Acupuncture and the Western Mindset

When you hear the word acupuncture, what do you think of? If you're like most people, probably some kind of voodoo image springs to mind, with pins sticking out of a poor victim. The truth is, acupuncture has an extremely long history and successful track record. While the western mind may have a difficult time understanding or accepting the idea of Qi (life energy), the evidence is all around us. The key to understanding acupuncture is to realize how acupuncture developed, and why it uses the terms it does to describe acupuncture's effects.

Throughout China's history up until very recently, dissection and surgery were taboo activities that carried severe punishments. This limited what the physicians of the time could do for their patients, and what they could do to further their understanding of the inner workings of the human body. Thus, they were forced to develop their own terminology for the body's inner workings, which they borrowed from the life and culture around them and based on the external effects that they could measure with their senses. From the canals in the farmlands to the transformation of wood into ash from the effects of a fire, and the understanding gained through meditation and Tai Qi, the doctors of ancient times developed a systematic approach to how the body worked, and how they could be effective in curing it when it stopped working.

Western Science and the Paradigm of Qi

Does Qi really exist? How do you even pronounce that word? Qi is pronounced "chee" and can also be spelled "Ji" or "Ki", in Japanese. Whether Qi is yet measurable by western science is still heavily debated. However, Qi as a metaphor can be amply examined and quantified. The role of Qi in the body is to give it warmth, life, to move the blood, to give awareness, allow for movement, breath and digestion. Thus, if you are having difficulty digesting food, it is correct to say that you may be suffering from a Qi deficiency in the Stomach, Spleen, or lower bowels. This is not mysticism, this is simply a way of describing one's symptoms so that an effective acupuncture treatment can be coordinated. To take another example, Qi is known to flow in channels rather like the canals in a farmland. If there is an excess of Qi in one channel, it will flow into another channel that may not be so overfull, and thus balance is maintained. If there is a blockage in the channel, the Qi will back up and cause pain, and possibly swelling or inflammation. Thus, if you have pain in an area of your body, it could be described as a Qi blockage as easily as saying you've strained something, or you have arthritis.

What I am trying to get at is that, while the terminology of acupuncture and Chinese medicine may seem alien, what it describes is easily understandable and quantifiable. That acupuncture has been around for over 3,000 years is a testament to the effectiveness of the system, whether science is able to prove or disprove the existence of Qi and the location of acupuncture points.

Science Versus 'Intuition'

In the West we have come to accept that "doctor know best" and that the medicine prescribed is safe and based on scientific study. However, the truth is that death caused by doctor care and the interactions of various medicines (iatrogenic deaths) numbers in the tens, or even hundreds, of thousands every year! This is not to say that there isn't a place for so-called Western medicine. Indeed, if you have just been in a car accident and are needing life saving surgery, don't have the ambulance take you to your acupuncturist! The tests, scans and scopes that are at a doctor's disposal are impressive, and give us an immense amount of information about what's going on inside your body, and that should never be discounted. On the other hand, just because a Western doctor is unable to accept or understand the principles of Chinese medicine does not mean that this system of medicine which pre-dates Western science by some 2,500 years is not effective in many cases. Effective, and, I'd like to add: free of side effects.

The Benefits of Both

When dealing with any sort of health issue, it is important to get as complete a picture as possible of what might be going wrong. This certainly should include a visit to your doctor, but might also include acupuncture treatments. I would caution against seeing any healer or doctor who tells you not to fully explore your options. Your health is your own, and taking responsibility for it is something only you can do. Visit your acupuncturist, get a medical diagnosis, and if at all possible try to get both sides working for you together. Doctors these days are encouraged to at least be open to other therapies, even if they themselves do not have training or experience in those therapies. Just remember: you are in charge of your own health. The more open to proven alternatives you are, the faster you will regain your health and well-being.

Jean-Paul Thuot R.Ac

Jean-Paul Thuot R.Ac is an acupuncturist practicing in Victoria BC, Canada.