Clinical study trip to Guangzhou, China October 2010

The College organises clinical study visits to well established hospitals in China for practitioners of acupuncture or Chinese herbal medicine. These trips provide graduates with a valuable opportunity to find out more about the way Chinese medicine is currently practised in its country of origin. More…

Shen: emotional disorders and our clinical practice

Date: Sat 22 Jan 2011

Where: College of Integrated Chinese Medicine - Reading

Time: 10:00 - 17:00

Price: £

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Event description

Develop your understanding of the psychic aspects of health disorders with Elisa Rossi at the College of Integrated Chinese Medicine, Reading.

The opening of the first Chinese text dedicated to acupuncture reads: 'All acupuncture methods must find their root in the shen' (Huangfu Mi, Zhenjiu jiayijing, 'The systematic classic of acupuncture and moxibustion', AD 259, chapter 1). These words echo the first sentence of chapter 8 of the Lingshu.

Those who treat the sick and in particular those who use non-conventional medicines are well aware of the importance of psychic aspects in the disorders described by patients. Some patients speak directly of anxiety, depression, insomnia and agitation, expressing an emotional and mental discomfort; others describe this 'feeling unwell' through sensations such as pain, weight, swelling and knots. There are times when the 'emotional illness' shows itself clearly, other times when it seeps in with the most alarming modalities. In both cases it is clear that a psychic aspect permeates our everyday practice.

Acupuncture has attracted many of us precisely because it is a medicine which considers the person as a whole. Moreover it seems to produce substantial effects even on the most subtle aspects, in spite of its apparent focus on the body. It is always fascinating to see how important the connection is between psychic and physical disorders in the Chinese way of interpreting signs in patients. It is also of great comfort to see how our work is facilitated by not having to separate emotional, mental and somatic areas.

The perspective we shall take in this session is mainly on emotions as movements of qi. We’ll see how the disorder of qi influences the denser and thinner forms of qi (body, zangfu, shen).

And we'll discuss the clinical presentation of disturbing states (such as anxiety, depression, panic attacks, food disorders and psychotic outbursts) from the Chinese medicine viewpoint. This will lead us to consider treatment hypotheses, doubts and successes – and consider questions arising from real cases.

Topics for the day
• How to recognise emotions and the movement of qi in patients and in the patient-practitioner relationship.
• A review of some key points from classical texts, such as constraint (yu), internal heat (neire), agitation and restlessness (fanzao), examining their relationship to the most common clinical manifestations, for example depression, anxiety, panic attacks and insomnia.
• Guidelines for treatment with acupuncture and traditional complementary methods, with a discussion of relevant cases.

Elisa Rossi MD has been a practising acupuncturist since 1983, holds a PhD in clinical psychology, is a Jungian psychotherapist and holds a BA in philosophy. She gained clinical experience in acupuncture during several periods of attendance at hospitals in Beijing, Nanjing, Shanghai and Jinan, China.

In 1994 Elisa co-founded the MediCina Chinese medicine school in Italy. She is a member of the Milan Medical Board for Non-Conventional Medicine. She researches, teaches and publishes on the psychic-shen aspects of Chinese medicine and on paediatrics. In 2002 she founded and still runs Xiaoxiao – a free acupuncture and tui na children’s centre in Milan. At the centre she has conducted two free pilot projects, one for the prevention and treatment of winter respiratory diseases and one for hyperkinetic children. She also collaborates with Agopuntura Senza Frontiere (Acupuncture Without Borders) and volunteered for the third training session in Madagascar in 2008.

Elisa's articles can be found in the European Journal of Chinese Medicine and the Journal of Chinese Medicine. She is also the author of Shen – Psycho-Emotional Aspects of Chinese Medicine, Churchill Livingstone, 2007, Basi di Medicina Cinese e Clinica di Tuina, CEA, 2004 and Medicina Cinese e Pediatria, CEA, 2010.

Course fee

£ Refunds cannot be made unless at least two weeks notice is given.

Parking and rail travel

Parking is available at the Oracle shopping centre nearby. There is no car parking available at the College. We are a short walk from Reading railway station, at 19 Castle Street. Click here for directions and a map.