Chinese terminology

Translating Eastern to Western

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) can seem perplexingly strange with its emphasis on energy rather than on function.

This is particularly true in its descriptions of how the energy of the body behaves in sickness and in health. The ubiquitous Eastern word 'qi' (pronounced chee) is usually used to describe energy and this can be broken down into

• yin qi for the solid, contracting, cooling energies (deficient where a patient has hot sweats)
• yang qi for the moving, warming energies (deficient where a patient always feels cold)

Organs in Chinese medicine

In referring to the organs of the body, TCM and Western medicine have the same ideas and all major organs are common to the two ways of thinking:

• Heart
• Lungs
• Spleen
• Stomach
• Liver
• Kidneys
• etc

But beware, this can lead to confusion!

Although there is overlap in the ideas of how the organs work, there are also important differences.

A TCM problem with the Heart will not necessarily mean a problem with the Western idea of the heart organ that pumps the blood around the body. It can refer to a problem with energies governed by the Heart in TCM that have effects on the Mind such as anxiety. To distinguish these different types of function, TCM organs and tissues (such as Heart and Blood) are capitalised in English literature.

If you are interested in knowing more about the theory of TCM, please ask.

Please ask ...

If you are interested in knowing more about the theory of TCM and your own health.