TCM consists of a holistic view of the body as an organic entity with all organs and tissues connected together by Meridians and Collaterals. The Meridians and Collaterals are represented by lines running up and down, and across the diagrams of the human body which you may have seen on the walls of a TCM practitioner’s office. These are the pathways through which your vital energy or QI and your Blood called Xie and your vital hormone called Jien is circulated. The Meridians and Collaterals form a network linking your tissues and organs into a complete unit. This allows the physiological functions and the pathological changes within your organs to show up on the surface of your body. Problems on the surface of your body can affect the internal organs through this same network of Meridian and Collaterals – a two-way street essentially. This is why your TCM practitioner evaluates problems of your body by checking your pulse and tongue. TCM believes all illness can be diagnosed as an unbalance of Qi, Xie, and Jien as well as Ying and Yang and this unbalance is what manifests as physical symptoms. This diagnosis is an important difference between TCM and western medicine. Also, TCM is not only effective for the treatment of clinically manifested diseases but also for the prophylaxis and prevention of diseases in which only mild or incomplete symptoms are present.

At the Acupuncture and Chinese Herb Center, we are also proficient in the techniques and practices of acupuncture. In TCM we believe that there are over 700 key points on the surface of the body which affect the balance of Qie, Xie, Jien Ying and Yang mentioned above. By placing acupuncture needles at specific combinations of points we are able to correct these unbalances and promote health and wellness.
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