In this video, I introduce what Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is and explain how it offers a holistic approach to health that focuses on restoring balance within the body. I highlight key differences between TCM and Western medicine, emphasizing that TCM treats the root causes of illness rather than just the symptoms. I discuss how acupuncture, herbal formulas, dietary and lifestyle recommendations, and various manual therapies work together to support overall wellness. I also touch on the idea that TCM addresses both acute and chronic health issues—from pain and digestive problems to stress and immune challenges. The foundation of TCM is built on the theories of yin and yang, the five elements, organ systems, and vital substances, all of which guide diagnosis and treatment.
Topics Covered in this Video
- Overview and foundational principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
- Differences between TCM and Western medicine approaches
- Modalities under the TCM umbrella (acupuncture, herbs, diet, lifestyle, manual therapies)
- Common health conditions and ailments treated by TCM
- Core theories in TCM (Yin-Yang, Five Elements, Zong Fu organ system, vital substances)
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Unedited Video Transcript
Hi and welcome to Blue Frog Wellness. I’m Vanessa, a doctor of acupuncture. And in this video, we are going to explore exactly what traditional Chinese medicine, or tcm is.
So we’re going to look at exactly.
What, what it is, how it works, and how it might differ from Western medicine. Whether you’re completely new to TCM or you just want to understand a little bit better how TCM can help you with your stress, your pain, your insomnia, or your overall health and wellness, this video is for you. Before we begin, please note that this is for educational and information purposes only. This is not a substitute for medical advice. Always seek your physician or other trained healthcare professional when asking any questions of your own medical conditions. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have heard or seen on this channel. Traditional Chinese medicine is a holistic system of health and healing, and it’s been around for thousands of years. The basic premise here is that the body functions as a connected system, so everything is interrelated from our physical health to our emotions and our environment.
So how is TCM different from Western medicine? Well, there’s a couple of different things here. So number one is the approach to seeing health and disease. In Western medicine, we treat symptoms using medications or surgeries, and in tcm, we’re going to look at that interconnected body and find out what’s truly at the root of your illness, what is actually happening there. And we will look to restore balance. So perhaps if you’ve got migraines, for example, perhaps you have digestive issues that are contributing to that, or sleep issues contributing, or just an overall energy or qi blockage somewhere. And once we find out what the root of the issue is, then we work to restore balance using acupuncture, herbs, diet, lifestyle and movement. So I know when we think about restoring balance in the body, sometimes this can come across as a very airy, fairy, vague topic. And you might be wondering what exactly does it mean to restore balance in the body from TCM perspective? And essentially, it’s just what it sounds like.
So if you have a condition where you have too much heat in your body, we want to cool you down. If you have too much cold, we want to warm you up. If you have a deficiency, you don’t have enough energy, we want to nourish your energy and bring that up. Same thing with your blood. Perhaps you’re blood deficient. You know, you have a pattern of sort of anemia in Western medicine. But in tcm, we would see that, as for Whatever reason you’re not making good quality blood. Well, we want to do the things that we can do to, to nourish or enhance or get your body to build better blood, thereby restoring the balance.
And there’s a number of different modalities within the TCM umbrella that really help us to enhance those things, really help us to bring balance back to the body. So acupuncture is, of course, a very big component of tcm. And really, we’ll talk about exactly how acupuncture works, but just know that every acupuncture point in the body has several different functions. So some of them will clear some heat, cool you down, some will tonify your energy, bring that up. Some will move your blood. So we will get stagnation out of the way. Any, you know, throbbing pain that’s happening to, to move on and clear that blockage, some points will again reduce any excess energy that’s in your system. So perhaps you have high blood pressure or, or you’re feeling excessively irritable, you know, very quick to anger.
That’s liver yang rising. We have points that can clear that and calm you right back down. So really, acupuncture is one of the best tools that we have in TCM to restore that balance. Now, we also have Chinese herbal formulas, which are very wonderful at correcting specific balances. And the beauty of that is we can customize them specific to, to you. So perhaps you have a pattern where you have to clear some heat, but you also have some phlegm or some dampness that has to move out of the way. Or perhaps you have excess heat because you’re running a little bit blood deficient. We can use different herbs customized for your specific condition to treat you in that moment.
And then as you get better, we will change the formula. And eventually you don’t need to be on Chinese herbs at all, but they’re a really great tool to help enhance what we’re doing with acupuncture. Another really big component of balancing patterns in Chinese medicine is of course going to be dietary and lifestyle recommendations. And when you come to Blue Frog Wellness, you will always leave with a handout on your first visit that will explain some of the things that you should be doing to help balance your own pattern. So there will be a list of foods to avoid and a list of foods that we want to incorporate to enhance the overall balancing of whatever is happening in your body at that given time. Now, we can also do lifestyle recommendations. We can recommend different types of activity. Tai chi, qigong, yoga, Meditation, breath work, movement, any type of activity.
Connecting with nature, connecting with your pets. There are many other ways that we can restore balance, because again, we are reminding ourselves that we are interconnected not only with our own bodies, but within our environment and everything in the world that is around us. And then, of course, there’s a little bit more manual therapies under the TC umbrella. Things like Gua sha, which is essentially scraping technique that we can use for various different reasons. We have many forms of cupping therapy, and then we have moxibustion therapy. And moxibustion is a herb that we use to warm the channels to move the blood. And the beautiful thing about the herb that we use for any type of moxibustion therapy is, is that it not only tonifies, it not only nourishes or brings energy and warmth to your body, but it also has an ability to reduce inflammation. So it’s another really wonderful tool that we can use, especially in cold climates, for anybody who has patterns where there’s a lot of excess cold or dampness, things like arthritis and stiffness and joint pain is really made better by moxibustion.
So, as you can see, there are many different modalities underneath the TCM umbrella. They all work together. They all can help to restore balance. Some things you can do to empower yourself in terms of diet and lifestyle, and some things we can help you with in the clinic with acupuncture, herbal formulas, and other modalities under the TCM umbrella. So many people ask me, Vanessa, who comes to you for acupuncture, who is a good candidate for this? What kind of ailments would you have that TCM can really help you with? And essentially anything you would go to a western medicine doctor for, you could also see an acupuncturist in conjunction with. So I really want you to be mindful of not thinking of one system versus the other. Really incorporate both things, right? So if you have strep throat, definitely go get medications. So that will help you clear that bacteria to clear up the infection.
But then you could also do acupuncture to boost up your immune system to clear that excess heat that is caused by that infection and to really get things back into order and into alignment. Then you can also use food, dietary and lifestyle things. You know, drinking more orange juice to cool that down and clear the infection faster. So really, we want to look at things from a very holistic view. And. And when you understand that acupuncture can support basically any ailment that you may be having, because any ailment you may be having is showing you there’s an imbalance in the body somewhere. So we can always look to restore that. So some really common things that people come in for are, of course, pain conditions, back pain, shoulder pain, knee pain, headaches, migraines.
Then we also have a lot of digestive issues. And TCM can work wonders on helping to restore gut health and balance in your overall digestive systems. We also treat a lot of fertility issues. And folks that are hoping to get pregnant in the future, we can support that and again, nourish their blood, have, you know, more vitality, more energy flowing through the uterus so that we have a higher chance of pregnancy and the ability of the body to maintain that. Then we also have things like dizziness and vertigo and kind of random sort of chronic things that may flare up here or there. And the really big one that I see quite often are folks that have repeat infections. So chronic sinusitis. People have a sinus infection, they take the antibiotics, they’re good for a few weeks, a couple months, and then home.
Behold, they have another sinus infection. Well, we really want to break that cycle by enhancing what is going on, allowing that sinus infection to get in, clearing the dampness when it’s there, tonifying the lungs, tonifying the qi, basically your immune system, your wei qi, and then that way you are less prone to having more sinus infections in the future. So hopefully that gives you a good idea of all the different types of ailments we can treat with tcm, some things being more acute. If you sprain an ankle, we can definitely help you out right in the moment. But if you happen to have longer, you know, IBS for 20 years, you can also see a TCM practitioner, doctor of acupuncture, acupuncturists, to help you balance that pattern and manage that on your own.
Traditional Chinese medicine is built on four key theories that explain how the body functions and maintains balance. Yin Yang theory describes the dynamic balance of opposing forces. Yin, which is our cooling nature, and yang, our warming nature that must be in balance for good health. The Five Elements theory categorizes natural and bodily functions into wood, fire, earth, metal and water, showing how they interact and influence organ function and disease patterns. The Zong Fu organ system groups internal organs into yin and yang categories, emphasizing their interconnected roles in storing vital substances and maintaining physiological processes. And finally, our vital substances include qi or, or life, energy, blood, essence, body fluid, and spirit. All are essential for sustaining life, and their balance determines overall well being. Together, these theories form the foundation of traditional Chinese medicine’s approach to diagnosing and treating health conditions.
So at its heart, TCM is rooted in the idea of balance, balance between yin and yang, the complementary forces of energy that flow through everything in nature and including our bodies. Yin represents qualities like rest, coolness, nurturing, while yang symbolizes activity, warmth and movement. When these forces are out of harmony, illness can arise. In tcm, we also look at the five elements. Wood, fire, earth, metal and water. These elements represent patterns in nature and in your body, and they’re interconnected with your organs and your emotions and your overall health. Traditional Chinese medicine is built on several foundational theories, including the Zong Fu organ system. This system categorizes organs as yin or yang and describes how they work together to maintain health.
For example, the liver stores blood and ensures smooth qi flow, while the stomach, a fu organ, helps with digestion and nutrient absorption. In addition to the organs, TCM really emphasizes the vital substances.
So the vital substances include qi, which is essentially our body’s energy. Blood, which nourishes and moistens body fluids, which is essentially going to hydrate us. We have jing, which is our vitality or essence, and then we have our shen, which really resonates with our mind and our spirit. Spirit. These substances work together to ensure our physical and emotional well being. So whether you’re looking to relieve stress, manage pain, improve sleep, or support your overall health, traditional Chinese medicine has something to offer everyone. It’s not just a treatment, it’s a philosophy of health and living in harmony with the world around you.
