Chinese Medicine Adventures

Kookaburra at the library

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:56:00 +0000

When I was trying to study this cheeky little chappy turned up and I had to stare out of the window at Double Bay library...

Exam Cram 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 21:03:00 +0000

Library books

One of my favourite study places-Down at Double Bay libray
Close up of the fun!
Here's a pic of the homeless guy who is always in the Library, seen him around the suburb heaps as well. He prefers the Sydney Morning Herald as his daily read.

Managed to sneak this picture before our last exam on Saturday-thanks ppl. Everybody looks quite happy, I think basically because it was the last one-phew!

Just did my last exam for this semester on Saturday (why does UTS do that??). Had a few late nights and early starts for this bunch of exams. Here’s a brief photo review. Well it's all done again and looks as though Summer is going to be really hot one!

First glimpse new flyer for next year!

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:47:00 +0000

Front, see if you can find the spelling mistake!

Back of flyer, website, map, acupuncture description and Free TCM Health Assessment! More about that later. Also even made a twitter account. Will link soon!

Phew, so much on right now, but couldn't resist showing this almost finished flyer for the UTS TCM FYIC (Final Year Internship Clinic) for next year. These are clearer when printed BTW and they are 1/3 A4 size. So we get 3 on every A4 print.

Yes we have been busy organising and planning for next semester. I wanted to get as much done now as I could so that everybody could hand out flyers and promote over the uni break coming up. Hopefully we will be able to do that if we can print at the beginning of next week.

This version is about the 6th (6th!) draft in a line of changes and ideas. I did surveys, took pictures, retook pictures, wrote text, changed text, talked to people, got feedback, rechanged stuff, talked to my lecturer, got his ideas, changed stuff, bossed people around for more pictures! So firstly thanks very much Fiona Cho, who is the master of photoshop,for your talents and being so patient. Was fun working in the guts of China town in your shop on this! Thanks to everyones feedback as well and thanks a lot for letting me take pictures too!

Let me know what you think. All feedback is good!

Front Desk pics

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:44:00 +0000

That's me in the front

Might use some of these on the new website for the UTS TCM FYIC (Final Year Internship Clinic), stay posted for a link soon-thanks everybody.

Here you can see us in the reception area of the clinic, can't wait to get in amongst it properly next year!

Cupping of cyst after fire needle technique

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:27:00 +0000

This video has gone to over 90,000 views now... I wonder how far it will go?

Next week or so I will put up a video of having a consultation at the UTS TCM clinic. It will be used around uni on the video screens for next semester hopefully, well that's the plan!

Friendly visitor

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:37:00 +0000

Angus and myself in the break room

A friendly visitor came by the clinic. Angus had been checking my blog and decided to pop by for a visit during the week. Was great to meet him and hear his ideas and I showed him round the herb dispensary, and treatment rooms.

Also I managed to squeeze in his first acupuncture needle experience which he thought was pretty good. I thought it was pretty good too as I have been in clinic observing for 3 years. Later I realised he was the first person I had acupunctured in the clinic. So a good double. Thanks.

Pericardium 5, Jianshi, bruise

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:21:00 +0000

We did treatments on each other last week and I had PC5 needled. Didn't feel a thing, felt OK during and no pain on needle removal. The next day I looked at my arm and I had this bruise there. Just goes to show sometimes you can get bruising from needling without misplacing the needle. What's your theory on the bruise and what it can mean from a TCM point of view?

PS since I last put that post up about the cupping video, views have gone to 83,000 plus now!

Video Review

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 20:20:00 +0000

This video I put on youtube has almost reached 80,000 views. Why????

Tattoo, herbs and students

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 03:11:00 +0000

Here's a picture of a fellow student studying tcm in the year above me and her tattoo "Puff" on her right shoulder. In the background were some herbs she was measuring out for a patient. The name of her tattoo is puff the magic dragon .

Favourite funniest herbs of the moment

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 08:13:00 +0000

Wu Ling Zhi
Regulates Blood, transforms stagnation and stops bleeding
Flying Squirrel excreta or Possum Poo!

Pu Huang
Stops Bleeding, Dispels Blood Stagnation, promotes urination
Even though there is 'Pu" in the name there is no poo in it ! It's pollen

Best of all these two herbs combine to make the following Formula:
Shi Xiao San translates to Sudden Smile Powder
Indicated for irregular menstruation, painful periods, pain in the lower abdomen, severe pain in the middle abdomen
I guess the smile comes when the pain stops, not after you know what the ingredients are

Inside the TCM clinic part2

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 08:23:00 +0000

Here's some more pictures from inside the clinic, thanks guys.

Captured this nice exchange after a particular question about something or other. Made me laugh just looking at it.

Inside the UTS TCM Clinic Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:36:00 +0000

Treatment begins on a patient with neck pain

Over to the trolley to get the right needles for the job

Needles ready for treatment
Observing and learning

Here’s one of those privileged glimpses into a world less seen: the inside of a public acupuncture clinic in full swing.

I wanted to capture some of the intensity, learning, fun and pace of the clinic with Cong. Thanks Cong, the practitioner, and James for letting me take the pics. And of course the generous patient, who let me snap away happily.

Cong books 2 patients every half hour, so the pace is busy in his clinic. Once I asked why and he said to help us learn more, he didn’t want to see students bored in the break room .

Here we see a patient with upper cervical spine pain and musculoskeletal issues around the same area being treated, maybe his third one.

Cong will laugh and joke with his patients, helping them in every way he can. He is very generous with his teaching and will have a laugh and joke with all of us.

At one stage a Chinese patient was on one side of the room speaking in Mandarin, Cong might have been telling her to relax in the same language, while acupuncturing a native Spanish speaking patient and joking with her in broken Spanish, while at the same time fielding my questions, another student is waiting to get a patient record signed off. More pics 2moz

Facebook UTS TCM 4th Year Clinic

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:29:00 +0000

Hi,

Very exciting. Here's the Facebook page for the UTS TCM 4th Year Clinic. We will be in clinic next year, but it's nice to get things up and running, click the title for the link.

Clinical Practicum Acupuncture Class

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 14:00:00 +0000

Here's James doing Moxa on Spleen 6

Well it’s one a.m. here in Sydney and I can’t get to sleep yet. Thinking about the things I have to do for study and worrying about it.

Just recently a very lovely person donated a camera to the CMA foundation. Lots of love and big thanks :)

It’s a really good one and I’m having heaps of fun using it. It’s so quick! All my previous pictures have been on my phone camera. It paused a while before and after taking a picture. This one is instant and has quick burst shooting as well.

Here are some pics from Clinical Practicum. It’s a class that has theory and a practical component. We are over viewing and developing our TCM theory and then in the other class we are diagnosing, doing acupuncture on each other and adding herbal medicine theory too.

I am also part of a group that is organising advertising for our 4^th year internship in the public clinic next year, more about that soon. I have been developing some flyers with the group and a website and other exciting bits. Can’t wait to put them on the blog to show!

I hope you enjoy the pics as much as I have taking them. Look out for more on the way!

Inside an acupuncture point location exam

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 00:51:00 +0000

My last point location Exam was on Friday 18th September 2009 at 11 a.m.

Exam: to answer a minimum of 18 out of 20 point location questions correctly from a choice of 200 points using western anatomical location descriptions of the body. The acupuncture points, although ordered by the meridian they are in, will be randomly called out by an examiner who over views your physical location technique on a partner body in front of you and assesses your verbal location of the point: 90% is needed for pass in ten minutes.

Wednesday night: panicked, got home 6ish. Tried studying but procrastinated till 8. Went to midnight flipping through point location cards.

Thursday: up at 5 a.m. to review cards and pick through what I couldn’t remember. Evening back home 5ish, sandwich for dinner. Went over cards again to 9pm

Friday: Up at 5 a.m. leaving house at 8 a.m. to meet with a friend at 9 a.m. to go over final point info before exam at 11 a.m.The three hours till 8 a.m. whipped by, hardly time for breakfast! Nervous, feel uptight and reactive, didn’t feel like sharing journey on the bus, jumped on my bicycle to ride in to the city. The bike ride in was a nice distraction. Paused in Centennial Park on the way through to uni:so peaceful. Stated to myself would reflect on that moment if things got stressy during the day. Back into the commute through the city and found my friend at the UTS library. Studied, and tried to maintain cool although felt very edgy.

10.30 a.m. made my way to level 12, building 1. Needed space, as any answer I gave that was wrong would tail spin me, so told my friend I would meet them up there! Level 12 and a few people standing around waiting for exam. Chatted and avoided any test questions, maintained calm but insides going crazily at 100 kmph. People in test before came out-looking relieved, my partner turned up and said hi and a moment later we got the call to go in.

11 a.m. Bags down, I thought I was going first for location, but my partner got in before me on the request by the lecturer and I went with it. The disadvantage: I have to wait for her to do the exam first, the advantage: I get a clue of the examiners style, wants, foibles and settle in to the rhythm. Lying on the table my heart was racing, staring up, as any help or notion of assistance is an exam fail. The first five points called by the examiner for the other person I couldn’t concentrate on, then I started remembering and locating in my head. The pauses, the wait, the suffering. The stop start, unsureness, all hang on a sweating ice edge. Then they had finished, congratulations: now me. I have a quick drink of water, and my study body is lying down in front of me, a smile and we are on. I decide to just focus on the points called. Ok confusion, now I have been told to read out my own points. I grab a pen to tick off on the sheet as I go, as the list becomes a jumble of lines in my spinning head. First point down, second: wait, where? Ok count back and forth along meridian-ok. Next and next. Rhythm, good. Conception Vessel 4. This point is above the pubic sympysis. in the area of the lower abdomen. I have learnt it as 2 cun (Chinese inch) above the border of the pubic symphysis. Pause. Lecturer says nothing. Pause. Question:” how many cun is it below the umbilicus?”. Ok ok. What’s the entire measurement again?? Ok I can do this…I place hands on abdomen of my exam body before me, suddenly I am in chaos. Suddenly I am searching with hands in a area of the body which is never usually touched, I realise this and suddenly double panic. OK ok ok what is that measurement from tummy button to the pubic symphysis? Ok 5 cun. Take away the measurement from one direction form the total to give the other measurement. I call out 3 cun inferior to the umbilicus. I learnt it by wrote the other way round! Pause, pause. Lecturer: “ correct”. Next point. After this peak of panic things brushed by. At the half way mark I wondered how much longer to the end. Then final point and I called it and it was good. Yeah! It’s done. Passed. I can’t believe it. Early mornings, late nights, fear and doubt, worry and practice all to this end moment. Complete. I will never have to do one of those again. A week later and it feels as though it was done a million years ago!

The power of tcm and the power of herbs and the power of life

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 23:17:00 +0000

As always so many things are happening and developing that it's hard to keep up. I was very moved by a story I heard during the week from a friend though: it regards cancer and its treatment. The friend told me about a male who was diagnosed with prostate cancer during 2006. After this diagnosis he changed his lifestyle by becoming vegan, eating unprocessed food and taking up meditation through the Gawler Foundation. He didn't take any western medicine treatment and maintained a course of TCM herbs in a heavily modified formula called Huang Lian Jie Du Tang , with the added herb of the following: ban zhi lian. From 2008 and 25 PSA and blood tests later he is in remission. An amazing story unravelled of the male involved. One of courage, determination. He faced off to normal medical convention and confronted his doctors on why and how. He asked one of them to write a statement of his prognosis and they refused. The male involved also stated that his definition of happiness had changed. Happiness now was an attitude of calm, tolerance, sensitivity, compassion and balance. How had he maintained balance? For example he would schedule all his calls to a certain time and not answer his mobile any other time. If demands were made he would assess them logically and allow the right time for them. For example an urgent document needed to be signed that would take all night to read for the next day. He read it the next day and delayed the deadline.
The simple dried grass looking herb above helped him in this quest for balance too.

Where to get lunch?

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 22:26:00 +0000

The lunch question at UTS:answered!
If you head to building 6 you will find smoking types who design. Yes you are in the "design and architecture building". Here the DAB cafe (see quote marks) provides the best salads. Why? The freshness, the variety and the great flavours and great price. Nothing on campus or nearby beats this very friendly and down to earth place. You just have to go up an enormous set of badly designed steps to get there. What a shame...Might try and do a cross promotion with them and the UTS clinic across the road BTW. Stay posted!

TCM Business Cards

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 10:35:00 +0000

Front of a few cards

Backs of the above cards
More fronts
Backs
Fav at the moment
Humans also treated

Been picking up a few cards over time and I realised what a beautiful and interesting thing they are. I know some of the people who created them so it's also interesting to clearly see the personality of the person shine through. My favourite of the ones I've picked up so far has to be Victoria Bennett's card. Not only did she avoid the yin yang symbol, but she used some nice original imagery and some nice colours in my opinion. Also I like the fact that humans are treated but really she treats your pet and horses too.

New UTS TCM Sign/Advert!

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 12:01:00 +0000

Warren popped out from the clinic to see what was going on: He's standing in front of a picture that Sean took of his hand holding a pen... Wow! That will be there for a few years.

Admiration and awe

Wow!
You never know what will happen next. From a break up, sideways exam question, sunny days then gale force winds and now this! Walking into uni and suddenly there's a giant, bright sign and advert outside my clinic! In fact I witnessed its application to the wall and the awe it created. It makes you feel proud!
Also if you look closely, Goji berries got in there. Infiltrating the western world: the red berry!

new post new post new post

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:06:00 +0000

Hi guys,
Here's some pills we had a look at. The lecturer for our disease states class kindly brought them in. I've never seen cluster pills or pills in mini plastic containers each in their own blister packaging before. So there you go. These ones for heart conditions.
Studies continue and time is ripping by. Seems like close to the end of semester again! Only one more year to go. All those holidays I thought I would do extra study in are evaporating. Christmas coming up, then new semester and then hopefully off to China and then graduate. ZOoom!

Dr Peter C Meier PhD, BSc (ACU), Dip. App. Sc. (ACU), DBM, Adv. Cert. (ACU/MOXA)

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:20:00 +0000

Peter doing something with his QiFirst picture I took.

Note the halo effect around him. Could be caused by incorrect white balance in my camera or...

Peter Meier kindly let me take an unplanned, of the moment, picture today when I dropped something off at his office. Thanks Peter! Here he can be seen solidly organising and planning the smooth running of stuff. Peter is also in clinic and teaching and swears more than most of the other lecturers I know... and not just around me.
Peter has a few main dictums:
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
Respect my authority
Swear word (not mentioned here)

The last one is a generalisation of swearing combined into one swear. However I can't wait until graduation day when Peter will have the sweet pleasure to announce that particular one to us all! :)

Front Desk News

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:18:00 +0000

This is what you'll see if you front up at the UTS TCM clinic. Oh yeah! Thanks guys!

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 22:12:00 +0000

We had to self allocate for 5 groups on 5 bits of paper at the end of the last clinic class. Fortunately I've got long arms and managed to register first. Then I took a picture of the seagull action

Another student decided to follow the toilet paper example for the assignment outline I mentioned previously...

Quick lunch break in between lectures. Chasing the Sun on the green before the buildings blocked it out

Study Help

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:55:00 +0000

Hi CMAers,
Bit snowed with new study I guess. Trying this out now:
http://quizlet.com/
Very comprehensive and easy to use online flash card maker. And free too. I found it last semester, after a fellow student recommended it, but it was too late in the semester to use. Now I am giving it a go for herbal formualas and its seems quite useful so far :)

New Semester: New Highs and lows!

noreply@blogger.com (Damo) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 09:25:00 +0000

Clinic 6 course notes. Only interesting due to the expectation of the student as shown above. Should get a high distinction for this subject, then! He he
Also of note was the fact that an outline of a particular assignment that we have to hand in was given to Peter on two sheets of toilet paper by a student previously... This was flapped around with great glee! No picture, I'm afraid, as this piece of assignment legend included student name and number on it.