The Benefits of Medical Integration Essay

Yin and Yang is a Chinese philosophy. Yin and Yang connects to Taoism, because it symbolizes balance between opposing sides. It is made of two principles. Yin, the predominately black side,

In Chinese culture, health and illness concentrates on the balance between body, mind, and spirit, expressed as Yin Yang. It symbolizes the idea that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. There is a belief in part of the Chinese culture, that a physical illness is caused by an imbalance of Yin Yang.

Born in China, I grew up with Western medicine alongside thousands-years-old Traditional Chinese Medicine. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, diseases are thought to be due to an imbalance of life energy force (qi). While it has curative treatments, such as herbal medicine and acupuncture, there’s a greater emphasis on disease prevention through balanced diet, meditation, and exercise. My upbringing meant I can appreciate that there might different approaches to medicine and healing. I moved to the US when I was eleven years old and quickly became bilingual. Being fluent in two languages makes it easier for me to not only communicate with more people, but also form deeper connections through a common language. I had the opportunity to experience two cultures, whose differences and similarities have only enriched my life. I believe my exposure to a different type of medicine as well as my immigrant experience helped to shape my worldview and can bring educational benefits to Georgetown.

“Medicine was religion. Religion was society. Society was medicine” (Fadiman, 1997). To the Hmong’s, this is a way of life. Everything in their culture is interrelated and represents a holistic view. As Americans, we try to incorporate the holistic approach into our health care system, but heavily rely on medications and science to treat illness.

Yin and yang are not opposing forces (dualities), but complementary forces, unseen (hidden, feminine) and seen (manifest, masculine), that interact to form a greater whole, as part of a dynamic system. Everything has both yin and yang aspects as light could not be understood if darkness didn't exist, and shadow cannot exist without light.

The alternative medicine of Korean culture is called, Korean Oriental medicine (KOM). “It refers to the medicine native to Korea developed over a period of nearly two thousand years after being grafted with traditional Chinese medicine. It had been called traditional Korean medicine (TKM) since 1986 until recently. Before that, it was simply referred to as traditional Oriental medicine” (Republic of Korea, 2012). Chinese medicine was first introduced to Korea, during the Three Kingdoms period (57 B.C. – 668). It was followed by Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392) and the Joseon Dynasty (1392 – 1910) and developed its own unique nature as Korean Oriental Medicine. This traditional medicine perceives human body as a small universe and is based on the concept of “yin” and “yang”. According to this concept, it sees every object in the universe in two opposing forces, “such as the sun and moon, summer and winter, north and south, and male and female. It studies o-haeng, or the five phases or elements comprising the universe: geum (metal and rock), mok (wood), su (water), hwa (fire), and to (earth). It also studies the process of yuk-gi, or the Six Atmospheric Influences, in the realm of natural science, which are pung (wind), han (cold), yeol (heat), hwa (fire), seup (humidity), and jo (dryness). Western medicine focuses on the human body’s internal organs and is based on anatomy and cytology. It tends to find the cause of illness

All eight paths, help one know what the right thing to do is. (DD3) In China, Yin-Yang exhibits that life has equal good and bad and it will all end satisfactory. Together Yin and Yang is the, “concept of two powers that together represented the natural rhythms of life” (Document F). In life, there are ups and downs, so Yin-Yang depicts this.

The United States is known for its melting pot of cultures, which creates one of the most contentious issues in the medical world which is the clash of cultures. The book we read “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” is a great example of how a miss communication and struggle between cultures which lead to a very dismal end. The difference in beliefs cause constant issues in communication, even though both want what is best.

Yin and Yang is an ancient Chinese philosophy that shows the perfect balance between two things. The yin and yang sign is considered an energy which keeps the concept flowing. It is two

life sciences and medicine drawn from the Taoist traditions of the Yin-Yang and Five Elements

Inherent in the sacred religious myths of China, the story that unfolds is that of the Dao . This harmonious and mythical story of the Dao is something shared by all yet, concealed in natural forces. It is only in the relationship between the Dao and the individual that one’s authentic self is comprehensible. The totality of creation works via the congruent combinations of the harmonizing opposite’s, yin and yang (Esposito 19). Yin is defined as the passive female

The Yin Yang is one of the primary principles of Taoist teachings. The concept of two forces present everywhere, completely opposite to each other yet balancing and enhancing each other. They cannot be separated because they exist together in comparison, and splitting one apart will only create the other anew. Although one force can take prevalence over the other for a short time, anything that is in a state of imbalance for long will cease to exist. The universe is composed of and held together by the tension of these two forces, and this concept is in Taoist writings on Abstraction. (A2)

The concept of globalization, which is the increasing integration and interdependence of different countries from one another in terms of economic, communication, and technological aspects, leads one to address the concept of cultural diversity or multiculturalism. Cultural diversity in the health-care system touches lives of many Americans in one way or another. No matter what our own cultural background is, when we go receive medical care, we may encounter a care giver who comes from a different cultural background than ours(Naylor 1997,291).. In the concept of cultural diversity, it can be recognized that two terms are equally important. The first concept is culture, which refers to the total way of life of individuals, and the unique

Traditional Chinese medicine, or TCM, is one of the oldest systems of medicine to exist among humans, and it is extremely prominent to this day. According to legend, the system has been in use since the third millennium BCE. The views of such an old system differ greatly from those found in modern western medicine. Perhaps most prominent is the fact that TCM focuses more on the patient than the illness. The system considers the human to be a microcosm of the universe, implying that the body is affected by the traditional Taoist forces of yin and yang, the five elements, and Qi in the same way the cosmos are. Each of these forces act upon the “zang fu,” or organ system, directly influencing a patient’s health. Healers use qigong to assist in the restoration of stability in the body. Achieving balance, both internally and externally, is the most important aspect of healing in TCM.

Every culture has its own views of health care, diseases, and medical interventions. The way people of a given culture view health care affects how they handle themselves when they fall ill. For instance, the Asian culture believes that illnesses are caused by supernatural phenomena, which should be diagnosed and treated by means of spiritual healing or traditional herbs. Physicians and other medical practitioners should try to understand the cultural beliefs of their patients to handle them appropriately.