Apothecary

A MATTER OF BALANCE - USING MEDICINAL HERBS

Remember the taste of that special turkey dressing that your mother or grandmother always made at Thanksgiving? It had a special blend of spices and herbs that gave it the wonderful flavor that you remember. Or, recall that fantastic homemade chili that your uncle prepared to win the State cook-off? His seasoning mixture was a secret - a blend of over twenty herbs and spices. Too much of one herb and not enough of another and the result is not memorable. Look at the success the Colonel has had with his blend of herbs and spices!

Medicinal herbs used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) are always combined in formulas to enhance their individual properties and actions in addition to decreasing side effects. Because the practitioner of TCM holds to the Chinese belief that a person must be treated as a whole (mind, body and spirit), he or she does not treat just symptoms. The formula chosen takes into consideration the life experience of the patient and attempts to identify the life rhythms that are out of balance so that they can be adjusted. Herbal formulas usually involve between 10-15 herbs per formula. Each of the hundreds of plants in the Chinese Materia Medica have several actions as well as cautions depending on the quantity of the herb and the other herbs with which it is combined. Western medicine has accustomed us to thinking that if we have A then we take B. This approach is based upon a single symptom and does not address the entire person. This principle is why Chinese medicine is considered holistic. Each prescription involves a formula that has been developed based upon the needs of one particular patient.

Even though several patients may have similar conditions, their formulas will differ. In fact, the TCM practitioner will probably vary the formula over time, based upon changes in the overall energetic picture of the individual over time. Certain formulas will be appropriate only for a particular length of time. Because changes should and do occur, a skilled practitioner must monitor your changes and adjust your formula.

You owe it to yourself to check it out - over two thousand years of success speaks for itself.