yuanqi

then you should find another acupuncturist, as sprains, pulls etc can definitely be handled with acupuncture and depending on your practioner it can be very cost effective, if the acupuncturist doesnt have a sliding scale or whatever and charges the full amount for something simple like that then it wouldnt be, i wouldnt use a TENS unit as its not as good as electro stim with the needles inserted, however, if your not going to an acupuncturist then the TENS is fine. i use TENS very rarley and the E STIM almost everyday. also, for just sprains and pulls then you would need to find you some die da jiu (dit da jow) the real stuff and not the overpriced stuff on the net of which you find and dont know the quality of. the stuff in chinatowns is ok but unless you get the herbalist's batch then you would do better making it on your own. i make all mine up from shaolin formulas which i have modified to do what i want, stop pain, relax sinews, stop bleeding,reduce swelling, relieve toxicity etc. along with the other general properties of moving qi and blood. the patients in clinic i use it on and sell it to have great success with it, dit da is quite good, at least mine is, i spent enough time learning what to do to the herbs to make it better and stronger and processing them correctly plus i charge less than what is found on the net and i know its better as i made it, know whats in it, used the correct herbs, modified them to fit my needs etc. but then again we have no idea what his friends problem is. heck if all it were was a sprain or pull then i would use the jow and tui na and then cupping and that would do the trick, i wouldnt break out the needles unless that didnt work!

jeffrey yuen is is one of the deans at the swedish institute in new york. its an acupuncture/massage etc school. i met him at the taoist summit in colorado last year. it was either his or ken cohen's autograph, lol i chose jeffrey. he gave a presentation in one of the breakout seminars talking about taoism etc. it was kinda funny that the first thing he said was " i dont know why they wanted me to speak on taoism as that means that i know something about it" i will never forget that and this from a guy that is an ordained taoist priest not just from one school but two. he was humble and very very knowledgable, he spoke off the top of his head for 2 hours, no notes. he was even subdued when ken cohen wanted to try to correct him on some things, but obviously ken's depth wasnt in the same category as jeffrey's but oh well. address is www.swedishinstitute.org he is the dean of academic affairs/acupuncture i think but alot of the time deans like him arent there alot, but i am sure if you contact that school they will let you know when he will be in or i am sure take a message for him.

first of all its just an opinion. and well there alot of x's out there that have better tai ji form. granted one of chens closest friends in america is also a friend of mine and i have been around chen in an informal manner, his knowledge and depth of things is absolutley mind blowing, not just the knowledge that has been written about or translated but from a practical standpoint. he is for real, he can do things that you see written about and dont know if you can believe it or not. when hearing chen speak and being around him and hearing ken speak and being around him, there is no question who i would want to learn from. thats why i stated my opinion. has nothing to do with ken, he can spout off all kinds of things from personal experience as well as what has been written and translated, but if it were a matter of finding a teacher well the others are who i would seek. chens taoist brother from mt wudang is named bing, he is absolutley amazing as well. as a matter of fact, chens goal is to build a taoist temple in the mountains near boulder as a retreat center, one that you can come learn at, stay at, or even die at as he said. so in a few years i am sure it will be built and although he comes to my school alot i would undoubtably go there for a while when its built.

his knowledge of the classics and other things is top notch. theoretically he should be one of the top American qigong teachers. i however would seek the others i mentioned in colorado first. nothing against him personally. just an opinion.

if it is near boulder i would go see Master Yun Xiang Tseng, (otherwise known as chen or master chen) he also has a wudang brother i believe that teaches in colorado as well. i would see these two as i have met them and chen is affiliated with our school and comes to do seminars and external qi healing certifications alot. i also went to boulder last july (they also went to austin tx) to see the taoist delegation that master chen brought over from wudang, ken was there, doing a couple breakout seminars of course, so were alot of other big dogs as they say and i would absolutley check into the others before going to ken, nothing really personal against him, although after meeting him my impression changed quite a bit, perhaps he should just be a scholar. LOL either way do what you will but from what i know there are several folks out in that neck of the woods. but if only looking for books, audio or video then ken has them but so do alot of others. yuanqi

i learned some of what i know from a friend in nashville that uses different types of breathing techniques, qigong and medical qigong, since then i have also had them confirmed buy some of the instructors and others at my school. our school has not only TCM doctors but also martial artist, one of which studied and became a disciple of Master Ho Kam Ming, who was one of the caretakers and senior disciples of Yip Man, he teaches qigong and wing chun at the school. we also have the 2004 Tai Qi 24-Form champion, that was held in Taipei, Taiwan which is where she is from, she teaches the required tai qi courses at the school and knows alot about the proper practicing techniques plus qigong etc. we also are affiliated with Master Yun Xiang Tseng originally from Mt. Wudang. he comes and teaches seminars and such at the school etc. so the right stuff is there believe me. its out there too, i have alot of books in my library at home, i will have to go thru them and find the ones with the tongue pics and techniques. when i come across them i will post the titles for ya.

one thing that is often overlooked is that there are different tongue positions for what you are trying to accomplish. for instance: 1. wood position-tongue is placed on the middle of the upper palate right at the center of the roof of the mouth. 2. fire position-tongue is placed on the front of the upper palate right behind the teeth and gum line. 3. earth position-tongue is placed on the bottom of the jaw at the base of the lower palate beneath the teeth and gum line. 4. metal position-tongue is placed behind the teeth (not resting) where the top teeth meet the bottom with mouth closed. proper term would be b/w the maxilla and mandible bones. 5. water position-tongue is placed on the soft palate at the back of the upper palate. so if you are using a fire technique such as the microcosmic orbit up the du channel and down the ren you would place at the fire position. if using the water technique then you would use the water position and so on. however it gets alot more complicated than that. for instance lets say you have created too much internal heat while doing your meditations (due to improper dispersing techniques among other things) then you may change the tongue position and perhaps the meditation. but sometimes even this isnt written in stone based on your body's constitution. or when emitting qi for healing purposes you also would use hand mudras for the organ system you are working on as well as color visualization and the proper tongue position from above. the basic tongue positions are really just the tip of the iceberg.

your right in a way, if you can work in the quantum universe by thought or touch then you may not need some other modalities. however, not everyone is ready for that. not everyone can do that in my opinion. at least not yet, i think you have to be in a certain space spiritually to enable you to do that. the first thing that must be done is getting your physical being attuned. thats where the other healing modalities come in. working in the quantum universe probably is either the or one of the highest levels i can think of. but there is work to be done first to prepare you for it. you must do your "inner plane work" to a certain level, then the gifts will be given to you gradually.

well we choose acupuncture and supplement based on a patients needs, thats why we do other modalities.even in acupuncture there is moxa, cupping, gua sha, herbs etc, they are all different aspects intended to help the patient. its also about spiritual growth as well. if you have ever been in a oriental medical program your whole outlook changes, your life, your spirit etc. instead of reading a book about how to do this or that, we read but have hands on experience with the fundamental substances of the universe, qi, thought, intention etc. for me its not materialistic, its helping as many patients as i can with all that i have, its a part of my karma and also my desire so i dont have to return again.

both are powerful, each in their own way. one can enhance the other. my girlfriend doesnt worry about which is more powerful or even go into that kind of linear thinking. she sees the larger picture and realizes that when the two are combined for a patient (not all patients, only if she feels they need both) then she is able to help them to the utmost of her abilities. its about the person that you are helping, you want them to get better and help them heal themselves so you can use both if the situation calls for it. why just do one thing, why not learn and keep learning and do all you can instead of searching for that ultimate "thing, or technique or meditation etc". matrix energetics works, acupuncture works, qigong works, meditation works, reiki works.....the underlying theme to all these and everything else out there is simple. they all deal with qi in one way or form. she as i, choose not to limit ourselves to one thing, just because we choose to use multiple healing modalities doesnt mean that any of them are better than the other, it means that when combined you are able to give the patient that much more.

sure what do you want to know exactly. she was learning from him at his office back several years ago. she just went up there in feb. to visit family and i think she went to him 3 seperate times. and this is someone who does native american shamanic work and apprenticed up in seattle, matrix energetics, acupuncture and other spiritual healing work. he is the real deal.

my girlfriend apprenticed with the man. she uses matrix in most of her acupuncture treatment sessions. he has been around for quite awhile and is finally getting the recognition he deserves in my opinion. i have seen this stuff in action and it works. period. anytime she goes back to seattle she makes a point to stop by and get several treatments from him.

here is one basic formula. i have modified mine to fit me but this is one. chen xiang jiang xiang ju hong stir fried zhi qiao dang gui hong hua tao ren grind into powder. after practice take 1-3 grams. this one regulates and extends the qi and blood function of the whole body. there are also wines that are made with some herbs and you take between 15/30 ml (which isnt much) before/after training. or even pills although they take time to make as you have to roll them all out. i like taking one before and one after but mainly the one after practice to stop the qi from getting stuck in certain areas. seems that alot of people who practice have problems with qi getting stuck in places where it shouldnt be and causing problems, some serious, since most practice wrong unless under guidance. as far as jing goes, i am sure you know it is more difficult to replenish. easiest method is to watch the diet, sexual activity, rest, do tai qi or qigong and breathing techniques then supplement with herbs based on your pre heaven constitution. easy huh? thats why i take a longevity wine. but only in 10cc or 20 cc a day, very small doses otherwise it will have adverse effect. too much of a good thing isnt good! there are patent medicines or tablets to take but they are commerical versions and its best to know what is going on with each individual then tailor the formula accordingly. although without a very extensive knowledge of herbs you may get adulterants or different varieties or herbs that havent been processed right, so you have got to get them from a trusted source that prepares them right to begin with.

thanks QiDr, it is good to see one person who is concerned for others. far and few between. and yes its obvious there is a peanut gallery. YUANQI

as far as TCM goes, depends on whether or not you actually have the "dreams" but either way kidney tonics are good. too little to go on as it could be a kidney yang xu, kidney qi xu problem or kidney yin xu problem among other things. i would recommend herbs for one. but cant give you a list as having the actual "dreams" are important, would change some of the herbs if your dreaming. not a diagnosis but thats one thing that normally causes it from a basic chinese medical standpoint.

yeah i dont know about the new one, i was talking about the old one. i would like the new one too! so if you know before i do let me know.

i believe the documentary was aired by discovery i think, its the ring of fire and i want to say it was volume three, which ever one is called east of krakatoa as the blair brothers filmed several series about that area. should be able to get it anywhere on the net.

the organs are treated in tcm as well. the back shu points are used to treat the organs among other points. shiatsu from what i read came from tui na which is a chinese system of massage. reflexology came from shiatsu. i think i read that the jesuits that went to china came back with that knowlege. but who knows. all i know is that tcm treats the qi and channels but treats organs as well if thats what you are looking to do.

yes when speaking of he shou wu the normal meaning is processed fleeceflower root as the name he shou wu indicates the prepared product, the non prepared version is sheng he shou wu which indicates the actual fleeceflower root. the unprepared form isnt a tonifying herb. usually the unprepared form is almost always used to moisten the bowels.

its hard to say how many milligrams are in the pills actually. the formulas i have are either in chinese (teapills, they are the really small pellets) those call for 8 pills 3 times a day for alot of prescriptions. the actual pian(tablets) call for 2-3 or 3-5 most of the time. the only weights that come on the bottles i get are 40 grams per bottle of 100 tablets. its just most of the time with the true chinese patent formulas that we prescribe, that you use the indicated doses on the bottles, unless of course we choose otherwise and write the prescription different. so it all varies really on the patient but whats on the bottle works most of the time for us. only problem is the brands i buy that are quality dont have any breakdown of milligrams just what herbs are used. the text books i have on herbal formulas sometimes goes into the amount of each. the main thing i have to know is how many grams in decoctions as i am not going to hand roll the teapills or press the pills in the future. LOL

yeah, i almost forgot that name til i read it. LOL it sounded familiar and i had to look it up in my materia medica but its not under that name. but yes its is in fact the same as he shou wu.

your welcome. yeah you would notice i am sure, just pay attention to how your body feels and reacts after a while and make sure no symptoms get worse. but dont go out and eat alot of damp or greasy food either. LOL keep everything the same as you take the pills so you can be sure if you get worse that it is in fact the pills. and since it nourishes the blood and yin that would help overall with that as well.

He Shou Wu properties in TCM are bitter, sweet, astringent, slightly warm enters the liver and kidney the key characteristics are nourishing the blood and yin, preserves the essence the main contraindications are for those with loose stools or significant dampness or phlegm this means that you would probably have long term spleen qi xu (spleen qi deficiency) as the spleen is what causes loose stools most of the time and hates dampness there for that is the pathogenic factor that affects it, long term dampness can create phlegm. although alot of people have spleen qi xu the herb itself is used quite often anyway unless you had a really chronic problem. the herb itself has some toxic properties that has some adverse effects but for most its ok especially when used in the doses for tea pills or tablets. its in the herbal formula shou wu pian, or shou wu san. alot of people have good results with it as long as there are no problems already with the patient that would containdicate giving it to them. hope this helps. yuanqi