Finding harmony between Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine

Western Medicine is based on reductionist principles. The reduction of a higher system into constituent parts has brought about many great scientific discoveries and a tremendous leap in our understanding of the world that we live in. However, the reductionist system does not, nor is intended to meet the needs of the overall system at large. An overall system, in human well being terms, is considering the relationship or impact that the psyche, society, environment, locomotion, etc has on our bodily systems.. One way this is addressed is through the many thousands of years of Chinese history and its development of what is now know as Traditional Chinese Medicine. In our more recent times, there has been a more widely accepted movement to embrace both the micro and the macroscopic perspectives on promoting well being.

Both WM and TCM emphasize a healthy and active lifestyle as a means of maintaining and building a healthy self. The underlying reasoning and philosophies vary significantly, however, they both strive for the same common goal. In addition, WM and TCM address the many facets of well being through psychology, exercise, rehabilitation, medicinal remedies, touch, massage, visual therapy, music therapy, etc. However, we again come back to the basis of the underlying philosophies as the differentiating means of the steps taken towards remedy.

Both medicines rely on a practitioner that is hard working, thorough, well read, compassionate, objective, who relies on deductive, reductive, logic while assessing the overall whole. As quoted from Confucius “a man without persistence will never make a good Shaman or a good physician”.