Chinese Herbal Medicine
A comprehensive herbal pharmacy including raw herbs, granulars, patents and tinctures is available. A raw herbal pharmacy is not found in most clinics, but at the Oriental Healing Clinic we still offer herbs in this form as they are the most powerful form of herbal therapy. Herbal therapy is an integral part of traditional Chinese Medicine, Classical Chinese Medicine assisting the body in re-balancing on a daily basis.
Herbal therapy treats conditions as diverse as colds & flu, sprains, stress, anxiety, grief and PTS, digestive concerns, skin complaints and many more. Conditions that are chronic and resistant to improvement from other treatment methods often respond to herbal therapy.
Herbal medicine relies on the detailed diagnosis of the imbalances in the body to derive an herbal combination specific to each patient.
Herbs work by:
- Moving and building the Qi, blood and fluids of the body
- Warming or cooling the body
- Draining or retaining the fluids of the body
- Drying or moistening the body
As you can see these actions are mostly in pairs of opposites, which enables balance to be restored.
Herbal treatment takes a holistic view, for example to treat a cough, it must first be determined how the body is affected and what imbalance has occurred, then an appropriate group of herbs are combined to treat the problem.
Simply using stop cough herbs does not address removing the pathogen or supporting the body in returning to health and balance. It is in the combination of herbs that the most benefit is obtained and side effects are minimized or avoided.
The focus in each treatment at Oriental Healing Clinic is holistic: it takes into account the strength and nature of the pathogen, the degree of imbalance, the age and sex of the patient and their constitutional fragility or robustness.
Herbal formulas come in different forms:
- Raw Decoctions
- A raw herbal decoction consists of individually weighed unprocessed herbs placed together to form one bag of ‘formula,’ which is boiled to make medicinal liquid. This is the strongest form of herbal medicine, with flexibility to be customized to a patient’s specific needs.
- Freeze Dried (Granular)
- These are raw herbs that have been cooked and freeze dried. These are more convenient than the raw decoction as no cooking is required, but they are not as strong. They are stronger, however, than patent medicine (see below) and adaptable to a patient’s specific situation.
- Patent Medicine
- These are famous formulas used for generations for common illnesses. They are tiny herbal pellets, referred to as tea pills, which are taken two or three times a day. Taking herbs in this form is sometimes more convenient.
- Tinctures
- These are alcohol and water extracts of raw herbal formulas. These are convenient and effective.
- Topical’s
- Liquids, creams, salves, pastes, plasters. These preparations involve the external application of the herbs, there are numerous circumstances where these are most effective.
Contact us to find out if Chinese Herbal Medicine can help support your body and return it to health and balance