According to the principles of all Chinese medicine, health exists when the body is balanced and its energy is freely flowing. The term "energy" refers to Qi, the life energy that is said to animate the body. The term "balance" refers to the relative factors of yin and yang--the classic Taoist opposing forces of the universe. Yin and yang find their expression in various subsidiary antagonists such as cold vs. heat, dampness vs. dryness, descending vs. ascending, at rest vs. active, and full vs. empty.
In an ideal state, yin and yang in all their forms are perfectly balanced in every part of the body. However, external or internal factors can upset this balance, leading to disease. Chinese medical diagnosis and treatment involves identifying the factors that are out of balance and attempting to bring them back into harmony. Diagnosis is carried out by means of "listening" to the pulse (in other words, taking the pulse with extraordinary care and sensitivity), observing and palpating various parts of the body, and asking a long series of questions.
It is important to realize that diagnosis according to TCHM differs greatly from Western diagnosis. To understand this, consider two hypothetical patients with the single Western diagnosis of migraine headaches. The first might be said to have "dryness in the liver and ascending Qi," while another might be diagnosed with "exogenous wind-cold." Based on these differing diagnoses, entirely different remedies might be applied. In other words, there is no such thing as a TCHM remedy for migraines per se; rather, treatment must be individualized to the imbalance determined by traditional theory.
