I love the way that God has structured the Earth so perfectly. How loving is He that would create everything within the environment we are sent to for health, healing and sustainability. A lot of or wisdom of the Earth itself has gotten lost in the modern day distraction of the world and technology, but it does still exist.
One thing about google, chat gpt etc… you can look up any herb or plant and get hundreds of options and opinions about what it does or doesn’t do or the warning and side effects. But there is nothing like having a working relationship with herbs and the environment to really understand how they are working synergistically with the body.
I can’t remember where I heard this, but it has always stuck with me, “the difference between medicine and poison is the dose”. Did you know that fentanyl is used in epidurals? We also all know the tragic down side of too much. Or methamphetamines are used for ADHD medications, but again too much and the repercussions are horrible. Even in our extensive materia medica of Chinese herbology we use aconite (a known toxic substance) either at a low dose or pretreated with ginger to mitigate harmful side effects. These are perfect examples of medicine vs. poison being in the dose.
In America, we LOVE to jump on trends of things that seem like a quick fix, like collagen for the hair growth, sea moss as a super supplement, shilajit for all that ails you. These are all great medicinals, but not every medicinal that claims to be beneficial, is always right for YOU!
Every body type is different. We all have different temperaments, temperatures, excesses and deficiencies, issues we are prone to, patterns and places we are holding stress etc. So when we look at this whole factor, we can see what is going to be the best formulation to prescribe.
Two people can come in and say, I have acid reflux. One person may have dampness and weak digestion while the other person may have way too much heat. We will not be giving them both the same medicine. If I give the damp person medicine to quench fire, the digestive system of that person won’t even be able to handle the cold/ heavy nature of that medicine and it will make symptoms worse. Even the temperaments and underlying symptoms of these people are going to be different! The damp person is going to tend to be heavier, prone to gaining weight, alternating constipation and loose stool, depression, fatigue, heaviness in the limbs. The person with a lot of heat is going to be more intense, quick temper, redness in the face, more loose stool with burning diarrhea, even a louder voice than the damp person.
So how can one medicine possibly fit all when we are so unique? In Chinese medicine we are always trying to balance and strengthen the overall system of the body to heal the symptoms. Not just suppress a symptom.
That is why all our herbal medicine is in a formulation not just one individual herb. Very rarely do we prescribe one herb. Each formulation usually has at least 5+ different herbs and we structure them as follows:
King- the main herbs, typically in highest dose will be treating the primary issues creating the symptoms
Deputy – will also be treating the primary condition as well as other patterns that are contributing to symptoms
Assistant- assists in erradicating symptoms and mitigating any toxic side effects of other herbs, as well as counterbalancing the king herb.
Envoy- harmonizing the whole formula to make it digestible for you body.
We are never aiming to keep you on herbs for the rest of your life. We believe the body is capable of healing, it is our design! By the end of a few months or more, you won’t have the same issues with your body. You will be back to baseline so you won’t be dependent on medicinals. But you will need to listen to what your body needs as your needs and seasons change.
To learn more book a consult here thesanctuary.janeapp.com
No comment