“Men” is a common symptom in Chinese medicine. The Chinese character shows a door and a heart inside it. Thus, it would seem to indicate a heart constricted by a door closing on it. I translate this symptom as “a feeling of oppression of the chest”. Men is very difficult to translate and my translation … Read More
SU WEN CHAPTER 81 and TEARS Chapter 81 of the Su Wen has an interesting view of sadness and tears. The Jing of Water is Zhi and the Jing of Fire is Shen. The interaction of Water and Fire causes sadness of both the Zhi and the Shen and that is why tears run out … Read More
In 1992 an Italian neurophysiologist in Parma was doing brain research using macaque monkeys. They were specifically researching an area of the brain called F5, located in the premotor cortex. Area F5 contains millions of neurons that specialize in coding for one specific motor behaviour: actions of the hand, including grasping, holding, tearing and, most … Read More
Since the previous Clinical Tip was about guilt as an emotional cause of disease, it makes sense to discuss now shame as an emotional cause of disease. I think that shame is as common as guilt in Western patients while it could be argued that Eastern societies are more prone to shame than guilt. Shame … Read More
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God1 Romans 3.23 In the previous Clinical Tip I discussed sadness and grief deriving from loss as a pervasive emotion in Western patients. In this Clinical Tip, I discuss another common emotional cause of disease in Western patients, i.e. guilt. Guilt is a pervasive … Read More
