Spiritual Acupuncture
The tradition of Spiritual Acupuncture teaches that treating a patient at the level of consciousness affects all other body systems. Emotional and spiritual health lie at the heart of Chinese Medicine, where it is taught that our bodies follow our energy, and our energy follows our consciousness. This is why it is believed that most diseases come initially from dis-ease, or an imbalance without our emotional/psychic world. The idea is that all illness is an illness of the soul or that physical pain or suffering has its root in a psycho-spiritual or psycho-emotional disharmony.
In traditional Chinese medicine emotions and physical health are intimately connected. Sadness, nervous tension, and anger, worry, fear, and overwork are each associated with a particular organ in the body. For example, irritability and inappropriate anger can affect the liver and result in menstrual pain, headache, redness of the face and eyes, dizziness, and dry mouth. Panic attacks affect the heart, worry affects the digestion, fear and trauma affect all organs, including but not limited to the kidneys.
A diagnosis in traditional Chinese medicine is highly individualized. Once an organ system is identified, the unique symptoms of the patient determine the treatment approach.
At the root of all acupuncture treatment is the intention to calm the spirit.
As the ancient texts state, over and over, “When the spirit is calm, the body heals itself.”
In the teachings of Traditional Chinese Medicine, each organ has a spirit. The primary spirit, the spirit of the heart and that which gives us a sense of life and manifests in the “glitter in the eye”, lives in the heart and is called the Shen.
Emotional balance is vital for good heart health. In traditional Chinese medicine, the heart is considered the emperor of the body. It sets the tone and direction for the rest of the organ systems to follow. Emotion correlates with a meridian system in the body. Because we are an integrated whole, a problem that originates in one area of the body, or emotional body, has the potential to affect all others.
In helping to facilitate a free flow of emotions, we help the Heart to transcend and integrate them. We calm the spirit, the heart spirit. When we are no longer at the mercy of our emotions, we are better able to hear the deepest parts of our selves speaking to us. The whole point of acupuncture is to facilitate the Qi moving differently in the body, so it has the potential to help with anxiety, fears, worries, depression, and other emotional imbalances.
Painting by Erin Prucha
The 8 Extraordinary Vessels
I frequently use the 8 Extraordinary vessels, which contain our essential blueprint for life and address one’s essential existential questions. The 8 Extras, or 8EVs, are unique in that they address the nature of human suffering and overcoming psycho-emotional pain. Emotional suffering and resistance to change can be an impediment to the healing process, with many physical conditions being resistant to treatment due to their psycho-emotional elements. The 8EVs can be applied to both physical and emotional illness, including addiction, chronic pain, auto immune conditions, and hormonal disorders.
Destiny, purpose, the meaning of life and the nature of suffering are not to be taken lightly. The Daoists and Buddhists say that suffering occurs when we don’t understand our pain. If we can see cause and effect, then we can make conscious choices. Western medicine is based upon science, with spirituality being a topic that is either ignored or refuted and very seldom embraced. Pharmaceuticals are chemistry’s answer to symptoms of various illnesses, including emotional ‘dis-eases’. There is no question that these modern medicines are useful and necessary in many instances. But the use of more natural techniques with less or no side effects are essential as well.
Chinese medicine has an “inner tradition” which recognizes that medicine can be used as a tool to aid in spiritual development. Physical, emotional, and mental illness is directly correlated to the degree in which an individual is capable of living his/her destiny. Many modern day works, including that of Caroline Myss and Deepak Choprah, have some basis in the philosophy that the cultivation of consciousness is a vital part of the pursuit of health, meaning and purpose in life.
The journey of self-discovery or self-awareness is the most healing process there is. Chinese Medicine, especially the Inner Tradition of Chinese Medicine, is uniquely suited to supporting the relationship between the body and the mind. This medicine has a long history of respect for the reality that the body and mind are one. There is an understanding that the physical body, the mental-emotional body, and the spiritual body are inseparable. The 8EVs contain within them the primary resources you have been given for your journey through life and working with them helps to reveal your destiny and that which gives you a satisfying journey through this lifetime.
Testimonials show that Erin has achieved profound results through treating her patients as whole beings, with emotional and spiritual concerns, and aligning acupuncture treatments for deep healing. Please contact Erin to schedule an appointment.
