I know some people really want to keep TCM and western medicine separate (even at this school! hello, it's aImc), but I LOVE the integration. One of the reasons why I like my own acupuncturist so much is he has a background in Biomedicine and right away recommended ordering blood and hormone tests. That wouldn't resonate well with some, but it totally jives with me, and that's the type of practitioner I want to be when I grow up!
Western medicine doesn't shake my core and feel "right" like TCM does, but by the same token I am completely fascinated with it. I feel (fortunately or not) that in our society of skeptics, to gain credibility, we as practitioners will find it to our advantage the more well versed we are in western concepts and how TCM can be explained by such. Now don't get me wrong, I don't mean to sacrifice our lovely medicine to the western hands, always having to explain TCM in western terms, never the other way around, I know, I know we get the raw end of the stick with this one. Maybe I'll have a rude awakening when all my patients don't end up just like me, and don't appreciate this more integrative approach of mine.
Seeing the pictures of the cell structures, reminds me of how in TCM no small drop of sweat, sinew or organ goes unnoticed. Every piece of the puzzle is equally important for a full and proper diagnosis, and therefore road to harmony. An animal cell would NOT be an animal cell if it contained chloroplasts. Perhaps they are only one tiny part of a cell, but they are crucial! Perhaps it is "normal" for a patient to have a constant low pitched tinnitus; they just deal with it! But we clever students know better and this could be a huge clue in their diagnosis. Low back pain you say? Achey knees? Ah yes, the pieces fall into place...even the small ones.
