Western World Established Mind-Body Medicine through New Scientific Approaches
By David Park Founder, South Baylo University
I have explained similarities of Asian medicine and new science.
Conventional science explains mind and body are independent entities and mind cannot be measured or understood by science. New science also agrees with conventional science’s point of view of differences of mind and body. But new science considers mind and body are sharing same root and mind can be analyzed by scientific tools.
I personally agree with idea of new science regarding understandings of mind and body. For example, there is distinctive difference of understanding a symptom such as stroke. In western medical science thinks stoke caused by malfunction of brain vessel and classified by an ischemic stroke and a hemorrhagic stroke. Ischemic stroke caused by a clot obstructing the flow of blood to the brain and hemorrhagic stroke caused by a blood vessel rupturing and preventing blood flow to the brain.
In Asian medicine, stroke is caused by the wind started from the liver. Also, the liver which, in Asian medicine, is not just anatomical organ. It contains anatomical aspect and its functional aspects. Any symptoms on eyes, blood deficiency, and nail dryness are considered a sign of malfunction of the liver.
An acupuncturist treats a root of various symptoms because healing of the liver will affect and resolve symptoms on eyes, blood deficiency, and nail dryness all altogether.
Respiratory symptom could be controlled by treating lung meridian and shoulder pain would be reduce by treating small intestine meridian. This explains that Asian medicine is not just focused on symptoms that a patient complains but focused symptom by on root-cause analysis in order to find reason that underlies current symptom.
Recently, western science started to accept concept of psychosomatic which means mind (psyche) and body (soma). The term psychosomatic refers to real physical symptoms that arise from the mind and are influenced by emotions rather than a specific organic cause in the body such as an injury or infection.
Based on psychosomatic point of view, onset of certain symptoms or diseases is due to stress. Also, chronic stress can cause heart and stomach related diseases and asthma. Sorrow and frustration will change stomach mucosa condition and reduce amount of acid secretion. The change will lead hypokinesia of the stomach. Under hypokinesia continues symptoms like indigestion and bloating will appear. Anger will affect stomach and make congestion of stomach. The changes easily lead ulcer by increased amount of acid secretion.
Psychosomatic medicine is a kind of new science and medical field exploring the relationships among social, psychological and behavioral factors on bodily processes and quality of life. Recently studies regarding psychosomatic medicine have been increased in quantity and quality. The medicine is not separating mind and body and has emphasis social and psychological aspects that influence body.
I am pleased by changing ideas among western medical field to understand mind and body. It is more like Asian medical understandings – which understand a human body represent the universe and nature, of mind and body.
