mugwort – TCM & Moxibustion

Moxibustion and Back Pain

January 20, 2020January 10, 2020 by Moxaman

The following is an article from ‘Yahoo Lifestyle Austrailia‘, which shows a real case of moxibustion working on pack pain.

“I Tried Moxibustion, and It Calmed My Anxiety and Back Pain Immediately!”

An acupuncturist sticks pieces of burning plant roots on my shins and the bottoms of my feet to help calm my back pain and anxiety – it’s a practice called moxibustion, and it’s my favorite form of self-care.

If you’re unfamiliar with the technique, moxibustion is the warming and stimulating of acupuncture points using moxa, a dried Asian herb derived from the mugwort root, and is often incorporated into acupuncture sessions. According to Donna Hernández, a licensed acupuncturist and board-certified herbalist at the Yinova Center in New York City, the 2,000-year-old practice can improve the circulation of blood flow and Qi (what is believed to be one’s life force or energy), as well as aid in relieving pain, fatigue, anxiety, infertility, and digestive disorders.

I stumbled upon moxibustion thanks to a Google search deep dive in a time of desperation. Completely defeated by my mental and physical aches, a slew of holistic-based articles led me to the practice. Now, I always finish my 90-minute sessions with five minutes of moxibustion.

Although moxa comes in many forms, from balms to incense to cones, my acupuncturist uses stick-on moxa, which looks as though the end of a cigarette was placed on a small metal bolt, so it stands up straight. My acupuncturist sticks one onto the center of each of my shins and one at the bottom of both my feet. She then lights the ends and lets them burn down towards my skin.

Once lit, the moxa sticks can cause slight pain in the literal heat of the moment. The root is on fire, so you feel a burning sensation as it shortens toward your skin – but it’s worth it. Trust the process. It shouldn’t actually burn your skin, so always speak up if it gets too painful.

Hernández clarified that the moxa is placed on the bottom of your feet to warm the Kidney 1 acupuncture point, a calming and nourishing point that helps ease the spirit of the body, ground the patient, and pull out inflammation.

The point below your knees on the center of your shin is called the Stomach 36 point, which is known to aid back pain, Hernández said.

Within the first few seconds of the five-minute practice, the earthy, sage-like smell of the burning root fills the room, and you feel a wave of relaxation come over your body. After, my mind is still, my back is pain-free, and I seemingly float home.

This elevated state of relaxation lasts for a few hours after my acupuncture session, but I do feel that my anxiety and back pain is milder for the following week.

Hernández noted that moxa is very powerful and drying, so it’s important to use sparingly. Although you can partake on your own, it’s wise to learn best practices from a certified acupuncturist first, as moxibustion therapy varies from person-to-person depending on what needs to be remedied.

I have yet to try any holistic treatment that compares to moxibustion; the immediate relief I’ve felt is unparalleled to other practices. I am forever grateful to Google and my acupuncturist for the introduction. Now, I know how to instantly reset my body and mind when I need it most.

Moxibustion Case: Sub-health*

December 11, 2019 by Moxaman

Moxibustion not only brings out Pure Yang nature of mugwort, but also bear the effect of dredging the meridians, so it is nemesis for many modern diseases. I have treated many patients with this method, and a young girl in her twenties is very representative. She was a white-collar worker of a large firm in Beijing, who mostly sit in front of a computer and often worked overtime. She came to me because of her insomnia. She could not sleep at night for over two months; She was dizzy during the day, unable to concentrate, and easily out of temper. Her superior criticized her for being absent-minded. She felt wronged, but was unable to fight this condition with medicine or supplements.

My analysis of her situation is a combination of Cold, Qi and Deficiency. Wearing thin business outfits and working in AC environment, therefore afflicted by severe Cold; bad temper coupled with criticism from superiors and busy work, ‘Qi’ grew stronger and blocked the meridians; sitting in front of the computer all day with no exercise, often working overtime, Original Yang was heavily consumed. All these caused her physical weakness and deficiency in the twenties. Many people are similar to her nowadays, who work hard for a good career, but ended up throwing money to doctors.

Her illness was mainly reflected in poor energy and emotional changes. According to TCM theory “Heart governs the mind”, so I performed moxibustion** on her acupoints in the heart meridian such as Shenmen, and used the firepower of moxibustion to open up her blocked meridians. I also performed moxibustion on her acupoints in her head such as Baihui, Dazhui and Anmian, plus Yongquan on the foot, so Yang Qi could rise to her head and improve the supply of Blood and Qi. Lastly, I told her to soak feet in warm water with mugwort leaves every night, which had the dual effects of dispelling Cold and replenishing Yang. Within a month of following these advice, all her original discomforts disappeared.

For a long time, mugwort was nothing but a weed that nobody cared about, but once combined with fire, it becomes effective prescription for many diseases. By using mugwort to expel Cold and tonify Yang, and moxibustion to regulate Qi and dredge meridians, one could get vitality as tenacious as the weeds; so no matter how rampant Qi and Cold become, they would never be able to undermine the giant tree of health.

*These cases are selected from a book “Various Diseases Treated by Moxibustion”, written by Shan Xiamin, a renowned Chinese doctor .

**Severe adverse effect may occur, one should not perform any type of moxibustion without instruction of person of rich experience or professional.

Moxibustion- Nemesis of Cold, Qi, and Deficiency

December 10, 2019 by Moxaman

Moxibustion is the nemesis of Cold, Qi, and Deficiency

One may notice that in previous posts regarding expelling Cold-evils, dredging meridians, supplementing Original Yang, and regulating Righteousness Qi, all the examples are related to moxibustion. In TCM, acupuncture actually consists of two parts: acupuncture and moxibustion. In the Chinese word of acupuncture- “针灸“, “针“ means Acupuncture and “灸” means Moxibustion. This is my preferred method for treatment as it is particularly effective for diseases of modern people.

The method of “moxibustion” could allegedly be traced back to the as early as the Paleolithic Age when fire was first discovered. It can be observed from the Chinese character of “灸”(moxibustion), where the bottom half- “火“ means ‘Fire‘ (The image above shows evolution of the character). Fire could generate active energy, stimulate and dredge meridians, as well as reconcile/regulate Qi and Blood.

In the Classic “Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor”, it was mentioned “…where beyond reach of acupuncture, it may be appropriate for moxibustion”; also in “Introduction of Medicine”, “…where herbs and acupuncture stop to work, moxibustion must be performed”. Therefore, it is arguable that moxibustion is the best treatment method among all four Chinese treatment methods: Stone Needle, Acupuncture, Moxibustion and Herbs.

Although there are various types of moxibustion, the most commonly known is that performed with mugwort; this is because it is as magical as moxibustion. Mugwort’s function was mentioned in a number of ancient TCM works, but they can all be summarized in two words “Pure Yang”. Because mugwort features Pure Yang, it has wonderful effects on treating Cold evil and Yang Deficiency.

Even today many people still use mugwort leaves for foot bath or put mugwort leaves into sachet and wear it to achieve the purpose of consolidating Yang and expelling Cold. These are very practical fold remedy.