Using Acupuncture as a tool to stay well, not just a fix for problems

I wanted to talk about something that I think a lot of people forget or don’t even know about acupuncture, and that is how GREAT it is for keeping you well! Did you know that at the heart of traditional Chinese medicine is prevention? This quote from the Nei Jing, one of the oldest and most foundational text of Chinese medicine states that “Maintaining order rather then correcting disorder is the ultimate principle of wisdom. To cure disease after it has appeared is like digging a well when one already feels thirsty, or forging weapons after the war has begun.” Nie Jing-2nd Century B.C.

Along with this quote I also want to share the Chinese story of Bian Que and the King. “There once was a well-known Chinese physician who lived over 2300 years ago, named Bian Que. One day, the King called Bian Que to him and asked him: “I hear you have two brothers who are also physicians. Can you tell me–who is the best physician? Now, be honest!”

Bian Que answered, “My oldest brother is the best. My second brother is better than me. Actually, I am just average.” The King was surprised. “But you are the one who is famous throughout China! Why do you say they are better than you?”

Bian Que said, “My oldest brother believes in a lot of prevention. He looks for the source of illness and treats problems before people even feel anything. So, his patients don’t even realize how much he has done for them, and they don’t talk about him much.

“My second brother treats people at the first sign of a disease. They are having some symptoms, so he treats them before they get any worse. Because of this, people notice that he has helped them, and he has become fairly well-known in our home town.

“But me? People come to see me as a last resort, when they are already very sick. I use the strongest herbs, the most powerful acupuncture treatments. I even perform surgeries! In fact, a lot of the time, I can’t do anything to help them because they are already too ill. But sometimes I am able to save someone’s life. That is the kind of thing people like to talk about, so I am the one who has become famous.”

So, the King understood his meaning: the best physician is the one who prevents his patients from becoming sick, not the one who tries to save them when they are already near death.”

I know that this is a fairly different way of thinking compared to our western approach to health. Unfortunately western thought toward health has been taken over by business, and it pays more to keep people unwell. But I am here to let you know that there is a shift in consciousness and that people are becoming sick of being sick. That is where acupuncture and Chinese medicine fit in. This tradition is rooted in treating illness but ALSO preventing illness from occurring.

This is one reason why when you visit an acupuncturist they ask so many questions and want all the gory details about things like poop, smells, discharge and emotions, because at the heart of it all are subtle clues that give insight into imbalance. It is those imbalances that change the course of your health and can lead to illness or dis-ease. It is the details of you that make you unique and prone to certain illness, allergies, or weakened immune systems. With regular acupuncture we can harmonize these imbalances so that your system functions optimally creating an environment for good health. By looking at your individual needs, tweaking your diet to fit your constitution, making herbal formulas specific to your body, managing stress and inflammation we can prevent a whole lot of things from happening in the first place.

So moral of this little story is not to forget acupuncture and Chinese medicine as a tool to keep you well! I would advise getting on a maintenance routine. A once a month “tune up” can be really significant part of a wellness plan.

So lets get well and stay well!