Healing injuries with Chinese Medicine

[lhommedieu]

Tom Bisio's "A Tooth from the Tiger's Mouth: How to Treat Your Injuries with Powerful Healing Secrets of the Great Chinese Warrior" is being published on October 14 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon.com. I've known Tom for several years as his student, and more recently, an apprentice in his Chinese medicine clinic. In fact, I went to school and became an acupuncturist fundamentally because I saw first-hand how effective his style of Chinese medicine can be for treating martial arts-related and sports-related injuries.

The book is written for the lay-person, not the clinician (for whom Tom teaches advanced courses in acupuncture, herbology, and bone-setting) and would be a welcome addition in anyone's martial arts libary.

More information can be found at: www.tombisio.com

Best,

Steve Lamade

 

[nlmantis]

Looks very interesting. Does it have a Dit Dat Jow recipe? I would like to see an English-translated version. What are those bugs floating in my secret tonic?

 

[lhommedieu]

Haven't read the book but I imagine there are some die da recipes (e.g. San Huang Wan). The bugs are probably Tu Bei Chong (wingless cockroach).

Actions and indications for Tu Bei Chong include:

"Renews sinews and joins bones: for lacerations, contusions, and fractures. Toasted and ground into a powder, it is used for acute lumbar strain" (Bensky and Gamble's "Materica Medica," p. 292)

In addition, Tu Bei Chong is used to break up blood stasis (e.g. contusions, bruises, etc.)

Best,

Steve Lamade

 

[nlmantis]

How amazing! They actually do look like cockroaches, never thought those little bugs have such good healing power! Thanks for the tip, I'll be sure to order a copy of the book and check it out.

 

[7starmantis]

The jow you guys use are for lacerations and cuts? Most jow recipies I've seen would cause negative issues if accepted into the blood stream.

7sm

 

[lhommedieu]

The jow you guys use are for lacerations and cuts? Most jow recipies I've seen would cause negative issues if accepted into the blood stream.

7sm

That's quite correct: most jows are intended for closed injuries, and some are never intended to be used over major organs or on the face, due to the toxicity of some of the herbs in the formula. An injury to the liver for example would therefore be treated by an "internal jow" or else a decoction specifically meant for organ trauma.

Add to that the fact that a lot of jows have a strong alcohol base - so you wouldn't want to use them on lacerations and cuts either.

There are however herbs that are specifically designed to stop bleeding and heal cuts, and these are typically combined into soaks and poultices that have a water base. For example, San Qi (Pseudoginseng) is frequently used in formulas for this purpose. San Qi has the interesting quality of both stopping bleeding and dispelling congealed blood - so it is a frequent ingredient in both external and internal trauma formula.

San Qi is the major ingredient in the famous patent remedy "Yunanbaiyao."
At a recent Pekiti Tirsia seminar in upstate New York I accidently opened up a small cut on the corner of my training partner's eyebrow. An application of Yunnanbaiyao by Tuhon McGrath stopped the bleeding in less than a minute.

Best,

Steve Lamade

 

[7starmantis]

Yes, I'm aware of herbs that are for the stoppage of bleeding and such, it just sounded as though you guys were using your jow for that purpose, that is why I asked.

7sm

 

[lhommedieu]

Tu Bei Chong

Best,

Steve

 

[chee]

Sorry, I accidentally double-posted...

 

[chee]

Hi Steve, I've just pre-ordered a copy of the book you mentioned. Sounds good!

Do you know if there's a reference pubication out there that has an English/Chinese translation of the herbal names? Herbal name written in Chinese and English side-by-side. There are so many ways to spell the translated names in English that I'm usually confused about which Chinese herb it is. I can read Chinese and it's much easier for me to locate the herb here in the US if I know what it is named in English (or how it's written in translation) or find a Chinese herb in oriental stores and know what it is in English. I am not an herbist but I have lots of books about herbs but they are in English with English names. Thanks.

 

[lhommedieu]

Hi Steve, I've just pre-ordered a copy of the book you mentioned. Sounds good!

Do you know if there's a reference pubication out there that has an English/Chinese translation of the herbal names? Herbal name written in Chinese and English side-by-side. There are so many ways to spell the translated names in English that I'm usually confused about which Chinese herb it is. I can read Chinese and it's much easier for me to locate the herb here in the US if I know what it is named in English (or how it's written in translation) or find a Chinese herb in oriental stores and know what it is in English. I am not an herbist but I have lots of books about herbs but they are in English with English names. Thanks.

Chee,

Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica
by Dan Bensky, Andrew Gamble

About $75 from www.Amazon.com: it's the definitive English text about individual Chinese herbs (and some basic combinations). There is also a companion volume about herbal formulas.

Read the amazon.com description and you'll see why this is a great book. I'm not sure, but I think that there is a newer version coming out from Eastland Press, so you may find the the prices for the 1993 edition (especially used) start to drop. Worth the price though, at $75, or I wouldn't recommend it to you.

Best,

Steve

 

[chee]

Thank you so much!

 

[lhommedieu]

Someone asked about the Die Da formulas in Tom's book. I recently ordered and read a copy; what follows is a description of the formulas discussed in the book taken from my review from www.amazon.com.

A Tooth From the Tiger's Mouth includes in-depth discussion of the following external formulas:

A basic Die Da Jieu (trauma liniment) for acute injuries
A formula for Tendon Lotion for chronic injuries bothered by damp and cold
U-I Oil - a patent remedy
Chinese Massage Oil - a patent remedy
Black Ghost Oil - a patent remedy
San Huang San - a herbal poultice for acute injuries
Sinew-Bone Poultice - a herbal poultice for healing middle or late stage injuries
Wu Yang Pain Relieving Plaster - a patent remedy
Yunnan Paiyao Plaster - a patent remedy
701 Plaster - a patent remedy
Hua Tuo Anticontusion Rheumatism Plaster - a patent remedy
Gou Pi Plaster - a patent remedy
Tendon Relaxing Soak - an herbal soak
Warming Soak - an herbal soak

The following internal formulas are also discussed in detail:

Trauma pills - an herbal pill made with ground herbs and honey
Resinall K - a patent remedy made from an alchohol extract; similar to Qi Li San
Rib Fracture Formula
Bone Knitting Formula
Tonic formulas such as Ge Jie Da Bu Wan, etc.
Individual herbs for healing sinew and bone injuries
Nutritional and dietary supplements

Certainly there are many Die Da formulas available and several excellent books about Die Da formulae are available to the martial artist. However, Tom's book excells insofar as he provides very concise and accurate information about why and when to use different Die Da formulas (based on Chinese medicine theory). Having taken many of Tom's "Kung Fu Traumatology" courses over the past ten years, I can definitively state that A Tooth From the Tiger's Mouthprovides the very best, fundamental, and practical information available to the athlete and martial artist about treating sports and martial arts injuries with Chinese medicine. I remember hearing Tom talk about these formulas for the first time, making or buying them, and then trying them out on myself or on friends and training partners as we got injured during our training. The bottom line is - they work.

However, Tom's book is much more than a discussion of Die Da formulas. There are detailed chapters that describe the principles of Chinese sports medicine, injury prevention with respect to excercise, diet and health preservation, the various therapies of Chinese sports medicine, (including the management of cuts and lacerations, cupping and bleeding, acupressure, massage, and moxibustion), and the treatment of common sports injuries (over 30 are described). Moreover, the book is well-written, logical, and easy to follow. This is a gem of a book.

Best,

Steve

 

[Dronak]

Well, it sounds like an interesting book. Maybe some day I'll pick it up if I remember. About all I could tell you about this sort of thing is that our teacher had some dit da jow that he made and we used for some of our basic sparring training. If it looked like we were getting bruises, he said we should apply some more specifically on those spots to help it clear up faster. As I recall, it did help. It would be interesting to read more about the subject, but I can't really afford very much fun spending right now, so it will have to wait.

 

[MartialMom]

Wow awesome information! I swear by the Jow formula my Sifu prepares. I don't know the recipe but it is amazing stuff. He makes it available to us through an herb shop pre-mixed in bags ready to mix with the vodka and let "cook" for 6 months.

According to my Sifu different styles have different formulas specifically designed for their healing properties. Some focus more on muscle and soft tissue injuries while some are geared more toward bone injuries and bruises (ouch) depending on what the specific style exposes you to. Since ours can and does expose you to all of the above ours is a multi purpose formula.

 

[clfsean]

I use jow after a rousing night of Sam Sing or too long on the moi fa jongs, but if I'm hurt, I'm going to the Doctor.

Eastern medicine is wonderful, but there's a point where a qualified medical doctor is the way to roll. In its heyday, Eastern medicine was leaps & bounds ahead of most everything else on the planet, but today... gimme a MD or specialists to fix problems.

 

[7starmantis]

I use jow after a rousing night of Sam Sing or too long on the moi fa jongs, but if I'm hurt, I'm going to the Doctor.

Eastern medicine is wonderful, but there's a point where a qualified medical doctor is the way to roll. In its heyday, Eastern medicine was leaps & bounds ahead of most everything else on the planet, but today... gimme a MD or specialists to fix problems.

Speaking of Jow, I just got some great jow from New York's Chiu Leun. You know its good jow when its got residue forming at the bottom of the bottle. I agree with clfsean about if your truly injured go to the doctor, but then having been in the medical field I can also say that the best solution to everything is not introducing harsh man made chemicals into your body either. There is a line and you have to really understand the body and know your own body to know when you need to really go to the doctor. I rarely go to the doctor, of course I haven't been sick in years, but there are amazing natural remidies for alot of things. There is a distinction to be made however between injured and sick as far as natural medicine goes.

7sm

 

[Darksoul]

-Leaps and bounds in practice or in theory? I still think eastern medicine has a one-up on the theory part, in terms of treating the disease for example, not just the symptoms. I also don't think western medicine promotes healthy living enough. Drink more tea, eat smaller portions, etc. There is something to be said for combining both east and west, and it's surprising it hasn't happened to any great extent. Well, the US has been like a unruly teenager for awhile, maybe we'll grow up someday. I do feel grateful I have never suffered any major injuries or broken bones, though I suppose the option is always there, haha, especially when training.

A---)