pain being caused by imbalance in the Organs (Zangfu, the Interior)

and by something in the meridians (Exterior). Treatment is going to

vary based on if it's Interior or Exterior.

 

When Evils invade, they hit the outer layers of the body first and

move inward. If not stopped, they can continue moving inward until

they finally reach the Interior (the Organs). In general, Exterior

conditions are less serious than Interior imbalances, and Exterior

conditions are easier to treat than Interior ones. This doesn't

mean that Exterior conditions can't be very painful and even

debilitating. Just ask anyone who suffers from severe arthritis how

painful and debilitating an Exterior condition can be. What it

means is that the functions of the Organs haven't been affected, and

thus, the condition is easier to treat than one which involves the

Organs.

 

The change in functions of the Organs is an important concept when

it comes to differenciating between Exterior and Interior, between

how far the Evil has invaded into the body, and between channel vs.

Organ involvement.

 

The effects of an Evil(or some other problem) in the meridians can

be aggravating, painful, and even debilitating, but the Organs are

still functioning just fine. Some of the possible Exterior symptoms

can include stuffy or runny nose, eyes watering, coughing,and even

severe pain. But things like bowel movements, urination, libido,

digestion, strength, energy, and breathing are OK.

 

Deficiency problems are those caused by the body not having enough

of something it needs. Excess problems are those due to the body

having too much of something. Any Qi Stagnation, Blood Stasis, or

Phlegm is too much. " Fullness " is another way of saying " Excess " .

 

Evils can invade from the outside (the effects of weather) and

eventually reach the Interior. But sometimes Evils will arise within

the Interior due to things like emotions, imbalance in something

else in the Interior, etc.

 

Evils that invade can become trapped in the Exterior. They don't go

any further into the body (not right away anyway), but they don't

leave the body either. They need to be expeled with herbs and/or

acupuncture/ acupressure.

 

http://www.giovanni-maciocia.com/articles/pain.html#1

 

Zangfu versus Channel Pain

 

Besides the above differentiation, another important one is that

between pain due to involvement of the Zangfu with their respective

channels and that due to involvement of the channels only. Most

pains due to sprains, traumas or Bi syndrome (due to Wind, Cold or

Dampness) involve the channels only, whereas most other pains

involve the Zangfu and their respective channels. For example, a

shoulder or elbow pain along the Large Intestine channel usually

involves the channel only and does not derive from a Zangfu

involvement; whereas an abdominal pain deriving from constipation or

diarrhoea clearly shows the involvement of the Large Intestine. Of

course, a channel pain may derive from an internal Zangfu disharmony

but it is rare for that to manifest in the channel only without

Zangfu symptoms. An important and common exception to this are acute

diseases from invasion of exterior pathogenic factors at their

beginning stage. In such cases, the channels only are involved and

they may also cause symptoms resembling an involvement of a Zangfu.

For example, the cough deriving from an invasion of Wind-Heat at the

Wei portion of the Lungs in its very beginning stage is due to a

Lung-channel involvement and does not derive from a Lung-organ

affliction.

 

Thus, the two most important diagnostic factors when confronted with

pain are:

 

1) whether the pain derives from a Deficiency or a Fullness;

2) whether the pain involves the Zangfu and channels or the channels

only.