Pills, Powders, and Decoctions: Why We Still Need Different Formats for Formula

Dao Dan Pai qigong exercises are a series of standing exercises that harmonize and balance the major energy channels of the body. First taught in the West by Taoist Master Share K. Lew, a Taoist monk from the Yellow Dragon Temple in the Lo Fo Shan mountains of Guangzhou, China, these exercises integrate movement with breath and posture to activate and balance qi.

Ancient doctors wrote formulas as decoctions (tang), pills (wan), or powders (san) for a reason. They thought the format of a formula contributed to its efficacy by strengthening certain functions or delivering the formula to a specific region of the body. Why is it called Xiaoyao San, not Xiaoyao Tang? Why wasn't Liuwei Dihuang Wan designed as a decoction? Do we sacrifice a bit of the herbal power for convenience when we prepare a formula differently from the original? Join us in examining the importance of herbal formulations.

What are the pros and cons of Chinese herbs for prevention of, treatment of ,and recovery from COVID-19? Can Chinese herbs be used instead of or with Western drugs to reduce side effects and improve clinical outcome? What is the best way to integrate Chinese and Western medicine to achieve optimal results? Though we hope COVID-19 is in its final stages, it is not the first and likely won’t be the last pandemic. The goal of this seminar is to learn from our failure and remember from our success in the past, so we can continue to improve in the future.

Using Traditional Chinese Medicine as a foundation, this course will introduce additional strategies — both high and low technologies — that can improve quality of life at any age but especially after 40 years of age. Strong health maintenance practices, with an emphasis on enhancing the body's resistance to disease, have become a popular and much needed health topic in the United States and world over. Multiple natural therapeutics can guide you in assisting your patients to achieve greater health and quality of life. The use of modern assessment and tracking tools to confirm therapeutic efficacy are an important part of this discussion.

Dao Dan Pai qigong exercises are a series of standing exercises that harmonize and balance the major energy channels of the body. First taught in the West by Taoist Master Share K. Lew, a Taoist monk from the Yellow Dragon Temple in the Lo Fo Shan mountains of Guangzhou, China, these exercises integrate movement with breath and posture to activate and balance qi.

Herbal syrups have been prescribed for at least a thousand years. Today we tend to think of them for cough or for children, but many syrups were described as having powerful supplementing effects. Syrups take time to make, but one batch can last for months. They are convenient to take and generally have a pleasant taste. We will discuss syrup-making and various recipes. In addition, we will make a syrup during this session and taste a few more.

The thoracolumbar junction (TLJ) is a region of the spine that consists of T12-L2. From this region many key joints, muscles and viscera are innervated. The TLJ can become dysfunctional as a unit, contribute to painful trigger point formation, and refer pain to the low back, pelvis, and groin. We will explore the neural, myofascial, and channel anatomy of this region and look at common pain patterns that frequently present in the clinic. You will gain a better ability to recognize, assess, and treat this intriguing area of the body.

In this 3-hour workshop, Dr. East will reveal several approaches and modalities that you can use with your patients to promote peak appearance and overall longevity. Topics discussed will include mindset, biohacking, combining micro-needling with cosmetic acupuncture, cosmetic acupuncture protocols for a variety of facial presentations, and how to perform body reshaping with patients and help them eliminate fat in specific areas of their bodies. At the very end of the session, Dr. East will tie this all together by sharing specific strategies for incorporating this niche into your practice right away.

We will discuss the treatment of infection and inflammation from both Western and Chinese medicine perspectives. Infection and inflammation are two disorders that are different yet commonly occur together. From the Chinese medicine perspective, both are considered heat, although pathology and treatment strategies are quite different. “Heat” by itself is too general to describe the pathology of disease, as heat may present in fever, infection, inflammation, allergy, autoimmune disease, and more. Similarly, “heat-clearing” is also vague, and additional information on its pharmacology is beneficial, such as antipyretic, antibiotic (antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal), antiallergic, or anti-inflammatory effects. This seminar provides valuable information to accurately diagnose the disease and select the suitable herbal treatment based on both Chinese herbology and Western pharmacology.

Using Chinese medicine as a foundation, this workshop will explore complementary tools, lifestyle techniques, and nutritional supplements to help patients over forty achieve their best results—tools that will be usable immediately. Have you ever wondered if there are certain nutritional supplements that might enhance the efficacy of your acupuncture or herbal treatment? Does it make a difference when these supplements are used? Can you measure or quantify your patient's progress? Are there measurement tools that help to motivate your patient to maintain compliance? The answer is yes.