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COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: TIBETAN MEDICINE STRIKES A BALANCE
As society becomes faster paced, more technological, and ever more competitive, we are bombarded by daily stressors. As we get older and take on increasing amounts of responsibility, expectations for us increase by leaps and bounds. We are told time and again to make sure to \"stop and smell the roses,\" but who has time?
According to Tibetan medicine, our health depends on finding balance in our lives - specifically, finding a balance among our three bodily \"humors.\" These refer to the water humor (bad-kan), responsible for support and cohesion; the fire humor (mkhris-pa), responsible for heat and digestion; and the wind humor (dung), responsible for breath and mobility. When these humors fall out of balance, disease results. To maintain balance, Tibetan physicians look to behavior as a catalyst for health or disease. Their belief that the mind and body are one makes it mandatory for behavior to encourage equilibrium. For example, doctors prescribe changes in lifestyle and diet to effect change in the body. Behaviors considered unhealthy may be evil deeds in present or past lives, sexual indiscretions, or unhealthy diets. In fact, in a recent art exhibit on Tibetan medicine held in Washington, D.C., one of the paintings illustrating the general rules of healthy conduct specified: \"Do not take what is not yours,\" \"Do not lie,\" \"Do not gossip,\" and \"Do not be covetous.\"
The information gathering that takes place when a Tibetan physician diagnoses an illness differs from that of the United States. State-of-the-art diagnostic tools are absent, superseded only by the physician\'s keen sense of observation and conversation. Tibetan physicians use their senses of smell, touch, sight, and hearing to draw conclusions.
Tibetan physicians begin learning the process at about 13 years of age and continue for the next 11 years, following a strict daily regimen that starts at 4 a.m. and ends at 10 p.m. Special training is provided in subjects such as pulse diagnosis and herb identification, as herbs are the key in Tibetan medicines. Four-year internships are then required before one becomes a full-fledged physician.
In the United States there is an increased interest in Tibetan medicine, just as there is in all forms of alternative medical care. Our newspapers, magazines, medical journals, and even yearly visits to doctors point to the importance of finding a balance. More than ever, the American medical community is urging the general public to eat a balanced diet, to exercise, and to avoid harmful habits such as smoking, drinking irresponsibly, and abusing substances. As the Tibetan physicians do, we are being urged to use our senses, and common sense, to glean the healthiest results. Although the alternative approach of Tibetan medicine may be seen as too extreme by many, the message of balance as the central theme of care appeals to others. Above all else, the arrival of Tibetan medicine in the United States serves as another indication of the growth of alternative care and the blending of cultures within this country.
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GENERAL HEALTH
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